For our second encroachment we have chosen a territory, that of Melfi in Basilicata, easily reachable from Campania (A16 up to Candela and then SS 655) and rich in historical-artistic and naturalistic suggestions. This time we had to hypothesize at least an overnight stay in Melfi, which allows us to visit both the Monticchio lakes and the Lagopesole Castle and the church of San Donato at Ripacandida with some comfort. In this post we leave out other destinations that we have visited and that maybe we will resume later. Let's start right from Melfi, and more precisely from the Castle, built by the Normans and modified over the centuries by subsequent interventions, starting with that of Frederick II of Swabia (1223-1225).
Disabled people are allowed to enter the courtyard by car and park it there; the guide will go to the ticket office to have the side entrance open which allows access to the rooms of the Archaeological Museum of Melfese. The museum is very beautiful and well set up, and presents a series of extraordinary finds, starting with the sarcophagus of Rapolla, rightly displayed on the ground floor in a prominent position:
On the upper floors, reachable by lift, are exhibited finds from the Bronze and Iron Age and other testimonies, up to the third century BC, relating to the Daunian, Samnite and Lucan populations.
Unfortunately, it is difficult for everything to go smoothly, even in such a beautiful and important structure, and in fact we had to note a very unpleasant fact. The second floor of the museum is only half accessible to the disabled; the two wings are in fact separated by two ramps of three steps each, which cannot be overcome with wheelchairs. But what is worse is that the toilets, including the one for the disabled, are located in the inaccessible area! We wrote a letter to the local press and to the museum management, who responded with great courtesy, apologizing and promising to remedy the problem. We will see: if in the meantime some friends of COMMA 2 should visit the Castle of Melfi, they will be able to see if the promises have been kept and possibly report it to us. Let's now pass to the most naturalistic part of this trip, going about fifteen kilometers from Melfi to visit the Monticchio lakes. These are two small lakes, Lago Grande and Lago Piccolo, which constitute the crater of the eruptive cone of Monte Vulture; of the two lakes, the Piccolo is the most well-equipped for tourism, with a beautiful circumlacual road surrounded by greenery, which is easily traveled by our vehicles and allows you to see truly suggestive glimpses of the lake, enjoying a nice cool even in August.
The building that can be seen in the second photo dominating the lake is the Abbey of San Michele, founded by the Benedictines in the 11th century and brought to its present appearance by the Capuchins, who made it flourish in the 18th century. The Abbey is only partially accessible to disabled people: you can admire the view of the two lakes, but you cannot visit the ancient Church of San Michele and the Museum of Natural History of Vulture (we have seen an elevator, but seems to have never been used ...). Let us now return to the "stupor mundi", to our friend Frederick II, of whom we will visit one of the best preserved castles, the Castle of Lagopesole (*). The access to the castle is via a ramp with a rather demanding pavement for seated warriors; but the visit deserves a bit of effort, both for the courtyard, the halls with archaeological finds and the Palatine Chapel and for the Museum narrated "The world of Frederick II", a multimedia path that leads to the discovery of known and unknown aspects. notes of the life of Frederick II. Also interesting is the Museum of Lucanian emigration, an interactive installation that allows us to understand what burden of suffering so many Italians forced to emigrate between the 19th and 20th centuries have suffered.
But we cannot close this encroachment in Basilicata without suggesting that we reach Ripacandida, to admire a truly special gem, the Church of San Donato (twinned since 2004 with the Basilica of San Francesco in Assisi). The access by ramp from a side entrance allows us to enter the church and be amazed by the cycle of frescoes, made by Lucan masters in the sixteenth century, which fill all the walls and ceiling of the church with scenes from the Old and New Testament. Let's try to give a pale idea with some photos:
Next to the church there is a historic garden, full of centuries-old plants, which communicates with a pretty Villa Comunale:
We now come to the logistical part of the trip: we stayed at a hotel with an adjoining restaurant and with rooms equipped for the disabled and reserved parking: Hotel Il Castagneto / Bistrot Tre Scodelle (*): SP EX SS 401 km 3,100 (Via Monticchio), Melfi +39 0972 728806 www.hotelcastagnetomelfi.it Other restaurants in the area, meeting our requirements, are: Agriturismo Sant'Agata (*): C.da Toppo Sant'Agata, km 89,650 ex SS 303, Melfi +39 0972 238294 / 331 4123641
https://www.facebook.com/pages/category/Pizza-Place/Agriturismo-SantAgata-854774601386262/ Restaino (*): ex SS 167, Monticchio Laghi, Rionero in Vulture +39 0972 731052 www.ristoranterestaino.it (*) symbol indicating the presence of toilets equipped for the disabled