Mid August in Italy - A time for holidays and the Toffia Music Festival

Mid- August is the time of year that many Italians take their holidays. Going to the mountains or to the sea to enjoy family time and relief from the hottest days of the Italian Summer.

Small family run businesses close with the sign "Chiuso per Ferie" with the dates that they are away for, firmly stuck on the closed security door. 

 

The Sabine Hills is well known for it's Summer time music and food festivals and Italians come from near and far to celebrate together. So while most Italians are on holidays, those who have stayed closer to home will come together with family and friends to enjoy wandering around the local medieval hilltop villages, such as Toffia, listening to live music, appreciating the local artists and artisans, and absorbing the wonderful atmosphere.

We are in the midst of Toffia's 25th annual Riviviamo il Centro Storico Festival. The energy is electric as all the locals come together (after many months of preparation) to help put on this festival every year. It is quite unlike any other festival in the area. Here are some photos to give you an idea of what the Toffia Festival is all about.

Toffia village set with lamps_this year's theme

Book presentation, with live music_violin played

Local artist's watercolour of Toffia

Street performers on stilts and local musicians

local young band playing in the medieval streets

Performance of play written and acted by Toffia residence

For more recipes: Guido's FREE recipe e-booklet '5 Minute Pasta'

Convivio Rome Italian Cooking Holidays

One Day Italian Cooking Classes

Half Day Rome Olive Tours

Half Day Rome Winery and Wine Tasting Tours

Virtual Italian Cooking Parties

Online Cooking Classes with Chef Guido

Corporate Virtual Cooking Events

The magical medieval village of Toffia- Video

Toffia, a medieval hilltop village, dates back to 940AD is nestled in the Sabine Hills, just north of Rome, Italy. This little village, population over just over 1200 residents, has an active community. Toffia is best known for it's music and food festivals held over the Summer period. 

Toffia is unknown to mass tourism and continues to offer an authentic taste of Italian life. Come along and 'live like a local' in joining Convivio Rome 4 and 5 Day Italian Cooking Holidays where you will be staying in one of the recently renovated homes within the historic walls. Let Chef Guido and Sally, from Convivio Rome, bring Italy alive for you.

For more information: info@conviviorome.com

Bookings now being taken, (with fully transferable deposit) for 2021 and 2022. 

Convivio Rome Italian Cooking Holidays

One Day Italian Cooking Classes

Half Day Rome Olive Tours

Half Day Rome Winery and Wine Tasting Tours

Virtual Italian Cooking Parties

Online Cooking Classes with Chef Guido

Corporate Virtual Cooking Events

Online Video Italian Cooking Package

Podcast: Foodie Finds in the Sabine Hills, near Rome - Chef Guido and Sally talk to Katy from Untold Italy

Find out more about Sally and Chef Guido and about the beautiful Rome countryside, in Italy, where they have been living and working for the past 15 years. 

Grab a glass of wine, sit back and enjoy this podcast with Chef Guido and Sally, talking to Katy Clarke from Untold Italy.

What made them move to the Sabine Hills?

What is it like to live in a small medieval hilltop village in Italy?

What is the perfect time of year to visit  this unspoilt area?

Why is the extra virgin olive oil of Sabina so famous? 

We invite you to listen to this Podcast and Interview by Katy Clarke from 'Untold Italy' with Chef Guido and Sally from Convivio Rome Italian Cooking Classes and Italian Culinary Vacations

EPISODE #033: FOODIE FINDS IN THE SABINE HILLS NEAR ROME

POSTED ON AUGUST 6, 2020 BY ITALY_ADMIN

*****

Complementary Italian Cooking Package

Convivio Rome Italian Cooking Classes and Cooking Holidays 

Convivio Rome Day Italian Cooking and Touring Experiences

Rome Wine Tours - Half Day Winery and Wine Tasting Tour 

Rome Olive Tours - Half Day Rome Olive Oil Tasting and Olive Grove Tour

Virtual Live Italian Cooking Parties and Cooking Classes

Guido's Cook Club - Monthly Membership

Rome Day Trip: the Sabine Hills

The Sabine Hills: a perfect day trip from Rome 

Only 35 minutes from Rome's outskirts and just north of the Capital, perfect for a day out in the countryside or a longer stay as part of a relaxing holiday, the Sabine Hills (Sabina) will reward its visitors with ancient medieval history, unspoilt landscape, renaissance palaces castles and monasteries, cultural events, art exhibitions, hiking trails and of course the 'Sabina DOP' extra virgin olive oil from its olive groves.

