Pescara (Pescàrë in Abruzzo dialect, Pëscàrë in Pescara) is an
Italian town of 119 442 inhabitants, capital of the province of the
same name in Abruzzo. It is the most populous municipality in the
region and, together with L'Aquila, is the seat of the offices of
the council, the council and the regional departments.
The
first settlements of Pescara date back at least to the first
millennium BC. and are linked to the Roman city of Aternum, a port
on the Adriatic of ancient Rome. Its strategic position has
characterized the development of the economic and social life of the
city over the centuries, initially limited to the function of
military defense bulwark of the Kingdom of Naples and then, from the
second half of the nineteenth century, characterized by a fruitful
attitude to commercial traffic and seaside tourism.
The city
has a predominantly modern aspect, mainly due to a series of heavy
bombings suffered during the Second World War which caused the
destruction of a large part of the urban center.
Pescara is located on the Adriatic coast and develops around the mouth of the river of the same name, occupying the entire terminal part of its valley. The urban fabric develops on a T-shaped flat area, which occupies the valley around the river and the coastal area; to the north west and south west the city also extends onto the surrounding hills which do not exceed a height of 150 m above sea level. The city, born from the union of two municipalities, has two centres: the historic center of the old fortress, on the southern bank of the river, is the old village of Pescara Portanuova, today a "nightlife area", with a strong presence of clubs, restaurants and entertainment activities; while the new city center, which was once the municipality of Castellammare Adriatico, stands on the northern shore, and in addition to the central squares of the city, hosts most of the shopping streets in the extensive pedestrian quadrilateral.
Pescara is a city with a predominantly modern appearance, which has retained few traces of its past also due to the series of bombings suffered during the Second World War. Some testimonies of the city's past, mostly subsequent to the dismantling of the fortress, have however survived.
Cathedral of San Cetteo
The cathedral of San Cetteo was built in
1938 on the site of a previous 18th century church; strongly desired by
Gabriele D'Annunzio, it was designed by Cesare Bazzani. The church
houses the tomb of the poet's mother, Luisa D'Annunzio; there is also a
painting by Guercino, Saint Francis, donated by D'Annunzio himself.
Cathedral since 1949, it has a rectangular plan with three naves, with a
white stone façade in neoclassical style, with three rose windows on the
tripartite façade, three portals, with a statue of the dedicated saint
above the central one. The side bell tower is a tower with a drum at the
top, followed by a green conical spire.
Church of the Sacred
Heart
Located in the city center, the Church of the Sacred Heart was
built in 1886 in neo-Romanesque style. It has a main façade
characterized by exposed brick cladding, a large rose window surmounts
the central round portal, decorated with golden mosaic and flanked by
two oblong windows in Gothic style. The interior has three naves, in
neo-Romanesque style, with cross vaults, illuminated by stained glass
windows.
Basilica of Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows
The
construction of the basilica of the Madonna dei Sette Dolori began in
the 17th century in neoclassical style; subsequently, in the 19th
century, a convent was added to the east side of the basilica. According
to a legend, in the 16th century, on the spot where the basilica stands,
there was an apparition of the Madonna to some shepherds; another legend
tells of a miracle of rain during a period of drought, which pushed the
conventuals to build the church, elevated to a minor basilica by Pope
Pius XII in 1952.
Madonna of Fire
The church of the Madonna
del Fuoco, of eighteenth-century origin, is among the oldest buildings
in the Villa del Fuoco district; in the 20th century a new church was
built nearby.
Church of San Silvestro Papa
Located in the San
Silvestro district, there are traces of its existence since the 18th
century, however its current appearance is due to the renovations of the
19th century. The facade is characterized by the vertical development of
the two bell towers, while the interior has a single nave.
Church
of Sant'Andrea Apostolo
It was built in 1962 based on a design by
Eugenio Maria Rossi. The church is located in the northern Marina
district, and is a centrally planned building in a modern style,
composed of eight pillars that converge where the small spire is
inserted.
Fortress of Pescara
From the 16th to the 19th century, the town
center of Pescara was enclosed within the large fortress built by the
Spanish during the reign of Charles V of Habsburg. Built astride the
Pescara river, the fortress played a leading role during the main war
actions that involved the Kingdom of Naples during that period. Starting
from the second half of the 19th century, a slow but continuous
demolition of bastions, curtains and defensive structures began, thus
allowing the development of the city in the surrounding areas. The only
intact remnant of the fortress consists of the long building of the
infantry barracks, known as the Bourbon Bath as it was used as a prison
for political prisoners by the Bourbon government, and later became the
seat of the Museum of the People of Abruzzo.
