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Writer's pictureROMEO FERRERO

CASTEL VITTORIO FROM DORIA OUTPOST TO TOURIST DESTINATION FOR CURIOUS SCANDINAVIANS LOVERS OF QUIET, MUSIC AND HOME CUISINE (VIDEO)

Avamposto della Repubblica di Genova con il nome di  Castelfranco (prima ancora CastelDho) cambiò denominazione nel 1862 In onore del re Vittorio Emanuele II di Savoia. Il Comune faceva parte del Regno di Sardegna dal congresso di Vienna (1814). Per arrivarci bisogna percorrere la strada che da Ventimiglia segue il fiume Nervia verso la sua sorgente e subito dopo il Comune di Pigna (eterno rivale) ecco apparire CastelVittorio.

Outpost of the Republic of Genoa with the name of Castelfranco (before that CastelDho) changed its name in 1862 in honor of King Vittorio Emanuele II of Savoy. The Municipality was part of the Kingdom of Sardinia since the Congress of Vienna (1814). To get there you have to take the road that from Ventimiglia follows the Nervia river towards its source and immediately after the municipality of Pigna (eternal rival) Castel Vittorio appears. Two large squares allow tourists and locals to park their cars and for the bus (bus Line 7) to turn around to return to Ventimiglia, its terminus in the Theater area. Before walking up towards the town it is possible to refresh yourself at a fountain that flows from the mountain or at the Au Caste'e Restaurant Bar. There you can find pensioners who spend their time talking about the weather and playing Belotta (card game). Nearby there is a space to keep fit by playing bowls (Pétanque). In Castel Vittorio everyone owns land where they grow crops for their own needs. Those who do it professionally like Patrizia Maiano's 'Dau Casteé' agricultural company go down to the valley every day to sell their first fruits in the coastal markets. Quoting Helle Brønnum Carlsen & Pia Scharling and their Danish publication CASTEL VITTORIO (Stories and recipes from our Ligurian "pantry") also published in Italian "The food and life of Castel Vittorio tell of the importance of human relationships, of the land and of family, of small things and of the meaning of local culinary traditions that are handed down from generation to generation. Osteria del Portico in Castel Vittorio is precisely that type of restaurant where you want to experience all this, rustic and traditional dishes in a family context. At the Osteria del Portico we find Serena running the restaurant with her husband Walter. The room is owned by their daughter Ylenia assisted by her brother Omar.

When you leave the Osteria del Portico, after eating, you want to go and hug the cook Serena who fed you in a natural and healthy way. After the traditional pasta s-ciancàa or tagliolini with roast rabbit sauce you can taste the goat and beans or the fantastic snails with tomato and mint. For the more gluttonous, we recommend the hot and cold appetizers with a taste of the famous Turtun. Worth considering are the desserts based on lemon, apple and hazelnut cakes, all prepared by Serena. A multi-regional choice for wines where the bottles are all labeled for the Portico tavern.

Castel Vittorio hosted the Alta Val Nervia festival for the month of July. In this context, Pia Scharling organized a choral music internship with students who were part of a choir who came directly from Denmark. A full week of immersion for these tourists in the music, tranquility and food and wine of Western Liguria. The stage which was conducted by maestro Torben H. S. Svendsen ended on 7 August 2024 at 6.30 pm with a recital accompanied on the piano by the virtuous Danish pianist Elisabeth Holmegaard Nielsen in the Oratory of Santa Caterina di Alessandria also in Castel Vittorio . All very good with exceptional preparation. Worth mentioning are the masters Dorte Nyrup & Sven-Erik Holgersen, the couple who plan the entire repertoire performed. The "heart" of the choir, also regular tourists of Castel Vittorio for years. Present at the concert was the surveyor Gian Stefano Oddera, mayor of Castel Vittorio. The mayor declared himself proud of the success of the Alta Val Nervia festival and the increasingly numerous presence of loyal tourists.


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