Toffia, 930AD is the oldest medieval village in Sabina (the Sabine Hills)

Dating back to 1200's, this medieval hilltop village is a hidden treasure

Unspoilt countryside

The way the Sabine Hills are still today very rural and unspoilt is almost miraculous, despite its vicinity with a big city like Rome. The landscape of Sabina is quintessentially Italian, with its rolling hills covered by olive groves and fruit orchards and dotted with medieval hilltop villages and castles. Because of the olive trees and other evergreen mediterranean plants, the Sabine hills are always very green, all year round. A visit to one of the many hilltop villages in the area, will reveal beautiful views over valleys and mountains in the far distance. 

Views over olive groves and hilltop villages in the Sabine Hills

The Sabine Hills offers magnificent views over unspoilt countryside

History 
Sabina is an ancient land where civilisation started way before Rome and the local archaeological museum in Fara Sabina tells a story of walled cities, powerful kings and the development of fine art, pottery, jewellery and elaborate bronze manufacts from 2,600 years ago. Three of the seven kings of Rome, Tito Tazio, Numa Pompilio and Anco Marzio, were from here. 

During the middle ages, Sabina was part of the Holy Roman Empire and thanks to Charlemagne and his land donations, a local monastery called Farfa became a huge economic and military power in the area. The Farfa monastery owed its wealth to olive oil production for many centuries, as it was the largest landowner in Central Italy and it become an independent city state, its borders reaching well into modern Tuscany, Umbria and Le Marche.

500 year old streets run between the ancient monastery and artisan shops in Farfa

Sightseeing

National parks such as Monti Lucretili and vast conservation areas allow those passionate about hiking or mountain biking to explore the area using ancient  trails, walking through green valleys, woods and cultivated land. However, even just visiting some of the villages in Sabina will be an experience in itself. Medieval villages like Toffia, Castelnuovo di Farfa, Fara Sabina, Farfa, Bocchignano or Montopoli have impressive defensive walls, beautifully decorated renaissance palaces and ancient churches.

Toffia, one of the most beautiful hilltop villages in the Sabine Hills

A maze of picturesque alleyways, archways and little piazzas will welcome the visitor, almost resembling a movie set, without the mass tourism of other Italian regions. Impressive medieval castles can be seen in Rocca Sinibalda (Castello Cesarini, 1084 AD) and in Frasso Sabino (Castello Sforza, 955 AD).

Medieval streets and picturesque doorways in Castelnuovo di Farfa

 Great photo opportunities lie within the medieval streets

Culture
Today, Sabina is well known for its art and music festivals which are organised throughout the year. Toffia is famous for its "Festa del Centro Storico', an art, music and street theatre festival which lasts for 5 nights in mid-August and attracts more than 3,000 people every night. Toffia is also known for its very active theatre, run by 'Officina 33'. In Fara Sabina there is an international Jazz Festival in July and Casaprota hosts the interesting art and music 'Arterie festival'.

A local music trio, called 'Lamorivostri', keeps traditional music alive, with frequent concerts in the Sabina area and in Rome.

Sabina is well known for its music and art festivals 

Food

Sabina is famous for its extra virgin olive oil, the very first in Italy to receive the DOP denomination. Olive oil has been produced here for millennia (there is an olive tree that's 2000 years old) and is known for being light and flavoursome at the same time. The area is also well known for pecorino cheese, olives, salami and of course guanciale (cured pork cheek), necessary for any amatriciana or carbonara sauce. Cooking Holidays are run in Toffia. One day cooking classes, as well as olive oil tours, and wine tours are also offered in the Sabine Hills area.

There are many Restaurants to choose from in Sabina. For an interesting combination of traditional dishes with a touch of creativity there is 'La Taverna del Corsari' in Montopoli.