governament Palace
It was built in 1927 based on a design by
Vincenzo Pilotti immediately after the establishment of the province,
and is located in a central position in Piazza Italia. The white stone
façade is adorned with eight paired semi-columns which support four
sculptures by Guido Costanzo which represent the resources of the
Pescara area, namely the mine, agriculture, the sea and the river. The
entrance portal leads into a vast atrium which leads, via a marble
staircase, to the "Salone dei Marmi", the seat of the provincial council
decorated with ceramic tiles in relief representing the coats of arms of
the municipalities of the province and the busts of D'Annunzio and
Michetti, while on the president's seat there is a golden coat of arms
with the provincial motto "SIBI VALET ET VIVIT"; on the sides of the
room there are also three allegorical paintings by Ugo Cerasoli: the
«Birth of the Province of Pescara» (1979), «Art in the Province of
Pescara» (1980) and «The Fortress of Pescara in 1700» (1980) . In the
nearby council meeting room the painting Iorio's daughter by Francesco
Paolo Michetti is preserved. It is the seat of the province, the
prefecture and the "D'Annunzio" regional library.
City Palace
The large brick and travertine building of the Palazzo di Città, built
between 1932 and 1935 based on a design by Vincenzo Pilotti, has an
L-shaped plan and has a clock tower at the junction of the two
buildings. It makes up part of the perimeter of Piazza Italia together
with the Government Palace. Inside the building, a monumental double
staircase leads to the main floor, where the reception rooms are
located, as well as the council room and the mayor's office. The main
entrance is on Piazza Italia, while the secondary entrance on Via Renato
Paolucci, close to the Pescara river, is adorned with a Latin couplet
dictated by the first president of the province of Pescara Domenico
Tinozzi, who paid homage to the poet D'Annunzio and the ancient pagan
deity of the river reads "Ave dulce vatis flumen / Ave vetus urbis
numen". The council hall is decorated with a series of frescoes
depicting the history of the city painted between 1968 and 1971 by Luigi
Baldacci.
Aternino Club
The eighteenth-century building was
the seat of the municipality of Pescara until the unification with
Castellammare; the original building was heavily damaged by war events.
In 2007 the building was rebuilt in its original form and is home to
temporary events and exhibitions. The neoclassical style building
overlooks the ancient central square of Pescara Vecchia, Piazza
Garibaldi.
Birthplace of Gabriele D'Annunzio
Gabriele
D'Annunzio's birthplace, along Corso Gabriele Manthoné, was built at the
end of the eighteenth century; on 12 March 1863 the poet Gabriele
D'Annunzio was born there, and it was included among the national
monuments on 14 April 1927. In 1963 a first exhibition was installed
there, expanded in 1993 into a museum itinerary dedicated to the first
period of D'Annunzio's life Annunzio, with a collection of documents,
works of art, clothes, manuscripts, photographs and various jewels
belonging to the poet's family.
Perenich Palace
Palazzo
Perenich was built in 1884 by the architect and engineer Antonino
Liberi, and for a certain period of time, starting from the seventies of
the twentieth century, it hosted the Faculty of Architecture of the
"Gabriele d'Annunzio" University, before the Pescara campus would be
centralized in the Viale Pindaro complex. The building, built on the
model of the Renaissance Palazzo Strozzi in Florence, is divided
horizontally by two string course frames.
Pomilio Palace
The
structure of Palazzo Pomilio, known as Ex Aurum, was designed by
Antonino Liberi and was born as a kursaal and Pescara bathing
establishment in 1910; it was subsequently enlarged in 1935, according
to Giovanni Michelucci's project, into a liquor factory for the
production of Aurum liqueur. After many years of abandonment it was
restored and reopened to the public in 2007, with the function of a
multipurpose museum structure and home to the office for European
projects of the municipalities of Pescara, Montesilvano and Spoltore.
The area, in the Pineta Dannunziana area, is dotted with various Art
Nouveau buildings and villas; the project of the Pineta neighborhood was
in fact born following the reclamation of the swamps previously present
there, with Antonino Liberi's project ("Pineta Project") for the
construction of the new neighborhood which was approved in 1912.
Post Office Building
Designed by Cesare Bazzani, the building was
inaugurated in 1933. The white stone facade is punctuated by
semi-columns that support an entablature with a serrated frame. The
surface is crossed by linear windows with an upper archivolted gable.
The interior is decorated with a fresco by Elio D'Epifanio and 57
polychrome ceramic tiles by the sculptor Giuseppe Di Prinzio.
Palazzo Fattiboni
Located in the San Silvestro hamlet, Palazzo
Fattiboni was built in the 17th century and later became the municipal
seat of the town until 1879, when it was aggregated to the municipality
of Pescara. The building appears as a rectangular building, composed of
an internal cloister, and is equipped with a regular order of rounded
openings.
