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Molise Campobasso
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Molise, Italy
Date: Current
Notes: "Molise is one of the most secret districts in the country, deep but little known... Molise is romantic, bewitched and is strangely reminiscent of certain parts of Northern Europe, for example places in Scotland and Ireland." (From Guido Piovene's "Viaggio in Italia" as quoted in a tourist brochure).
     
     
Contributed by: Courtesy of Campobasso -- Provinciale per turismo

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il Matese, Campobasso
Molise, Italy.
Date: Current
Notes: Typical countryside in Molise (between Guardiaregia and Campochiaro).
     
Contributed by: Courtesty of Campobasso -- Provinciale per turismo

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Molise, Italy
Date: Current
Notes: "The mountains, which are such an ever-present feature of the countryside, appear in all their majestic beauty in the massif of the Matese, and at Campitello -- the winter resort par excellence of Southern Italy, with large equipped areas, splendid pistes for downhill skiing, hotels and residences on the plateau of the same name -- winter and summer tourism appear in all their glory. The entire massif is a combination of natural and scenic values in kaleidoscopic succession from one peak to another, from one valley to the next, from the Crocella Pass (1219m) to Monte Mutria (1823 m), from the Gallinola (1923 m) to Monte Miletto (2050 m)." (Tourist brochure text written by Adalberto Cufari)
Contributed by: Courtesty of Campobasso -- Provinciale per turismo

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Molise coastline
Molise, Italy
Date: Current
Notes: "In the East of the borders are marked by thirty kilometers of coast where lie Termoli (with its tourist harbor -- the natural point of departure of the Tremiti Islands -- the splendid old town and the Swabian castle of Frederick II, and the tower of the meridian which marks the point where the 42nd parallel north crosses the 15th meridian east), Campomarino, Petacciato and Montenero di Bisaccia. These thirty kilometers ensure seaside tourism of one of the clearest stretches of sea of the whole Adriatic." (Tourist brochure text written by Adalberto Cufari)
Contributed by: Courtesty of Campobasso -- Provinciale per turismo

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Molise -- History and Culture
Date: Current
Notes: "Stretching from the Adriatic coast to Molise, the mountain community of the Cigno-Biferno valley is crossed by the Biferno river and it can be reached from Campobasso and Termoli through the Bifernina motorway. This territory was a meeting and crossing point for the ancient Italic peoples and has kept the traces of its past both through the artistic monuments and the traditions of its friendly population. Some example of its historic and artistic richness are: the Romanesque churches like San Maria of Casalpiano, the sober Gothic style of the crypt of San Maria Assunta in Guardialfiera, the austere manor-house of Civitacampomarano, the numerous and beautiful canvases from the Neapolitan school that embellish the inner room of the churches, above all those of Ripabottoni, Casacalenda and Montorio, the organs and the church ornaments and vestments that have been finely inlaid by the skillful local artisans. The little villages, that are climbing up the hilly slopes and are crossed by characteristic and winding alleys, are enlivened with cheerfulness during the feast days. The religious holiday takes on the character of a unanimous expression in the squares and in the streets,with the sounds of ancient instruments like the "bufu" and propitiatory rites that are between the sacred and the profane. Uncontaminated woods, Mediterranean spontaneous vegetation and lands that are bathed by the waters of the Biferno river frame these towns. The landscape varies from the green plains of the coasts of Molise to the severe hilly territory that guards the old natural resources; from here it is possible to enjoy a a lovely view of the places such as Cerro del Ruccolo and Difesa Mount of Casacalenda. The excursions will be suggestive and relaxing among olive-groves and woods where it may be easy to find quite and fresh oasises near watercourses. Moreover the woods of Guardialfiera and Civitacampomarano are provided with plants to spend carefree hours. Who is keen on horse-rides will go back to the past along the very ancient Celano - Foggia track, through which flocks reached Apulia to winter. Old taverns, rural churches and old farms dot the journey in token of a lively, unforgotten and bygone life. It will be surely suggestive to visit the archaeological center of the Roman house and the abbey of San Maria in Casalpiano in Morrone. For a stay under the banner of simplicity and genuineness it is necessary to taste the typical dishes of the traditional cooking: hand-made pasta as delicious first course, meat above all salami and the ham dessicated according to the rules that have been handed down from father to son." From the tourist pamphlet entitled, "Il Colore del Molise, Viaggio nell Comunita Montana Cigno-Valle Biferno."
Contributed by: Courtesy of Collana editoriale della Coummita Montana "Cigno - Valle Biferno"