How to get there from Rome

Fara Sabina is the best place to begin to explore the Sabine Hills. There is an excellent direct train departing every 15 minutes from many stations in Rome (Ostiense, Trastevere and Tiburtina, for example) to Fara Sabina Station. It takes 39 minutes to get from Rome Tiburtina to Fara Sabina. Here there are buses to many different villages in the Sabina area. By car, the direct way is via Rome-Florence (A1) motorway, Fiano Romano exit, then following signs to Rieti and Via Salaria, then to Fara Sabina.
If you join any of our Convivio Rome Culinary Holidays, or day activities such as our cooking classes, olive tour and wine tours, we include a free pick up and return service to our local train station.

Cooking Classes: https://www.conviviorome.com/one-day/your-day-cooking-experience.html

Olive Oil Tours: https://www.conviviorome.com/olive-tour.html

Wine Tours: https://www.winetoursrome.com/

Visit the Sabine Hills, Virtually: Convivio Rome are also offering fun Virtual Cooking Parties and LIVE Cooking Classes, where you can learn authentic Italian cuisine in a fully interactive live cooking class. If you wish get an authentic taste of Italy, and meet like minded people, you can also join Chef Guido's monthly membership called 'Guido's Cook Club'

Train information: can be found on trenitalia.com site

Bus information: can be found on cotralspa.it

© Guido Santi, 2020

Additional background information on Guido: Guido Santi is an eighth generation Roman who has a passion for cooking traditional Italian cuisine and for local, fresh, organic food and wine. As a follower of the Slow Food philosophy, he supports and promotes local farmers and the 'zero kilometres' philosophy. Guido runs "Convivio Rome" with his Australian wife Sally, offering cooking classes, 3 and 5 night culinary holidays, plus olive oil tours and wine tours in or nearby the medieval hilltop village of Toffia, Sabina (Italy), just north of Rome. You can follow Convivio Rome on Facebook and on Instagram

View from Guido's home and the Convivio Rome Cooking School

www.conviviorome.com

www.winetoursrome.com

Toffia, Toffia, Toffia: my discovery of this medieval village in the heart of the Sabine Hills

Many of our cooking guests, ask me, Why Toffia? How did you discover Toffia? Why did you choose to settle here? Yes, it is a beautiful medieval hilltop village close to Rome, but is it also one of many in the Sabine Hills....so again, why Toffia?

Toffia, dates back to 930AD and is perched on a ridge. Absolutely breath-taking

My Story: Being born and brought up in Rome, and living on the northern side of Rome, my family used to travel to this area for excursions to purchase the famous Sabina DOP extra virgin olive oil, the cured meats and the wonderful arrange of pecorino (sheep) cheese. So my introduction to the Sabine Hills started when I was young and always related to the wonderful quality food that was found in this region.

The beautiful and very green Sabine Hills, peaceful and relaxing, great for country walks

My discovery of Toffia came later when I took Sally,  who later became my wife, on excursions to rediscover the wonders of Sabina and the Rome countryside. On one of these many excursions we stopped to visit the historic centre and to enjoy a pizza making festival. I always had fond memories of that day, and how the village seemed so alive and the locals so friendly.

Toffia has many food and music festivals from May to October

So eventually, when we were looking to purchase a home near Rome, we settled on Toffia. We bought an apartment in the heart of the historic centre, near the main church, perched on one of the higher parts of the historic village, with amazing views over the olive groves, mountains and unspoilt valleys below. It was just magical.

View from our home, your accommodation, in Toffia

Spectacular views over unspoilt valleys from Toffia

We now use our home as accommodation for our 3 and 5 night Italian Cooking Holidays, in hope that our cooking guests will also discover the magic of this ancient Italian village, only 40 kms from Rome.

Toffia is one of the most unspoilt, lively and better kept medieval hilltop villages in Italy. It is conveniently situated between Rome and Umbria and is full of  ancient restored palazzos, churches and small piazzas  from which it is possible to admire sweeping views of olive groves and vineyards in the surrounding valleys. As other villages in the region, Toffia’s beauty has not been yet discovered by mass tourism and retains all its authenticity.