In the city, several Art Nouveau buildings and villas have survived
time and war destruction, the most significant of which are:
Palazzo
Imperato: among the numerous works by Antonino Liberti in Pescara,
Palazzo Imperato is often cited as one of the main examples of Liberty
architecture in the city; located at the beginning of Corso Umberto I,
it was supposed to constitute, with a twin that was never built, the
gateway to the city for those coming from the then central station;
Palazzo Muzii: following the monumental style of Renaissance palaces,
the palace built in the 1930s to a design by Vincenzo Pilotti and Nicola
Simeone is spread over three levels and features a covered gallery, and
originally housed one of the first city cinemas.
Palazzo Verrocchio:
The almost cubic block building is inspired by classic stylistic motifs
such as the ashlar treatment of the facades, which present numerous
openings of various types and arrangements.
Palazzo Michetti and the
adjacent Teatro Vicentino Michetti both built in 1910 based on a design
by Antonino Liberi;
Palazzo Mezzopreti, a nineteenth-century building
built in neoclassical style, with Liberty-style architectural and
decorative details, which became home to the Luisa D'Annunzio
Conservatory in June 2006.
Rebirth Square
Commonly known as Piazza Salotto, Piazza della
Rinascita is the heart of the city centre. The square was redesigned at
the beginning of the 2000s by local architects on the basis of a study
drawn up by the "d'Annunzio" University on the restoration of the
Modern. The square is historically a venue for events and a place for
leisure.
Since the 1970s, a sculpture by Vicentino Michetti has
been present in the square in a decentralized position, a concrete
elephant conceived as a provocation aimed at other monuments and
buildings in that material which were increasingly characterizing the
city.
Corso Umberto I
Main axis of the center of the ancient
Castellammare Adriatico, the street maintained its role even following
the city union, remaining the main street of the center of Pescara. It
connects the old station with the seafront, where the La Nave fountain
by Pietro Cascella is located. Several Art Nouveau buildings survive
along the street, including Palazzetto Imperato, Palazzo Muzii and
Palazzo Verrocchio, among the most significant buildings of urban
development before the Second World War.
Corso Vittorio Emanuele
II
The long road axis, perpendicular to Corso Umberto I, constituted
the city section of state road 16, and was the second route along which
the city development of Castellammare Adriatico began. Despite various
attempts at partial closure and pedestrianisation, it still plays a
primary function in the traffic of the city centre. In the years
preceding the destruction of the war, many public and administrative
buildings were built on the street, such as the Post Office Building,
the Savings Bank Building and the Banco di Napoli. The urban evolution
of the course lasted until the end of the 1960s, when many ancient
houses and buildings that survived the bombings were demolished for the
construction of new high-rise condominiums.
Italy Square
The
square was designed as the center of the administrative buildings built
in the fascist period. In the center there is a bronze sculpture
entitled "La Pescara" by Giuseppe Di Prinzio, depicting a woman on the
back of a sea horse, from whose bite a jet flows. In the square there is
also a bust dedicated to Gabriele D'Annunzio.
Risorgimento Bridge
Following the destruction in 1946 of the Littorio bridge, the only river
crossing in the city and destroyed in the final stages of the Second
World War, the Risorgimento bridge was built in its place immediately
after the end of the conflict. 106 meters long, it connects the historic
center of Pescara Vecchia with the city centre; under the two heads
there are four inscriptions that remember characters and events linked
to the history of Pescara: Francesco Ferdinando d'Avalos and Vittoria
Colonna, marquises of Pescara, the Duke of Atri Giovan Girolamo
Acquaviva and the leader Muzio Attendolo Sforza. To decorate the bridge,
four cylindrical pillars covered with bronze rings with sculptures by
Giuseppe Di Prinzio and Andrea Cascella echoing the symbols of Abruzzo
life and culture were placed on the sides of the crossing, later removed
but preserving the rings with the decorations.
Union Square
The square, originally the seat of the regional road and a junction of
the SS 16 dir/C. A travertine monument is placed in memory of the
southern patriots who perished or were locked up in the adjacent former
Bourbon prison.
Corso Manthoné and via delle Caserme
For
centuries the two streets were the main streets of the city, and from
the end of the 20th century they became one of the meeting points of the
city's nightlife. In this area south of the Pescara river stood the
village enclosed in the large Spanish fortress since the 16th century.
In the neighbourhood, which still shows its characteristic
eighteenth-century appearance, there were also the churches of the
Santissimo Sacramento, del Rosario, San Giacomo and Santa Gerusalemme;
the first was demolished for the construction of the cathedral of San
Cetteo, the others were located in via dei Bastioni, destroyed by the
bombings of 1943; Santa Gerusalemme, whose reconstruction work from
scratch on the remains of the ancient late antique building began in
1783 but remained unfinished, had already been demolished in the early
1900s. In addition to the Gabriele D'Annunzio Birthplace Museum, the
Aternino Club and the Museum of the People of Abruzzo, the birthplace of
Ennio Flaiano is also present but cannot be visited.
