Arpino, Frosinone, Lazio, Italy

In a quiet location, just off one of the streets radiating from the central piazza, Casa Santa Croce is a beautifully restored and comfortable 170 sq.mt. ground floor home, with a lovely 160 sq.mt. walled garden. It is located in an old stone palazzo, right in the heart of the historic centre of Arpino, a medieval hilltop town, only 90 minutes drive from Rome and Rome's airports.

The apartment benefits from a double entrance, an independent principal entrance from Via Spaccamela, and also access to the palazzo's shared main entrance on the Vicolo Santa Croce. The principal front doors open into a spacious entrance hall. This leads through into an elegant open area running most of the rest of the length of the property. Old wooden ceiling beams and exposed stone predominate, beautifully married with more modern furnishings.

This open area widens seamlessly in the dining area and then into the open plan kitchen - a modern kitchen with wine-coloured lacquered panels, with a central island, the beauty of the modern adapted to the ancient, the rustic terracotta flooring as enveloping as the exposed beams, all remodeled to make the area flexible and suitable for modern needs.

From the kitchen, an ancient flight of stone stairs, which once led into the rest of the palazzetto, now leads to a pantry area.

Three very large rooms each open separately off one side of the spacious entrance hall and open area - these are currently configured as
* a sitting room complete with open log fireplace and a small wine cellar behind an attractive wrought-iron grill,
* a splendidly large master bedroom
* a second bedroom entered through beautiful arched glass doors.

On the opposite side of the entrance hall and open plan area are to be found the two bathrooms, one with a large walk-in shower, and the other with a small bathtub. The smaller bathroom serving the living area is a small cameo of beauty, with a barrel ceiling and the walls and floor embellished with decorated white and red majolica ties. The second larger bathroom serves the sleeping area, completely in natural stone, with a more rustic yet contemporary decor.

At the far end of the kitchen, a custom-made etched-glass arched door leads into a vaulted room, very light and bright, with an old tiled stove in one corner - this in turn opens through a large archway into the stunning walled garden.

This private garden, with two fountains, gravel paths, flower beds, lemon trees, stone furniture and other features is a charming hidden oasis right in the centre of town. Completely secure for children and dogs to play, a large umbrella to create shade in the daytime and a BBQ ready for al fresco dinners in the warm Italian evenings, the garden creates the jewel of the apartment.

There is free public parking a couple of minutes drive up the road past Casa Santa Croce. And a couple of minutes walk down the same road takes you to the main piazza with cafes, restaurants, shops and services.

The apartment has autonomous gas central heating and all mains utilities are connected.

Casa Santa Crice is being sold fully furnished with the exception of personal items, and thus is available for immediate occupancy.

ARPINO AND THE CIOCIARIA
Arpino is one of the major medieval hilltop towns in the area of Italy called the Ciociaria, the name given to the fertile land that lies south of Rome but north of Naples, situated inland in the hills in the heart of Italy. The Ciociaria region is within easy reach of both Rome and Naples and their respective airports. A day's shopping in Rome is a common pastime, while an even shorter drive brings you to the charming beaches south of Rome. Alternatively, drive east, and the mountains of the Abruzzo National Park await with horse trekking in the magnificent beech forests, and sparkling mountain lakes and rivers where you can swim in the heat of the summer. And at the other extreme of temperature, although Arpino itself is temperate, less than an hour's drive brings you to the winter ski slopes.
Often overlooked, both by tourists and by those foreigners in search of an Italian home, in favour of the more publicised regions of Tuscany and Umbria, the Ciociaria remains largely an unspoilt gem with beautiful scenery and medieval hilltop towns. A home or second home in the Ciociaria, in the hilltop towns of Arpino, Veroli, Alatri or Alvito or in the rolling countryside that surrounds them, will afford you a setting where over two thousand years of history combine with an idyllic rural Italian lifestyle, where you can still discover the 'real' Italy and take time out from the busy crowds of the larger tourist cities, while being less than ninety minutes journey from central Rome or either of Rome's two airports.

VIA ROMANA Srls and CASE & CASALI REAL ESTATE AGENCY
Via Romana Srls is an Italian-incorporated company owned by a British/Australian Chartered Accountant and her photographer daughter, and offers a package of services to facilitate all aspects of the purchase and restoration of Italian property by overseas clients. The Via Romana team works in collaboration with various fully-licensed Italian real estate agencies including Case & Casali Real Estate Agency represented by Sig. Ciro Tomei. Sig. Tomei has been enrolled in the register of real estate agents at the Chamber of Commerce in Frosinone, Lazio since 2007, his agency is one of the largest and most highly-regarded real estate agents in the area and he has much experience in the international marketing of Italian real estate.