Toffia

Toffia was built in 930 AD on a ridge and it raises dramatically above two very green valleys. In medieval times two rival Roman aristocratic families, Orsinis and Colonnas, fought over Toffia for centuries. Our accommodation, Casa Convivio Rome, stands on the side once ruled by the Colonna family! Toffia is within Sabina or Sabine Hills, a region famous for its excellent 'DOP' olive oil. Many festivals, including art and music festivals, are held in Toffia between May and September.

Toffia, inside the historic centre

When you join us for a 3 or 5 night Convivio Rome Italian Cooking Holiday: We offer a free pick up and return service from our local train station, called Fara Sabina-Montelibretti

View from our Cooking School and home over the Sabine Hills, near Rome

General Information on Toffia
Travel times and transport to Rome: 
- By car: 35 minutes to the Rome's ring road (metropolitan area) via A1 motorway or 50 minutes to the very centre of Rome (Spanish Steps).
- By car and train (park and ride): 15 minutes to Fara Sabina Train Station, then 37 minutes to central Rome (Tiburtina Station).
- By bus from Toffia + train:  about an hour in total.
Travel times to Umbria:
-  By car: 30-40 minutes to the Umbrian "border".
Services in the village: mini supermarket, post office, pharmacy, doctor's studio, butcher shop, hardware store, theatre, infants and primary school, free afternoon child care, linen shop, library.
Theatre: it's set in a restored former 14th Century church and offers regular performances, live music, cinema, art exhibitions, poetry reading and various courses.
Just in case, you never wish to leave: The following courses and classes are available at the theatre: yoga, ceramic, dance, theatre, music classes for children and adults.
Sports field (covered): available for different sports, including free volleyball and football classes for children.
English speaking community:  The authenticity and natural beauty of the Sabina region and the village of Toffia and its close proximity to Rome have recently started to attract a small number of English-speakers as full-time residents and holiday makers.

Convivio Rome conduct 3 and 5 night cooking holidays in Toffia, all year round. For more information: http://www.conviviorome.com/cooking-holidays/your-cooking-holiday.html

5 night Cooking Holiday Dates for 2019

3 night Cooking Holiday Dates for 2019

Planning ahead: If you are planning a trip in 2019 or 2020 and cannot find suitable dates, please contact us via email on: info@conviviorome.com

Convivio Rome also conduct One Day and Half Day Italian Cooking Classes, Half Day Olive Tours and Half Day Wine Tours.

www.conviviorome.com

www.winetoursrome.com

Toffia Summer Festival. Discover this medieval hilltop village, near Rome in Italy

Toffia dates back to 930AD. When you wander around the cobbled streets you see it's amazing history come alive. Nowadays Toffia is the home to just over 1,000 residents and is one of the most active and well kept medieval hilltop villages in the Sabine Hills, near Rome. This video, taken during the Toffia Summer Festival this year, gives you a taste of our beautiful and authentic village.

You stay in the heart of these ancient walls during your 3 and 5 night Italian Cooking Holidays and Culinary Vacations with Convivio Rome. 
For our 2018 and 2019 Cooking Holiday dates can be found here.
More information can also be found on our Convivio Rome website.

Enjoy the video.

www.conviviorome.com

www.winetoursrome.com

Martha's Visit to the Sabine Hills, just north of Rome

First stop, our local medieval hilltop village of Castelnuovo di Farfa 

It was a real pleasure introducing Martha and James, to some of the hidden villages of the Sabine Hills. We have been in contact with Martha, an Italian travel expert, for many years, but this was the first time we had a chance to show our friends around.  

Martha and James at Farfa Abbey with us

Martha has travelled to all of Italy’s 20 regions and is passionate about sharing her vast travel experiences with others. Find out what she wrote about her day with us in her newsletter:

Martha's Italy

Martha and James also visited Toffia, where our 3 and 5 night cooking holidays are held

Read about Martha and James visit on Martha's Italy

Thanks so much for coming along and it was a real pleasure showing you the Sabine Hills. We hope you will be back to join us again on your next visit to Italy.

www.conviviorome.com

www.winetoursrome.com