Monastery of St. Mary the Comforter in the Aragonese Castle

From the terrace of the Immaculate Conception, we will go to the courtyard of the monastery of the Order of St. Clare. The monastery was founded in 1575 by Beatrice Quadra, widow of the governor of the island of d'Avalos. Initially, the monastery was located on the top of Monte Epomeo, next to the church of St. Nicholas, where four dozen nuns settled. However, the novices did not live in seclusion for long - the difficulties of living in the mountainous area forced the clarissines to move to the Aragonese castle.

Most of the nuns were of noble origin - rich families sent their daughters to the monastery until a boy was born. Thus, the heir to the property and the successor of the family has always been a man

The monastery received the name of St. Mary the Comforter (Monastero di S. Maria della Consolazione) and lasted until 1810.

Napoleon's Marshal Joachim Murat, when he became king of Naples, eliminated the small monasteries, and the Clarissins, of whom there were only 16 by that time, moved to the monastery of St. Anthony in Ischia Porto.

Today, part of the monastery's premises is occupied by the European Institute of Restoration.

It is the world's largest organization dedicated to the restoration of archaeological finds and other artifacts. The Institute is a center of excellence in the field of preservation and restoration of cultural heritage

The Institute offers courses that train specialists from all over the world, making Italian the de facto second international language of restorers after English.

The Albergo II Monasterio is located in the other half of the monastery premises.

The hotel offers its guests a perfect unique entourage-rooms in former cells with vaulted ceilings and antique-style furniture, nevertheless equipped with all the amenities. In addition, there are wonderful and beautifully illuminated gardens at guests ' disposal, where the public cannot get "from the street" in the evening.

I inquired about the prices of this exclusive establishment - it turned out nothing fantastic-from 90 to 350 euros per day, depending on the season, and most importantly, on the view from the window. This once again convinced me that the rumors about the high cost of a holiday in Ischia are greatly exaggerated.