CITTA DI CASTELLO
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Cittą di Castello is the most significant town in the Upper Tiber Valley because of its economic development, population and cultural value. With its cobblestone streets, medieval monuments and architecture, Cittą di Castello is a very livable city for anyone looking for a quiet life off the normal tourist route. The town offers visitors and residents with splendid works of art, frequent cultural events and a delightful balance between ancient and modern, traditional and progressive.
It does, however, lack the romantic flavor of many other Italian towns - one is not driven to write poetry after walking its streets. But, regardless, Cittą di Castello is a city that is very livable for foreigners, has its own individual charm and is a good base when travelling to other locations in Umbria and Tuscany. Most importantly, it is a town that is great for raising children. Young people flock to the main piazza nightly to meet up with friends and have fun before returning home for dinner. Even with Italy's aging population, Cittą di Castello has a healthy 52% of its citizens at age 40 or under.
According to the 2005 comune census, Cittą di Castello reports a population of 39,492 with 43% of the population being married. The population within the historical center of the town is about 3,200 with women slightly outnumbering men. It is an international town with over 2,000 registered immigrants mostly, Morocco, Albania and Romania. There is also a very small expat community in Cittą di Castello.
Crime is virtually nonexistent. Our carabinieri (policemen) handled mostly car thefts, vandalism and traffic incidents. However, there has been a rise in hashish and marijuana use in the area.
Throughout the year, there are many national events held here involving music, craftworks, agriculture, gastronomy and sports that draw swarms of visitors. Summer is especially lively with many outdoor concerts and festivals.
Cittą di Castello claims as its famous past residents - a pope (Pope Celestine II) and movie star (Monica Bellucci - films include Malena and The Matrix) and an internationally celebrated artist (Alberto Burri). Raphael also worked here for a time but his paintings are now elsewhere.
Cittą di Castello includes in its territory some smaller towns and hamlets, usually a few hundred inhabitants or less, referred to as the frazioni of the comune. Basically, what Americans know as the suburbs. Some frazioni of Cittą di Castello are:
- Bonsciano
- Badia di Petroia
- Belvedere
- Celle
- Caifirenze
- Candeggio
- Canoscio
- Cerbara
- Cornetto
- Croce di Castiglione
- Fabbrecce
- Fraccano
- Lerchi
- Lugnano
- Madonna di Canoscio
- Monte Maggiore
- Morra
- Muccignano
- Passerina
- Petrelle
- Piosina
- Promano
- Rio Secco
- Ronti
- San Donino
- San Leo Bastia
- San Lucia
- San Maiano
- San Pietro a Monte
- San Secondo
- Tassinara
- Terme di Fontecchio
- Trestina
- Uppiano
- Vallurbana
- Volterrano