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Trigo river, Molise
Molise, Italy
Date: Current
Notes: "Close by the shore of the river Trigno, in the country around Roccavivara, in a particularly enchanting environmental setting, lies the Romanesque abbey of Canneto while higher up, at Trivento, is the crypt of San Casto (12th century). Acting as sentinel of the Biferno, to right and left of the river, is a whole series of little towns, perched on high and crowned with turrets: Castropignano and the remains of the thirteenth-century Norman castle of the Evoli; Oratino and the splendid ducal palace: Limosano, which claims to have been the birthplace of Pietro Angelerio, though historians still dispute this; Montagano and the ruined abbey church of Santa Maria di Faifula where the same Pietro Angelerio, later Pope Celestine V, took his vows; Petrella Tifernina and its Romanesque church (13th century); Guardialfiera, the birthplace of the author Francesco Jovine; Civitacampomarano, birthplace of Vincenzo Cuoco and Gabriele Pepe; Morrone del Sannio and the old abbey of Santa Maria Casalpiano (10th century); Casacalenda, the "Kalene" mentioned by Polybius in the history of Hannibal's wars, and the remains of Gerione; Lucito, where excellent woolen carpets are woven; Guglionesi and its seven churches including the one dedicated to Santa Maria Maggiore (11th century). Along the Tappino and the Fortore we can find environmental, architectural and cultural features close to those of Capitanata, and the town of Jelsi, originally known as Tybcza, where the local customs point to its clearly recognizable Bulgarian origins; Riccia in whose Norman towers the beautiful Costanza di Chiaromonte lived and died; Tufara, an important Angevin military town under Giacomo Caldora; Gambatesa and the fifteenth-century castle with finely frescoed rooms; Colletorto where we can still see the Angevin town of Queen Joan I, daughter of Charles II of Anjou. At Sepino, where the Samnite emains at Altilia and the Roman ones at Saepinum have left deep marks in to their distant forbears." (Tourist brochure text written by Adalberto Cufari)
Contributed by: Courtesty of Campobasso -- Provinciale per turismo

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La sagra dei Misteri
Molise -- Feast Days and Festivals
Date: Current
Notes: "Spectacular popular celebrations take each year in Molise. They include: a race of ox-drawn carts in honor of Saint Leo takes place at San Martino in Pensilis on April 30th, at Ururi on May 3rd and at Portocannone on Whit Monday. These races have taken place each year since the 14th century. Other popular events include the "Cart Procession" at Larino in honor of Saint Pardo, the Fair of the "Mysteries" [living pictures representing episodes from the Bible] held on the feast of Corpus Christi at Campobasso [see photo], the Wheat Fair at Jelsi on July 26th and the Saint Basso procession at Termoli, and the "Palio delle Quercigliole" a horse race in honor of the Madonna of the Snow on August 12th at Ripalimosani. All these traditions express the soul of the people, revealing a leitmotif of passions, events and beliefs that have never dulled." (Tourist brochure text written by Adalberto Cufari)
Contributed by: Courtesty of Campobasso -- Provinciale per turismo

