Blue Skies and a Perfect day in Sant’Andrea di Compito

The countryside around Lucca, Italy is dotted with beautiful villas and interesting small towns. One inviting place to visit is the medieval borgo (village) of Sant’Andrea di Compito which sits along a small stream and up a gentle hill, about 10 km (about 6 miles) outside of Lucca.

Sunny skies, the sound of water in the stream, and birds singing all contributed to a perfect March day in Sant’Andrea di Compito

Known as the Borgo delle Camelie, Sant’Andrea di Compito plays host each March to a festival showcasing an astounding collection of ancient camellia bushes, both the ornamental variety and the variety used for making tea. In fact, Italy’s only tea field (actually a walled garden, the Antico Chiusa Borrini) can be found here.

I visited Sant’Andrea during the annual Camellia Festival in 2018 and again in 2019 but had not returned since the lifting of pandemic restrictions. It was definitely past time for a return visit! So, along with a few friends, I set off for Sant’Andrea di Compito on a sunny spring-like morning. The village was just as charming as I remembered and the bright blue skies provided the perfect backdrop for wandering through the winding medieval streets.

Two previous blog posts tell the story of the Camellias (see links at bottom of page) so today I will use few words but lots of photos to describe this enchanting medieval village.

The streets of Sant’Andrea are lined with stone walls, rustic wood fences, lovely homes, historical towers, churches and, of course, flowers.

The walled garden of the Villa Borrini is an intimate, serene space. The Borrini family planted these Camellias nearly 200 years ago. Signage, in Italian and English, gives the name and description of each variety along with the date planted.

As if all of this floral beauty were not enough, near the entrance to town runs a small stream, crossed by a stone bridge, and tumbling down the hillside. Follow it along to the Camellietum Compitese - a virtual forest of Camellia trees. Somehow I had missed the Camellietum on my previous visits, so finding it on this visit was a delightful surprise.

The Camellietum is home to flowering Camellias in a spectrum of colors from the palest white to the deepest red and all shades in between. There are solid colors, variegated ones, even flowers that seem to have brushstrokes of color. The petal shapes vary as do the central colors and sizes. It was hard to choose a favorite, although I was most drawn to the endless shades of pink.

The large bushes meander along paths up the hillside and along the stream. There is even a market where the plants are sold (or, as their signage says, adopted).

The only problem - neither myself nor any of my friends have gardens here in Lucca, so our longing to buy some plants went unrealized. No matter, we enjoyed “shopping” for our favorite varieties and imagining that we might someday have a spot to plant them.

Gardeners and flower lovers flock to town during the Camellia Festival. For me the flowers are a bonus, a beautiful bonus, but the real star is the village itself.

For further information about the village of Sant’Andrea di Compito and the Camellia Festival:

https://www.twopartsitaly.com/blog/2018/3/25/santandrea-di-compito-borgo-delle-camelie and https://www.twopartsitaly.com/blog/2019/3/24/tea-and-camillias-in-tuscany

February, A Month That Isn't Spring

February, just 28 days long, is the shortest month of the year. Why then does it feel so long?  So very uninspiring? It’s not that I hate winter.  I enjoy brisk winter temperatures, the chilly beauty of winter holidays, and snow dusted trees. Paris in December was cold but wonderful, a recent quick trip to Colorado with its snow covered mountain peaks was fun, and I have had some wonderful winter experiences in Italy over the years.  But come the last weeks of February I grow tired of gray skies, cold air, and wintertime. 

February in Lucca, 2019. Cold and definitely not spring.

These little blossoms are the first hints of spring along Lucca’s walls.

As I write this, I am watching snow fall in New Mexico. The clouds obscure the mountains, it’s cold and gray. Spring, and Italy, seem very far away. But it is only three days until I board a plane and head back to Italy. I am hoping that the earliest signs of spring will be present when I arrive - delicate bulbs and tiny flowers sprouting along the walls and the earliest magnolia blossoms. I am even looking forward to the colorful umbrellas that accompany spring rains.   

I will spend the next few days dreaming about soft Italian breezes, spring blooms, lengthening days, and walks on Lucca’s walls. In the meantime, these photos will remind me that Spring is just around the corner and that warmer weather and Italy await.   

Camellias in Sant’Andrea di Compito in March 2019. The annual Camellia Festival is a sure sign of Spring!

Camellias and Tea with a Japanese Flavor in Tuscany

The camellia (camelia in Italian) is a prized flower in the area of Tuscany around Lucca. So much so that each spring there is an annual camellia festival that takes place in some of the villas in the countryside around Lucca and in the small town of Sant’Andrea di Compito. 

I was able to visit Sant”Andrea during the festival in 2018 and was enchanted by the town, the festival, and those lovely flowers.

My memories were so wonderful that I was looking forward to making a return visit this spring.

This year the Antiche Camelie della Lucchesia festival marked its 30th anniversary with a special celebration that combined the beauty of the flowers (scientific name Camellia Japonica) with an exhibit reflecting the Japanese culture from which the flowers get their name and from where they were originally imported to Italy.