Piazza
Giuseppe Garibaldi
Ancient central square of old Pescara, it
underwent a radical change in the 1970s with the demolition of Palazzo
Mezzanotte, replaced by a modern building. In the center there is the
War Memorial by Pietro Cascella: the square-plan block sees a slender
quadrangular column rising on the pedestal, symbol of the execution
column, and a second semi-shapeless block, which mixes human figures
with small square blocks , symbol of the martyrs fallen in war.
Pescara seafront
Divided by the Pescara river into the northern and
southern seafronts, the long urban artery of the Pescara seafront
features numerous historic Art Nouveau villas and monuments such as the
La Nave fountain by Pietro Cascella.
Sea Bridge
The Ponte del
Mare distinguishes the landscape of the city and has united the two
rivieras north and south of the river since 2009. It is a 465 meter
cycle-pedestrian bridge in the shape of a sail, the suspended part of
which is supported by a steel pillar anchored to the north bank of the
river and positioned in an oblique position with respect to the
trajectory of the river. It is one of the longest cycle-pedestrian
bridges in Europe.
Flaiano Bridge
Built in 2017, the Flaiano
bridge connects directly to the "Portanuova" junction of the SS 16
dir/C, as well as connecting the two banks of the river, also hosting
cycle paths in both directions. It contributes to defining the city
profile of Pescara, with its 58 meter high flagpole.
The Ship
Fountain
One of the best-known and most identifying city monuments,
the La Nave fountain was created by Pietro Cascella in 1986 in
travertine marble. It was inaugurated on 4 July 1987 in Largo
Mediterraneo, after having been exhibited for a few months in Florence
in Piazza Santa Croce. The sculpture represents a rowing boat and
recalls the city's vocation for fishing and the prisoners of the Bourbon
Baths exploited as rowers on ships until 1859.
Fountain of the
Five Spouts
The nineteenth-century fountain known as the fountain of
the five spouts is located in the Pescara Colli district, near the
basilica of the Madonna dei Sette Dolori; it was built by the then mayor
Muzii as "compensation" to the inhabitants of the hilly nucleus of
Castellammarese, increasingly overshadowed by the municipality now
facing the sea shores. Made of brick, it has a single parallelepiped
volume divided into three parts by four pilasters, with a low pedestal,
base and Doric capital, which support a classic entablature with a
slightly hinted attic. The volume started with pilasters placed inside
projecting lozenges. The basin below has a rounded edge.
Madonna
del Porto
It is a travertine column erected in 1954 in honor of the
Madonna, with a bronze statue created by the sculptor Vito Pancella. The
monument is located at the mouth of the Pescara river.
Not all the remains of the city's past have been erased by time, and
several finds have been found in various parts of the city:
The late
antique mosaic, discovered in 2001 on the southern floodplain of the
river and reburied around 2012 to protect it in the absence of a
renovation. Other nearby remains are those of the centrally planned
building from the 3rd-4th century which later gave rise to the 11th
century church of Santa Gerusalemme; two semi-buried columns are visible
in two glass rooms set up in front of the cathedral of San Cetteo, on
the busy Viale Gabriele D'Annunzio.
The area of the Colle del
Telegrafo Park, where prehistoric remains have been found. Work began in
2009 to open the site to the public; in 2017 the park was opened but the
archaeological excavations were interrupted.
Some Roman remains, such
as the arches found in the basement of the former central station and in
some shops in the historic center.
An ancient necropolis dating back
to the 2nd-3rd century AD, buried under the Rampigna field, on the
northern riverside near the Town Hall.
Dannunziana pine forest
The Pineta Dannunziana nature reserve of
provincial interest is a nature reserve located in the southern area of
the city. It is also known as the Pineta D'Avalos, from the name of the
family that owned the marquisate of Pescara since the Middle Ages. It is
the largest green area in the city, with more than 50 hectares of
protected area and contains a notable variety of flora and fauna
species, typical of the Mediterranean scrub.
Santa Filomena pine
forest
The Pineta di Santa Filomena nature reserve is a state nature
reserve located north of the city, which continues into the municipality
of neighboring Montesilvano. In the Reserve, which has existed since
1977, there is a shelter for birds of prey, managed by the State
Forestry Corps.
Other parks
Villa Sabucchi: is located in the
central area of the city, near the former railway line.
"Florída"
Park: is located in the heart of the city.
Villa De Riseis: is
located in the central part of the city, near the northern marina
district. The park is used in summer for cultural events.
