OBELUS for ‘Dead Season': Getting away from the Summer heat.
August and the sweltering heat of the cities – escape to the coast The tradition of Italian holiday time originates from 18 BC when the Roman Emperor Augustus declared that the month of August would be dedicated to the Feriae Augusti – Ferragostoa: a series of festivals and celebrations that paid homage to the Roman Goddess Diana.Now recognised, instead, as a celebration of the Assumption of Virgin Mary, the 15th of August is a national holiday. It is not unusual for wives and children to start their holiday time earlier – from middle of July onward – only being joined by their husbands for August.The Mediterranean lifestyle sees work conducted during the morning and then the late afternoon, avoiding the hottest part of the day, often providing a break of two and a half or three hours around lunch time. For similar reasons the quintessential Summer holiday for Italians will be the whole of the month of August, when the temperature is at its hottest, when cities are like furnaces, when families move to the mountains or seek the respite of the lower temperatures around the coast.
Escape from Florence The Coast of the Cinque Terre is within striking distance of Florence and offers a variety of havens. For a long time almost isolated, the villages present themselves today almost exactly as they were at the end of the 1700s when they were ruled by the Republic of Genoa.Their architectural style is Genoese, with the narrow “caruggi” (narrow medieval streets) and the “creuze” (dialect meaning “the road that takes you from the sea to the mountains”) that climb up towards the vineyards. The beautiful Roman-style churches of the historic villages wait to be discovered by the visitor. Join the passagiato along Vernazza’s pier, take an aperitif in Corniglia, walk the Via dell’Amore at sunset, or spend an evening in Monterosso.
Claudio Brunello… …and his family have use of a villa at Monterosso. It is a small town with an extensive sand beach that runs along most of the coast line and is well used by tourists and locals alike.Marisa Goldberg meets up with her husband to go sailing from further down the coast at Piombino, which puts them within striking distance of the island of Elba and, close by, Giglio.
Giulietta Sarto… …is recently returned from a holiday on the peninsula of Monte Argentario, with its narrow roads wiggling along the coast surrounded by Mediterranean scrub; thyme, myrtle, rock roses, lavender, wild olive and fig. The land rises steeply above the road and spectacularly falls away precipitously below it to the sea.Nearby, with its castle and wonderous beaches, is the walled medieval town of Castiglione della Pescaia, complete with towers, gates and a 15th-century castle.
And elsewhere… Italians in their hundreds will visit Forte dei Marmi; a town that takes its name from the fortress that rises in the middle of the main square, built under Grand Duke Peter Leopold, who was to become Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor, in 1788.Monterosso, Plimbino, Castigliane della Pescaia and Forte dei Marmi, along with other towns in Cinque Terre, are all places that boast of stunning views, clear water and blue skies.
How hot? Florence can experience searing temperatures at the height of the day in August, while the coast, cooled by sea breezes, can be a more comfortable ten degrees lower.Typical weather mid August
Date Aug 16 Aug 17 Aug 18 Aug 19 Aug 20 Aug 21 Aug 22
° F 87°F 87°F 90°F 91°F 92°F 95°F 95°F
° C 31°C 31°C 32°C 33°C 34°C 35° 35°C
August and the sweltering heat of the cities – escape to the coast The tradition of Italian holiday time originates from 18 BC when the Roman Emperor Augustus declared that the month of August would be dedicated to the Feriae Augusti – Ferragostoa: a series of festivals and celebrations that paid homage to the Roman Goddess Diana.Now recognised, instead, as a celebration of the Assumption of Virgin Mary, the 15th of August is a national holiday. It is not unusual for wives and children to start their holiday time earlier – from middle of July onward – only being joined by their husbands for August.The Mediterranean lifestyle sees work conducted during the morning and then the late afternoon, avoiding the hottest part of the day, often providing a break of two and a half or three hours around lunch time. For similar reasons the quintessential Summer holiday for Italians will be the whole of the month of August, when the temperature is at its hottest, when cities are like furnaces, when families move to the mountains or seek the respite of the lower temperatures around the coast.
Escape from Florence The Coast of the Cinque Terre is within striking distance of Florence and offers a variety of havens. For a long time almost isolated, the villages present themselves today almost exactly as they were at the end of the 1700s when they were ruled by the Republic of Genoa.Their architectural style is Genoese, with the narrow “caruggi” (narrow medieval streets) and the “creuze” (dialect meaning “the road that takes you from the sea to the mountains”) that climb up towards the vineyards. The beautiful Roman-style churches of the historic villages wait to be discovered by the visitor. Join the passagiato along Vernazza’s pier, take an aperitif in Corniglia, walk the Via dell’Amore at sunset, or spend an evening in Monterosso.
Claudio Brunello… …and his family have use of a villa at Monterosso. It is a small town with an extensive sand beach that runs along most of the coast line and is well used by tourists and locals alike.Marisa Goldberg meets up with her husband to go sailing from further down the coast at Piombino, which puts them within striking distance of the island of Elba and, close by, Giglio.
Giulietta Sarto… …is recently returned from a holiday on the peninsula of Monte Argentario, with its narrow roads wiggling along the coast surrounded by Mediterranean scrub; thyme, myrtle, rock roses, lavender, wild olive and fig. The land rises steeply above the road and spectacularly falls away precipitously below it to the sea.Nearby, with its castle and wonderous beaches, is the walled medieval town of Castiglione della Pescaia, complete with towers, gates and a 15th-century castle.
And elsewhere… Italians in their hundreds will visit Forte dei Marmi; a town that takes its name from the fortress that rises in the middle of the main square, built under Grand Duke Peter Leopold, who was to become Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor, in 1788.Monterosso, Plimbino, Castigliane della Pescaia and Forte dei Marmi, along with other towns in Cinque Terre, are all places that boast of stunning views, clear water and blue skies.
How hot? Florence can experience searing temperatures at the height of the day in August, while the coast, cooled by sea breezes, can be a more comfortable ten degrees lower.Typical weather mid AugustDate Aug 16 Aug 17 Aug 18 Aug 19 Aug 20 Aug 21 Aug 22
° F 87°F 87°F 90°F 91°F 92°F 95°F 95°F
° C 31°C 31°C 32°C 33°C 34°C 35° 35°C