Ribbon cutting ceremony to open the exhibit at the Antiche Camelie della Lucchesia festival, 2019

The focus of the Japanese exhibit was on tea - growing, processing, and serving. The connection with tea is that a species of camellia (scientific name Camellia Sinensis) provides the leaves used in making tea. Along with the many beautiful flowering camillias, there is also a garden in Sant’Andrea where the tea plants are grown.

Tea plants are raised in the Antica Chiusa Borrini, a large walled garden in Sant’Andrea di Compito.

The Japanese exhibit included a demonstration of the antique method of processing tea leaves by hand - a labor-intensive process that involves kneading the fresh green leaves over a heated surface to elongate and dry the leaves. The process takes five hours. 

Processing the newly harvested tea leaves the old-fashioned way - kneading over a cloth-covered surface heated from below

There were also tea tastings (delicious!) and displays of Japanese tea accoutrements including tea pots, whisks, and cups, as well as a market selling a variety of Japanese items.

Of course there was also the traditional annual display of camellia blossoms, a plant market, and artisan stands. After visiting the market we strolled through town, admiring the beautiful houses, villas, stone walls and gardens - with the camellia as the star among flowering forsythia bushes, fruit trees, and wildflowers.

The entrance to the garden of Villa Borrina

I enjoyed finding this unexpected bit of Japan in Tuscany and learning the history of the camellias, both their visual beauty and their flavorful use in tea. Italy is full of delightful surprises. -post by JMB

Sant’Andrea di Compito on a lovely early spring afternoon

Sant'Andrea di Compito, Borgo delle Camelie - and a Story of Flowers

About 40 minutes southeast of Lucca by car lies the village (borgo in Italian) of Sant’Andrea di Compito. The village is known for its Medieval charm and for an annual display of camellias (camelie in Italian), which marks the beginning of spring in this region. Recently I, along with new friends Jennifer and Gillian from Lucca Italian School, spent a lovely early spring day here. The village is easily reached by bus from Lucca and - per fortuna! - our visit fell on one of the weekends of the Antiche Camelie della Lucchesia festival.

Camellias grow above an old stone wall in Sant'Andrea di Compito.

Winding up the gently sloped streets we passed ancient churches, a tiny chapel (cappellina), an 11th century signal tower (where the severed heads of criminals were once displayed in an iron basket above the door), beautiful vistas, and an old cemetery where the grave markers gave hints about the history of this area (including one with the names of two men killed on the same day during WWII - a moving reminder of the very real effects of a not-so-long-ago war).

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There are also villas that are hundreds of years old, small springs and creeks running through (and under) the village, beautiful stone walls, pretty houses, old wells, olive groves and, throughout the village on this spring day, beautiful camellias in flower.

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Just one of many camelie in bloom on my visit to Sant'Andrea di Compito

Camellias are not native to Italy; they were brought from the orient by Italian trader/merchants in the 1800s. In the time since, they have thrived and become one of the best loved blossoms in the area around Lucca - so much so that each year, on weekends from mid-March to early April, there is the Antiche Camelie della Lucchesia event. During these weeks camellias in bloom can be seen not only in the village of Sant’Andrea di Compito but also in the gardens of the spectacular villas that lie north of Lucca (best known are Villa Torrigiani, Villa Mansi, and Villa Reale). What a great excuse for peeking into these beautiful gardens and villages!

Camellia come in many varieties. Best known are the ornamental ones with their delicate flowers in pinks, whites, reds. During the festival there is a beautiful display of cut flowers in a variety of colors in the cultural center in Sant’Andrea di Compito (camellia bushes are also sold there) along with information on the history of camellias in Italy and Europe. 

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A mapped walking route guides visitors through the village and describes the important buildings, sights, and some history. Along the way camellias can be seen in gardens large and small, along the stone walls of walkways, and beside many streets. There are also art exhibits, churches to visit, the signal tower to climb (for great views over the plains of Lucca) and a whole village to discover.

The Antica Chiusa Borrini, where a species of camellia is cultivated for the production of tea

In addition to ornamental varieties, the camellia family of plants is also used to make tea - white, green, oolong, and black. In the Antica Chiusa Borrini, a walled enclosed area where tea-producing camellias are raised along with flowering species, we learned about the cultivation of tea in Italy and how various types of tea are grown and processed and about the use of camellia oil in skin and hair products. The Borrini family was among the early collectors of these beautiful flowers and, in 1990, a Borrini descendant began the cultivation of tea here. Fascinating!

Camellia bushes in the Antica Chiusa Borrini

Waking back down the hill, we came across a small outdoor kitchen with a wood-fired oven and an old stove. The kitchen shed sat on a corner across from a house and next to an olive grove. The owner was busy trimming olive branches, and his wife came over when she saw us and explained how they use their outdoor kitchen. On Wednesdays, they bake cakes in the wood-fired oven (which they also use for pizza). The stove, which is also wood-fired and has a large grill rather than burners, is used for toasting bread for bruschetta and simmering sauces. Meeting friendly locals who enjoy sharing their stories, and being able to understand when they speak to me in Italian, opens the door to so many unique and interesting experiences. For me, this is travel at its most rewarding!

This little village is worth a visit at any time, but is especially beautiful when the flowers are in bloom.

A roadside shrine in Sant'Andrea di Compito

-post by JMB