Villa
Basile: the park extends into the first hilly area of Pescara and,
overlooking the new railway line, overlooks the city and the sea. The
villa dates back to the nineteenth century, and is an example of late
Baroque architecture.
Telegrafo Hill Park: it is a small park that
overlooks one of the highest hills, on which there is also an antenna
(hence the name). It is located in the northern area of the city and
from whose top it is possible to see the panorama of almost the entire
urban area.
River park: this is a park that is mostly under
construction, in which there is a cycle path.
Former Di Cocco
barracks park: it is located near the headquarters of the "d'Annunzio"
University; the park area was purchased by the municipality around 2006,
and previously belonged to military state property.
Sports park:
inaugurated in 2020, it is located in the city center in via Rigopiano.
Pescara Jazz (Jazz Festival). Musical event that takes place every
year during the summer period. The first Italian summer festival
dedicated to jazz born in 1969.
Ennio Flaiano International Award.
Cinematographic event divided into four sections (cinema, theatre,
literature and television) which takes place every year during the
summer period.
Saint Andrew the Apostle. Every year, the Pescara navy
celebrates its patron saint. The tradition of the Feast of Sant'Andrea
dates back to 1867, which has always been commemorated in the area of
the seaside village near the port, out of devotion of the fishermen.
From that same year and in all the following years, the navy celebrated
the saint with a procession, which has the characteristic of taking
place at sea.
Banner Regatta. A race between 8 meter long boats and
with 10 rowers competing along the Aterno-Pescara river.
FLA
(Festival of books and other things). The Festival of books and other
things (FLA, formerly the Adriatic Literature Festival) is a cultural
event established in 2002 in Pescara, with the aim of promoting interest
in reading and writing in all their forms. The festival takes place
annually in November and sees the participation of authors and literary
critics who are protagonists of readings, debates and presentations of
new works.
Funambolika - International New Circus Festival. It is a
circus arts event that has taken place in Pescara since 2007, created by
Raffaele De Ritis and organized by the Pescaresi Events Authority.
Funambolika is divided into various forms of classic and contemporary
international circus, with medium-large format shows intended for
audiences of over two thousand people. Its uniqueness is defined by the
co-presence of various circus forms and by the national exclusivity of
the proposals: the neoclassical attractions of the traditional circus,
the recitals of soloists, the debut of new circus companies. The
programming regularly includes artists awarded at the Monte Carlo
International Circus Festival. Among the characteristics, the presence
of firsts or exclusives for Italy or Europe; the risk in supporting the
debut of new international art circus creations for a popular audience.
The event has been followed by the international press over the years.
By plane
Abruzzo Pasquale Liberi International Airport (IATA: PSR)
serves traffic of over 500,000 passengers per year through national
connections with Milan-Bergamo, Milan-Linate, Cagliari, Brescia (postal)
and Turin, European connections with London- Stansted, Paris-Beauvais,
Lourdes, Brussels-Charleroi, Frankfurt-Hahn, Weeze, Mostar, Bucharest,
Barcelona-Gerona, Oslo-Torp and Tirana. The airport is 3 km from the
center of Pescara and is connected to it by bus no. 38 of the GTM which
leaves approximately every 15 minutes, while the Arpa company manages
the bus connections with Rome and Naples.
By car
Pescara is
connected to the motorway network (the A25 Pescara-Rome and the A14
Adriatica) via a system of expressways approximately 30 km long.
Pescara is crossed by two pan-European corridors:
E80/A25 (Lisbon,
Portugal - Gürbulak, Türkiye)
E55/A14 (Helsingborg, Sweden - Kalamata
(Kalamata), Greece)
Another fundamental artery is the SS 5 Tiburtina
Valeria, which connects Pescara with Rome.
On the train
Pescara is a transit point for the Bologna - Lecce Adriatic railway and
at the head of the Rome - Pescara trans-Apennine line, which will be the
subject of improvement works.
The stations of Pescara are:
Pescara Centrale (the main station)
Pescara Porta Nuova
Pescara
San Marco
Pescara Court
By bus
Bus lines managed by ARPA -
Regional Public Buses of Abruzzo.
By public transport
There is a suburban line to Penne and
connections with some municipalities that are part of the suburban area
of Chieti and Pescara, namely Montesilvano, Cappelle sul Tavo, Città
Sant'Angelo and Spoltore in the province of Pescara, Francavilla al Mare
and San Giovanni Teatino in province of Chieti.
The center of Pescara is home to numerous shops where you can shop for all budgets and tastes, ranging from the most well-known international chains to shops selling local agri-food excellence. In particular in the streets of Corso Umberto I, Via Firenze, Via Nicola Fabrzi and neighboring streets, almost all of which are pedestrianised. The only two city shopping centers are located one near the Portanuova railway station, and the other on the northern edge of the city, between Piazza Duca degli Abruzzi and Montesilvano.
