The Abbey of San Giovanni in Venere is perched on a bluff above the Adriatic Sea, overlooking a patch of grapevines, olive trees, and a long sandy stretch of beach. In the Italian province of Chieti, the Abbey was completed in the 13th century and built over an old Roman temple – columns from which still remain deep in the Abbey's crypt, alongside frescoes from a (slightly) more recent period in history.

There's nothing particularly special about the Abbey of San Giovanni – it is spectacularly old and historic and the setting is clearly sublime, but by Italian standards, that's not such a big deal.

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Source: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/