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Molise -- History and Culture
Date: Current
Notes: From Wikipedia (English language), the free encyclopedia
      Molise
      Location
      Country Italy
      Region ITF
      Capital Campobasso
      President Michele Iorio (PdL)
      Basic statistics
      Area 4,438 km? (1,714 sq mi)
      (Ranked 19th, 1.5 %)
      Population 320,838 (12/2007)
      (Ranked 19th, 0.5 %)
      - Density 72 /km? (187 /sq mi)
      Other information
      GDP/ Nominal ? 6 billion (2006)
      Website www.regione.molise.it
      Molise is a region of Southern Italy, the second smallest of the regions. It was formerly (until 1963) part of the region of Abruzzi e Molise (with Abruzzo) and now a separate entity. The region covers 4,438 km? and has a population of about 300,000.
      Geography
      It borders Abruzzo to the north-west, Lazio to the west, Campania to the south, Puglia to the south-east and the Adriatic Sea to the north-east. The landscape consists of broad plains sloping towards the Adriatic from rolling hills inland. In the north of the province there are highlands.
      Many of the towns in the interior have been almost abandoned as young people travel to the larger centres to find employment. There is a particularly rich cluster of communities in the Larino area. These are characteristic medieval hilltowns formed around a church, or - as in the case of Larino - a massive cathedral.
      Provinces of Molise.
      Local government
      Molise comprises two provinces, Campobasso and Isernia.
      History
      Molise has been inhabited for thousands of years. The Samnites, along with the Frentani, dominated this region until arrival of the Romans. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476, Molise was conquered by the Ostrogoths in 535, and then, in 572, by the Lombards, being annexed to the Duchy of Benevento. In 860 Saracens destroyed Isernia, Telese, Alife, Sepino, Boiano and Venafro.
      By the 10th century there were nine countdoms: Venafro, Larino, Trivento, Bojano, Isernia, Campomarino, Termoli, Sangro and Pietrabbondante. In 1095 the most powerful of them, Bojano, came under the rule of the Norman lord Hugo I of Molhouse, who most probably gave his name to the region.
      The province enjoyed a resurgence towards the end of the 13th century, as part of the unified Kingdom of Naples. In the 16th century Molise was incorporated into the province of Capitanata (Apulia). In 1806 it became an autonomous province in the former Abruzzi region.
      In the 19th century there was a general worsening of the economic conditions of the population, and this gave rise, after the newly established Kingdom of Italy (1861), to brigandage and a massive emigration, not only abroad but also to more industrialised areas of Italy.
      Massive destruction occurred during World War II until the Allied forces were able to land at Termoli in September 1943. Huge Allied land forces were based in Campobasso, which was called "Maple Leaf City" by the Canadian troops.
      Molise is the newest Italian region, since it was established in 1963, when the region Abruzzi e Molise was split in two. It became effective only in 1970.
      Economy
      Agriculture is still of considerable importance, though it is an impoverished sector, frequently subsistence farming, and characterized by large numbers of tiny holdings. The most common crops are wheat, broad beans and potatoes. Olives and wine-growing are of a certain importance, as are some vegetables and sunflowers. There exists a persistent agrarian tradition where even public sector employees will use part of their work day to maintain small working farms.
      Livestock is decreasing except for the traditional sheep-farming, while fishing is of little importance, since the only available port is Termoli. Mineral resources consist of the natural gas deposits at Larino. The industrial sector is underdeveloped and there is only one real industrialized area, near Termoli, with engineering, textile, foodstuff, furniture and building materials factories. Elsewhere, firms are small and semi-artisan, operating principally in the textile, woodworking, food processing and building materials sectors. One of the success stories is the development of the Fiat plant in the outskirts of Termoli. Recently the sales of Fiat automobiles have enjoyed unprecedented success and the plant has become one of the main employers of local youth. As is often the case in the automotive industry, there are innumerable "support" industries which are springing up. Just outside of Termoli, on the roadway to Larino, a huge shopping centre complex has been developed which rivals the type of "mall" found in North America.
      The service sector employs just under half the active population; here the commercial sector, though badly organized and the public sector, which has been expanded since the Region and the Province of Isernia were established (1970), are of particular importance. After the earthquake of 2002 some of the communities in Molise became the focus of a generous government policy which contributed state money to individuals willing to make their homes more resistant to seismic activity. Larino, near Termoli, was a particular beneficiary of this policy and the town, already one of the most beautiful in the province, has been transformed. It was policy to return the houses to their historical colours and, based on careful research, the structures were painted in a range of soft pastel tones. As a result Larino has become an important centre for tourism and scores of expatriates from all over the world are returning to live in the revived centro storico (antique centre).
      International tourism is becoming more evident largely as a result of the international flights from other European states, Great Britain, and North America which enter Pescara not far to the north in Abruzzo. The tourists are attracted by large expanses of unspoiled beaches, a relative lack of congestion, and the gentle pace of life.
      Politics
      Main article: Politics of Molise
      Although the region has a center-right local government, at the April 2006 elections, Molise gave 50.5% of its votes to Romano Prodi of the centre-to-left Olive Tree party.
      Beach in Termoli.
      In November of the same year, Michele Iorio, centre-right candidate, won the regional election with over 54% of votes.
      Demographics
      On the whole, Molise is the least populated Italian region after the Val d'Aosta, with also a very low average density of population. Apart from the historical difficulties of settling in a territory which is mainly mountainous, this is due to a flow of emigrants abroad and to other Italian regions, a phenomenon which reached a peak at the beginning of the century and in the post-war period, and started to decline to a certain extent only from the 1970s onwards. The population density is highest in the areas surrounding Campobasso, the regional capital, and along the Adriatic coast, while the mountainous areas (for example in the Province of Isernia) are almost uninhabited. In the region there are two ethnic minorities: the Molisan Croats (5,000 people who speak an old Dalmatian dialect of the Croatian language) and the Molisan Albanians (Arb?resh? who speak an old dialect of the Albanian language which is now very different from the Albanian spoken on the other side of the Adriatic Sea). Molisan Albanians are generally of the Orthodox religion.
     
