The Roman Hillside

Calvi-The Art Monastery
October 11th-15th


Although having a car in Europe is extremely expensive-about $70 for a tank of gas and the ungodly tolls on the autostrade, we were still glad we had our beloved Skoda. The scenery and towns we frequented would not have been feasible if we had used public transportation, especially our next stop Calvi dell Umbria. An hour and a half outside of Rome approximately 20 miles off the main highway snaking our way through the countryside, we reached The Art Monastery.

We found this volunteer program on a website called Working Away. We chose it not only for its location but it was a different type of program than WWOOFing. The project is run by two Americans from San Francisco with a vision to start an artist colony housed in an old monastery in the town square in Calvi dell Umbria. The monastery is being refurbished so the organization rents out an old bed and breakfast to house the artists and hold their events and seminars. It is perfectly situated on the pinnacle of the Umbrian hillside overlooking acres of olive trees with distant views of the neighboring villages. Located at a higher altitude, Calvi was showing the first signs of Fall. The first day we noticed the fog rolling in over the hillside and within minutes a horrendous rainstorm hit knocking out the electricity and rattling the windows with the wind gusts.

With October being the slow season, we had our own room in one of the suites. We shared the common areas with another worker Genevieve who is from the Philly/Boston area. Two of the other volunteers were high school graduates Hayley and Nick from Pittsburgh. They deferred their first year of college to travel throughout Europe. The rest of the cast of characters included Julia, the marketing manager, who is from the east coast, Judith the volunteer coordinator who is from “The Hague” (that’s for you Leo) and the caretaker who is from Italy. Although we were not expecting any visiting artists, we were pleasantly surprised when several travelers arrived to spend the night at the bed and breakfast. The first night, Billy and Anna from San Francisco stayed with us. Being a surprise visit, Julia had to whip together a dinner for the guests. Roby and I decided to eat with the group and we were so grateful because the conversation at dinner with Billy and Anna was so enjoyable. We “talked story” for about three hours listening to Billy’s adventures and involvement with Burning Man in Nevada . The next night our visitors were from Holland and Germany. We had planned to do a potluck dinner with all the employees and volunteers that evening so instead of cancelling it we invited Jasper and his girlfriend to join us. They fit in right away and even helped cook and clean afterwards. The kitchen scene reminded me of the Big Chill. With the wine flowing the conversation was lively. We learned Jasper is a producer of outdoor festivals in Holland. The uniqueness is they are held at castles. He researches the family who owns each castle and designs his shows around the family history. He had driven from Holland just to see this special garden in Bomarzo Italy as research for his events. Jasper and his girlfriend decided to stay a few extra days so they helped us celebrate Judith’s 30th birthday.

Thursday the weather cleared up so after our chores Roby and I drove over to the Bomarzo Gardens which is the sculpture park Jasper had told us about at dinner. It is an estate designed by an eccentric old man. After he passed away the park sat in disarray for many years until it was purchased by a foundation and revamped into a park. The pictures we took cannot capture the proportion and size of the stone sculptures. Walking through the park sparks an immediate response you are in a fairytale scene. The fog lingering over the garden pathways set the scene for the scary sculptures to come alive and attack you. A perfect place to have a festival.

One would think with all this fun we did not work. Each morning, though, Judith had a list of chores for us to complete. I helped Nick and Hayley with the maintenance and cleaning and Roby was tasked with building a new chicken tractor. The organization did not have a lot of tools or materials. After scrounging around the site, Roby found some old lumber, a used broken screen door, and some bent nails. Walla, he had everything he needed. On our last day he put on the finishing touches-a solar sunscreen to provide shade. Judith and I grabbed the chickens to test out the new contraption. They loved it. Now they could move around the yard instead of being cooped up in one spot. Roby was their hero.

Our week went by too quickly. Roby and I said goodbye to Judith and the gang, letting them know we would be back to see the finished project. Since we were heading toward Florence we offered to give Hayley and Nick a ride to the train station for their trip to Pisa. Road Trip!