Ortonovo, Nicola and Luni

It is a village built on the summit of a hill surrounded by medieval walls. The centre is accessible only by two ancient entrances. The defensive tower is still intact and today is used as bell tower church. Not too far there is another suggestive medieval village: Nicola where everything is still intact and it seems like living in the Middle Ages era. There is an archaeological site of great interest downstream. The area seems to be inhabited by men from the Palaeolithic era, while the town was founded at the beginning of the II century, during the Roman age it was famous for its port: the loaded ships of Carrara marble used to depart from.

TO VISIT
The Madonna of the Mirteto sanctuary: it is in Ortonovo and goes back to the XVI century. The portal is a bass-relief engraved in the VI century.
The historical centre of Nicola is characterized by the carugi ( very narrow street) and small country roads. The National Archaeological Museum of Luni, inaugurated in 1964, is a centre of a large collection of archaeological finds discovered  nearby the excavation area.

GASTRONOMY
The Vermentino of Luni hills  is the typical wine produced in this area.
Curiosity: dry white wine can be combined a wide range of dishes: flat bread with cheese, Italian omelette with whitebait, lobsters chowder, large tagliatelle with mushrooms, thin tagliatelle with pesto sauce, baked shrimps and boiled sea bass. The salted fragrance of the sea dishes and the rural taste of the pesto sauce go with the agreeable taste of the wine.