The city's nightlife is very popular, spilling over into three "nightlife" areas dotted with clubs, bars and restaurants: the traditional promenade of the Riviera, the historic center of Pescara Vecchia and for a few years also the area around the covered market in the square Muzii.
Modest prices
1 Trieste Pizza, Lungomare G. Matteotti, 102, ☎ +39
085 4214038.
2 Pizzeria Caracciolo, Via C. Battisti, 121, ☎ +39 085
385220.
Average prices
3 Ristorante Ferraioli, Via R.
Paolucci, 79, ☎ +39 085 4210295.
4 Grotta del Marinaio Restaurant,
Via Bardet, 6, ☎ +39 085 690454.
5 Ristorante Franco, Lungomare Papa
Giovanni XXIII (Tourist Port), ☎ +39 085 66390.
6 Filippo Cucina di
Mare, Viale Amerigo Vespucci, 136, ☎ +39 085 2193571.
7 Ristorante Da
Attilio, Lungomare Papa Giovanni XXIII, 75, ☎ +39 085 4514920.
8 La
Figlia di Attilio, Viale V. Pepe, 177, ☎ +39 085 4511500.
9 Alcyone
Pizzeria restaurant, Viale della Riviera, 24, ☎ +39 085 34297.
Average prices
1 Ambra Palace, Via Quarto dei Mille, 28, ☎ +39 085
378247. Three stars
2 Hotel Alba, Via Michelangelo Forti, 14, ☎ +39
085 389145. Three stars
3 Borgomarino Bed & Breakfast, Via Venezia,
28, ☎ +39 333 4447770.
4 B&B Pescara Centro, Via Lombardia, ☎ +39 393
0479937.
5 Hotel Salus, Lungomare G. Matteotti, 13/1, ☎ +39 085
374196.
Elisir B&B, Corso Umberto I n 18 (100 m from the station), ☎
+39 345 5889499, info@elisirpescara.com. Double in low season: €65.
Check-in: 11:00, check-out: 10:30.
High prices
6 Hotel
Carlton, Viale della Riviera, 36, ☎ +39 085 373125. Four stars
7 Best
Western Hotel Plaza, Piazza del Sacro Cuore, 55, ☎ +39 085 421 4625.
Four stars
8 Hotel Esplanade, Piazza I Maggio, 46, ☎ +39 085 292141.
Four stars
9 Bella Pescara B&B, Via Ortona, 9, ☎ +39 338 5847910.
Four stars
1 Bovio Pharmacy, viale Bovio 161, ☎ +39 085 35280.
2 Stadium
Pharmacy, via Benedetto Croce 201, ☎ +39 085 67333.
3 Farmacia Di
Giamberardino, via Del Santuario 77, ☎ +39 0854153388.
4 Farmacia
Alleva, piazzale Laudi 2, ☎ +39 085 64871.
5 Greco Pharmacy, via
Cavour 51/53, ☎ +39 085 4711690.
6 Martella Pharmacy, via San Donato
35, ☎ +39 085 54655.
7 Perbellini Pharmacy, via Nazionale Adriatica
Nord 157, ☎ +39 085 4712637.
8 Perbellini Pharmacy, via Gabriele
D'Annunzio 88, ☎ +39 085 690296.
9 Signorini Pharmacy, Piazza
Garibaldi 24, ☎ +39 085 690829.
10 Simoncelli Pharmacy, Corso
Vittorio Emanuele 314, ☎ +39 085 4211448.
Post office
Italian Post Office (Pescara Centre), Corso Vittorio
Emanuele II n. 106, ☎ +39 085 4216439.
11 Poste Italiane (Pescara 1),
via Attilio Monti 1, ☎ +39 085 4548235.
12 Poste Italiane (Pescara
2), Via Carducci 86, ☎ +39 085 4280241.
13 Poste Italiane (Pescara
3), viale Luisa D'Annunzio 12, ☎ +39 085 60645.
14 Poste Italiane
(Pescara 5), via Passolanciano 70, ☎ +39 085 4280138.
15 Poste
Italiane (Pescara 8), via Francesco Verrotti 30, ☎ +39 085 4500032.
16 Poste Italiane (Pescara 9), viale Edmondo De Amicis 19, ☎ +39 085
4413249.
17 Poste Italiane (Pescara 10), via Tirino 170, ☎ +39 085
51060.
The main radio stations present are: Radio California, Radio Ketchup,
Radio C1, Radio Parsifal, Radio Sole, Radio Città, Radio Delta 1 (local
branch), Radio International, Studio5 and Studio5 Caribe.
The
main local newspapers are: Il Centro and Abruzzo Oggi.
