Bolsena Lake - Italy

BOLSENA LAKE:
The lake, 13.5 km long and 12 km across, is the largest lake of volcanic origin in Europe.
Hundreds of thousands of years ago, fractures were created in the recently formed lands and ashes, lapilli, pozzolana and lava were spewed out by explosions, emptying the underlying area so that die surface crust sank forming a caldera.
In die course of tens of thousands of years this rain-collecting basin created the lake of Bolsena.
Volcanic activity continued and other explosions inside the lake led to die formation of two islands, Martana and Bisentina, now two dark green spots on die vast crystalline surface.

PASTIMES AND GOOD FOOD OF THE LAKE OF BOLSENA:
The water of the lake of Bolsena, now particularly clear and limpid thanks to an imposing sophisticated purification system managed by a consortium of Communes of the lake basin and to the fact that there are no pollution-generating industries in the area, has always been clean.
The mild climate is particularly suited to children and older people.
Bolsena and the other towns along the lake have created efficient tourist facilities for those who come to enjoy the splendid uncontaminated natural environment.
Many campsites, located above all in Bolsena, Montefiascone and Capodimonte, host foreign and Italian visitors, many of whom come back year after year.
All camp sites are equipped with modern and adequate facilities, but some are truly avant-garde in the criteria with which they have been planned: masonry bungalows, trailers, sport facilities, markets, hot and cokTshowers, restaurants and pizza parlors.
Bolsena also has a number of qualified hotels, fully equipped with modern facilities, many of which overlook
the lake.
For those who prefer to stay in houses and apartments, even for short periods, there are specific real estate agencies.
The sports that can be practiced on the lake include sailing, motor boating, water skiing and windsurfing.

Fishing, in the limits established by the law, is also permitted.
Bicycle paths along the avenues and lakeshore boulevards have level and shaded itineraries for the cyclist.

Restaurants, trattorias, pubs and pizza parlors galore offer the gastronomic delicacies of the area.
When speaking of eating and drinking on the shores of the lake of Bolsena, place of honor goes to the freshwaterfish, prized and tasty, famous from ancient times: eels, whitefish, perch,tench,pike,whitebait,mullet among others.

The typical dish of the fishermen of the lake of Bolsena,to be found in specialized trattorias,is the sbrioscia.
When done the sbroscia is served on slices of day-old ortoasted bread.

The delicate flavorful perch is usually filleted and cooked alla mugnaia or fried.
The whitefish is served grilled or boiled with sauce of some kind.

The fresh vegetables that thrive around the lake are used in summer fortasty minestrones of zucchini, freshly hulled beans, celery, carrots, chard, savoy cabbage, green beans and ripe tomatoes.
Orthe vegetables can be eaten in pinzimonio (dipped raw in oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper) or, mixed with aromatic wild herbs in fresh salads.
In winter the local cuisine gives preference to dry legumes: beans, lentils, chick peas and fava beans that, together with the pasta, supply flavorful nourishing one-dish meals, ideal forthose who follow a Mediterranean diet.

Speaking of pasta...!
The housewives of Tuscia almost always make it at home by hand.
From the lombrichelli, to potato gnocchi e fettuccine and pappardelle, all eaten with a rich meat sauce and grated pecorino cheese.
The fish may be the lords of our table, but meat too has a place of primary importance, above all pork, processed and cooked in countless different ways: sausages, chops, ribs, liver, prosciutto and the typical porchetta, seasoned with wild fennel.
Lamb is populartoo: roasted, scottadito (grilled chops) and in stews.
Appetizers generally consist of assorted locally produced salted meats such as coppa, lonza, lombetto and prosciutto, of variously seasoned bruschette with garlic, oil and salt, with tomatoes and basil, with a liver paste, with olive and artichoke pastes, etc.
Some of the commonly served desserts in the area are also homemade and unique such as the tozzetti and the maccheroni con le noci (macaroni with walnuts), a sweet that also serves as first course on Christmas Eve, the fragrant Easter cakes and the rice fritters, typical of the feast of Saint Joseph.
Naturally each of these dishes has to be accompanied by a local wine, from the Est! Est!! Est!!! of Montefiascone, dry and semi-sweet, to the robust wines that come from the union of various types of grapes that prosper on the slopes of the Volsini hills, ranging from the red cannaiola of Marta to the aromatic sweeter aleatico of Gradoli.