Our second stop on the way to our campground was a few miles outside of Sermoneta in the Giardini di Ninfa. Ninfa is an ancient town which was originally quite well off. In the 12th century Pope Alexander III was crowned there and his enemy Emperor Barbarossa had the place leveled in retribution. The Caetani family who were also important benefactors of Sermoneta had the town rebuilt, but it was subsequently abandoned following a malaria outbreak. In the early 1900s, the descendants of the same Caetani family, who still owned the town, had the ruins converted into a garden.
We arrived to a beautiful, clear sky with a dozen-plus para-gliders circling overhead in the thermals from the nearby mountains. You can just make some of them out in the sky in the picture below.
The park has several hundred acres of ruins and plantings. The original city was surrounded by a protective wall with sentry towers. Some sections of that wall and structures are still visible.
There were 7 churches for the 1500 inhabitants. Portions of the apse of one of the churches are visible below.
The malarial outbreak which caused the city to be abandoned was due to nearby marshy areas. The water drains from those areas by a river which runs through the middle of the town. Here you can see the river exit through the city walls.
Water is everywhere in the gardens. There were a series of little waterfalls on one path.
Waterways had been intentionally created throughout including this pair which crossed without intersecting by means of a bridge.
The abundant water, fertile soil and temperate climate make it possible to grow plants from all over the world. The Caetani’s imported plants from all over Asia and the Americas for their garden.
Here are some pomegranates.
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