Pescara is located on the shores of the Adriatic Sea, about 4 meters above sea level, and stretches around the Aterno Pescara River.
The coast of Pescara
is sandy, the beaches are located on both sides of the river. The
city is located in flat areas in the shape of the letter T, which
occupy the river valley and coastal zone; in the northwest and
southwest, the city also extends to the surrounding hills. In the
urban area there are aquifers with seasonal variations in water
level, reaching a meter in spring, when snow melts on the mountains.
The coast on which the city is located was previously almost
entirely occupied by the Mediterranean maquis, where Aleppo pine
forests predominated. This forest was mostly cut down by the end of
the 19th century AD. e., and then almost completely destroyed in the
middle of the 20th century, when space was made available for new
buildings. The relict remains of the forest are scattered over the
territory of the commune: the pine forest of D'Avalos in the New
Port area, and a long narrow forest stretched along the sea to the
south - about two kilometers by two hundred meters - a forest area
that goes into the neighboring commune of Montesilvano (Sanctuary of
the Pine Grove of Santa Filomena) ...
Seismic classification:
zone 3 (standard level) according to Ordinanza PCM n. 3274 del
20/03/2003.
Pescara is located at 42 ° 27 'north
latitude and 14 ° 13' east longitude. The climate of the commune is
Mediterranean, with hot summers, but with frequent high humidity due
to breezes from the northeast, sometimes intense, which blow on land
from the sea due to the stable anticyclonic structure of North
Africa, which pumps hot air into the upper atmosphere. contrasting
with the colder "fresh" sea air. This circumstance prevents the
temperature in Pescara from rising above 35 ° C, but, on the other
hand, increases the sensation of heat due to the rise in humidity.
Summer breezes follow the rotation of the winds. From 9 pm to 9 am,
a coastal breeze (with a maximum speed of 5-7 knots) blows from the
southwest, typically much weaker than the sea breeze, which suddenly
starts blowing around 9 a.m., first from the northeast, and turns to
east-southeast by the time of its termination at 20/21 pm. In stable
atmospheric conditions, the sea breeze reaches 15 knots during the
hottest part of the day, cooling the area from 12 to 15 noon. It
should be noted that the sea breeze from the northeast brings with
it the most humid air, while the breeze from the east-southeast is
much drier and does not greatly change the temperature picture.
However, summer temperatures can only exceed 35 ° C with the
presence of garbino, a wind from Africa that increases in speed as
it descends from the Abruzzo mountains, becomes very hot and very
dry. The mountains not so far from Pescara, Maiella and the Gran
Sasso ridge, are important for the climate of Pescara, and in the
presence of southeastern air currents open the possibility of
creating a garbino, which is a foehn - a strong wind that reaches
speeds of 100 km / h and creates sudden temperature rises with
simultaneous drops in humidity. Because of this, winter temperatures
of 20 ° C or more are not uncommon in Pescara.
The highest
temperature ever recorded was 45 ° C and was recorded on August 30,
2007, which was the result of a low pressure of 850 hPa and the
resulting strong hair dryer from the Apennines. On July 24, 2007, a
temperature of 44 ° C was recorded under similar weather conditions,
and at night the temperature reached 37 ° C for several hours.
Winters in Pescara are moderately rainy, but a rare winter does
without at least one-time snow, which can cover the ground for
several days. Such events are associated with the emergence of the
Ionic low pressure zone, which draws in cold air from the Balkans.
In fact, due to the northeasterly wind, Pescara suffers from
orographic cloudiness, which leads to precipitation, usually weak,
but becoming strong under reduced pressure. Coming from the
northeast from the Siberian region, about once every 3-4 years,
snowstorms occasionally cover the city with snow. However, air
humidity is high in winter as well. The lowest temperature reached
−13 ° C and was recorded on January 4, 1979 (the temperature reached
−12 ° C on the previous day). The average temperature of the coldest
month (January) is 6.1 ° C for the airport and 6.5 ° C for the city
center, while the hottest month (July) is 23 ° C and 23.5 ° C,
respectively (data refer to the period 1961-1990). Precipitation is
not too great (just below 700 mm per year over the same period) and
falls mainly in autumn.
The origins of the city's history are lost in the darkness of
centuries; Perhaps the first settlements on the territory of modern
Pescara arose in the area of the present Telegraph Hill (Italian.
Colle del Telegrafo), where artifacts dating back more than 6,000
years were discovered. The first village, however, was founded on
the river in the Roman era and was called Vicus Aterni, and then was
known as Aternum, after the name of the river. Pescara was also
known as Ostia Aterni (Latin Ostia Aterni), that is, the mouth of
the Aterna, and was the commercial port of the city of Teate, now
Chieti. Trade links (fish, agricultural products and handicrafts,
etc.) between Atternum, Teate and Rome were especially intense and
actively developed with the construction of the Tiberius Road, which
connected (and still connects) these cities, representing a vital
transport artery crossing the Apennines.
