N o .124
T he T rusty S ervant
2017 Wykeham Patrons’ trip to Italy:
‘Fields of Fire’
Alex Roe reports:
Many Patrons have been loyal supporters
of the nine trips organised by David
Fellowes since 2010, so expectations
were high that this, his ultimate as tour
leader, would be something special; they
were not to be disappointed. Sensitive
to the views of members of the fairer
sex, the military aspect - in particular
the pilgrimage to Monte Cassino around
which our trip was framed - was kept
to just one day, which allowed time
for other diversions: volcanic fields of
fire, not just man-made calamities; and
Roman buildings ruined by the passage of
time rather than the bombs of the Allies.
Ninfa: the Most Romantic Garden in
the World (£350 from Amazon) was
of course available for sale when we
visited this glorious 20 acres on the first
outing of the trip. The author, Charles
Quest-Ritson (D, 61-65), who was flown
in especially for the task, conducted
us around what had been a forgotten
section of the estate of the Caetani
family, left to slumber until the 20th
century when descendants transformed
Villa d’Este
it into the stunning place it is today. This
‘English’ garden’s unique appeal consists
of plants winding over ruined towers
and walls, roses scrambling for footholds
in crumbling
archways and
the frescoed
church wall
still standing,
proudly exposed
to the weather.
By complete
contrast, four
days later,
we visited
Villa d’Este
near Tivoli:
constructed
by Cardinal
Ippolito d’Este
in the 1560s,
Ninfa Gardens
10
with terraces, arcades, grottos, niches
and nymphaeums, all in a symmetrical
pattern: the nearby river Aniene was
diverted to furnish water for the complex
system of pools, water jets, channels,
fountains and cascades, providing
welcome relief on a very warm afternoon.
To many, the exploration of ruins is at
its best a somewhat dusty activity, the
southern Italian sun beating down on
serried ranks of panama hats, as those
underneath slowly nod off. With Shaun
Hullis, quondam Win Coll Classics
don as our guide, it was never going to
be like that. One by thrilling one, we
ticked the sites off: Tiberius’ seaside
grotto at Sperlonga with its associated
statues depicting scenes from the
Odyssey; through the 700m t