Since Chad works during the week, we try to take advantage of the weekends to make trips around the region.  We knew it was supposed to start raining this afternoon and rain through tomorrow, so we took advantage of the clear skies in the morning to go to Larino.

Larino is another hilltop town.  While it is just a few kilometers away, it’s a 25-minute drive since most of the drive is on curving mountain roads.

Similar to our visit to Casacalenda, Larino felt big to me with its population of 6,700 people.  The new part of the town is higher on the hill with several supermarkets, retail shops, and other businesses, and it sits on the site of the original Samnite/Roman town of Larinum from the early second century BC.  On the edge of the newer part of town are the remnants of a Roman amphitheater.

The medieval town center is a little further down the mountain and is nestled in a little valley.  Similar to Guardialfiera, some streets are wide enough for cars and some are pedestrian-only. 

The buildings are typically two or three stories, frequently with shops on the ground floor and residences above.  Sprinkled throughout are former family palazzi (mansions) which were built in the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries.

There are also a few churches in the old town center with the main cathedral (il duomo) being the most important.  The duomo was built in the early 14th century just after the town had been flattened by an earthquake and sacked by the Saracens.  When we travel, we have a rule:  If we see a church and the door is open, we must go in and look at the art and architecture.

After wandering around the old town, we followed our noses to a panificio (bread bakery) which smelled so good!  It turned out to be a large bakery kitchen without a retail shop.  We talked to one of the workers and learned that they usually have a table and cash register during the mornings, but today they weren’t selling; they were just baking.  She advised us to come back on Tuesday morning.  (Easter Monday is a religious holiday so they will be closed.)

Then we popped into a pasticceria (sweets bakery) to have an espresso.  We were quite surprised to learn that an espresso there was only 50 cents.  It is usually 1 euro.  We also picked up a few dolci (sweets/desserts) to bring home.

Before we left Larino, we took the opportunity to go to a supermarket to pick up a few things.  Friends of ours have chickens and have given us some fresh eggs, so, in addition to other items, we purchased some wheat flour and some semolina flour to make pasta from scratch.  We left Larino just as it started raining.

We made it back to Guardialfiera at 12:45 pm, just in time to stop by our little bar to have a beer before lunch.  Plus, we saw our friends who gifted us with another batch of eggs.  Now we’ve settled in for a cold and rainy afternoon with the heat on (via radiators), some snacks, and Netflix.  Not a bad way to spend a Saturday.