With the fall of the
Roman Empire under the onslaught of the barbarians, Atternum
practically disappeared from the chronicles, but it is believed that
due to the convenient location of the village, trade and
transportation of materials and people did not stop, continuing
under the control of the city of Teate. In the last decades of the
5th century, Pescara came under the control of the Ostrogoths, then,
fifty years later, it was captured by Byzantium, and in 570 - by
Lombardy. For almost five centuries, Pescara was part of the
Spoletian Duchy (founded by the Lombards, but gone into the orbit of
Frankish influence in the Carolingian era).
Around 1000,
Atternum changes its name and becomes Piscaria (Italian Piscaria),
and the river flowing through the city becomes Piscarius (Italian
Piscarius), which is probably due to the abundance of fish in the
Adriatic Sea near Pescara. The city of Piscaria has long figured in
the inheritance lists of the Montecassino Abbey.
In the XII
century, Pescara, along with all the adjacent lands, was conquered
by the Normans, and in the first decades of the XIII century it
entered the domain of Frederick II. Then, from the 13th century to
the 19th century, these lands, like the rest of the Abruzzo region,
were part of the Kingdom of Naples (which, after unification with
the Kingdom of Sicily, became known as the Kingdom of the Two
Sicilies). In the Aragonese period (the second half of the 15th
century), the city was ruled by the family of feudal lords of
Spanish origin Avalos, who, after twinning with the D'Aquino family,
received the title of Marquis of Pescara. During the reign of
Charles V, Pescara became an important outpost of the Kingdom of
Naples on the Adriatic coast. In 1566, the fortress was attacked and
sieged by the Ottoman admiral Piale Pasha, who arrived with an army
in 105 galleys. The fortress did not surrender to the enemy, in no
small measure thanks to the efforts of the courageous commander
Giovan Girolamo II Acquaviva d'Aragona (Italian Giovan Girolamo II
Acquaviva d'Aragona), Duke of Atri.
With the stabilization of
the political position of the Kingdom of Naples, a new period of
prosperity for the city begins, associated with its successful
strategic and military position, which continued throughout the
Habsburg era and most of the reign of the Bourbon dynasty, ending
around the end of the 18th century. In this century, Pescara had
approximately 3,000 inhabitants.
In the early years of the
19th century, the city was occupied by the French, constituting an
important military post of the kingdom of Joseph Bonaparte. At this
time, the settlement of Castellammare Adriatico, located on the
northern bank of the river and numbering about 1,500 inhabitants,
separated and formed a separate commune, which gathered the lands
around the city of Chitta Sant'Angelo (1807). In 1814 Pescara was
one of the centers of the Carbonari rebellion against Marshal Murat,
King of Naples. This uprising was brutally suppressed by the
Bourbons, who persecuted the region until the fall of the Kingdom of
the Two Sicilies in 1860, imprisoning many patriots.
After
joining the new Kingdom of Italy and until the end of the 19th
century, Castellammare and Pescara experienced a period of
sustainable development in both economic and demographic terms (the
population grew especially strongly between 1881 and 1901). In two
satellite cities and in Pescara itself, a strong industrial
bourgeoisie began to form, among whose members were the families of
Bucco, D'Annunzio, Farina, Ricci, Mezzopreti, Muzia, De Rice,
Pomilio, Pascale (Italian Bucco, D'Annunzio, Farina, Ricci,
Mezzopreti, Muzii, De Riseis, Pomilio, Pascale). As Raffaele
Colapietra writes in his book Pescara 1860-1960, the Puritas di
Angelo Delfino pasta factory employed more than 300 workers in the
1920s and 1930s. At this time, ideas began to appear to unite these
two cities within one province.
On January 2, 1927, thanks to the outstanding population growth
and industrial development of Castellammare Adriatico and Pescara,
which began in the second half of the 19th century and continued at
the beginning of the next, a decree was signed uniting these two
cities under the common name of Pescara and the province of the same
name was also formed. Public pressure, the political authority of
Giacomo Acherbo and the moral prestige of Gabriele d'Annunzio played
the main roles in this process.
During the Second World War,
Pescara suffered significant losses, both human and material, due to
the Allied bombing in the late summer of 1943, which cost at least
3,000 lives, and then in the process of capture by German troops and
then their retreat with battles through town. In memory of this, on
February 8, 2001, Italian President Carlo Ciampi awarded the city
the Gold Medal for Civil Service.
After the war, Pescara
developed significantly and became an important city and capital of
the Abruzzo region.