      ***
      Molise ? Comuni della provincia di Campobasso
      Acquaviva Collecroce ? Baranello ? Bojano ? Bonefro ? Busso ? Campobasso ? Campochiaro ? Campodipietra ? Campolieto ? Campomarino ? Casacalenda ? Casalciprano ? Castelbottaccio ? Castellino del Biferno ? Castelmauro ? Castropignano ? Cercemaggiore ? Cercepiccola ? Civitacampomarano ? Colle d'Anchise ? Colletorto ? Duronia ? Ferrazzano ? Fossalto ? Gambatesa ? Gildone ? Guardialfiera ? Guardiaregia ? Guglionesi ? Jelsi ? Larino ? Limosano ? Lucito ? Lupara ? Macchia Valfortore ? Mafalda ? Matrice ? Mirabello Sannitico ? Molise ? Monacilioni ? Montagano ? Montecilfone ? Montefalcone nel Sannio ? Montelongo ? Montemitro ? Montenero di Bisaccia ? Montorio nei Frentani ? Morrone del Sannio ? Oratino ? Palata ? Petacciato ? Petrella Tifernina ? Pietracatella ? Pietracupa ? Portocannone ? Provvidenti ? Riccia ? Ripabottoni ? Ripalimosani ? Roccavivara ? Rotello ? Salcito ? San Biase ? San Felice del Molise ? San Giacomo degli Schiavoni ? San Giovanni in Galdo ? San Giuliano del Sannio ? San Giuliano di Puglia ? San Martino in Pensilis ? San Massimo ? San Polo Matese ? Sant'Angelo Limosano ? Sant'Elia a Pianisi ? Santa Croce di Magliano ? Sepino ? Spinete ? Tavenna ? Termoli ? Torella del Sannio ? Toro ? Trivento ? Tufara ? Ururi ? Vinchiaturo
     
      ***
     
      Molise ? Comuni della provincia di Isernia
      Acquaviva d'Isernia ? Agnone ? Bagnoli del Trigno ? Belmonte del Sannio ? Cantalupo nel Sannio ? Capracotta ? Carovilli ? Carpinone ? Castel San Vincenzo ? Castel del Giudice ? Castelpetroso ? Castelpizzuto ? Castelverrino ? Cerro al Volturno ? Chiauci ? Civitanova del Sannio ? Colli a Volturno ? Conca Casale ? Filignano ? Forl? del Sannio ? Fornelli ? Frosolone ? Isernia ? Longano ? Macchia d'Isernia ? Macchiagodena ? Miranda ? Montaquila ? Montenero Val Cocchiara ? Monteroduni ? Pesche ? Pescolanciano ? Pescopennataro ? Pettoranello del Molise ? Pietrabbondante ? Pizzone ? Poggio Sannita ? Pozzilli ? Rionero Sannitico ? Roccamandolfi ? Roccasicura ? Rocchetta a Volturno ? San Pietro Avellana ? Sant'Agapito ? Sant'Angelo del Pesco ? Sant'Elena Sannita ? Santa Maria del Molise ? Scapoli ? Sessano del Molise ? Sesto Campano ? Vastogirardi ? Venafro
     
     
     
Contributed by: Text courtesy of Wikipedia

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Molise, Italy
Date: 2006
Notes: Photo: Andrew Giambarba. "A typical view in Molise." Source: http://the2ndhalf.typepad.com
     
Contributed by: Andrew Giambarba

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Moliste traditional costume
Molise, Italy
Date: Current
Notes: Molise costume.
Contributed by: Courtesty of Campobasso -- Provinciale per turismo

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