AUTUMN AND WINTER IN CIVITA DI BAGNOREGIO

Im letzten Jahr bat ich meine nette Vermieterin des Palastes in Civita di Bagnoregio,
mir ein paar Gedanken zu ihrem Lieblingsort aufzuschreiben. Der Text gefällt mir so gut, dass ich ihn nicht durch eine Übersetzung verändern möchte, weshalb ich ihn auf englisch veröffentliche:

AUTUMN AND WINTER IN CIVITA DI BAGNOREGIO
volcanic tuff (tufo) stone perfectly integrates in the surrounding landscape. In Winter the bare trees let the structure and the architecture of the landscape come out even more than usual.

Durch Klick vergrößern: Calanchi Valley / Brücke nach Civita di Bagnoregio

In October and November the chestnut wood under the village bears its fruits and it’s very nice to take a walk down to it to harvest chestnuts.
After the wood, if you feel like walking longer, you can reach the calanchi (stunning geological formation) valley. At this time of the year the weather can be very lighty and sunny, sometimes very windy and cold too, and the air full of the smells of the season.
The valley is full of vegetation even in winter and although at first sight it looks completely wild, the signs of a past in which local people used to rely on it for their food are everywhere: olive and fruit trees, vines, etc. Although they have mostly become wild they still grow tasty fruits in the Summer.

After a nice walk in the cold weather, it is the ideal time to enjoy indoor life in a typical house with a big open fireplace. The fireplace is the core of every house where people used to gather in the warmest part of the house in a time when no other means of cooking and heating existed. Today (although the houses are fully heated and have modern cookers!!) it is still very nice to gather around the fireplace and eat food prepared on burning wood
(if you picked some chestnuts during your walk they are at their best roasted on the fire).
If you don’t feel like cooking you could go to the close ‘bruschetteria’ by the olive mill
and enjoy very special meals prepared by a local family.
But Civita is also great because of its location and Winter time is a good moment to go and explore the surroundings. Many festivals, concerts and events take place nearby,such as the Umbria Jazz Winter festival over New Year (28 Dec – 1 Jan),when the beautiful city of Orvieto, half an hour away, is brought to life by jazz concerts, that often are held in typical restaurants serving local specialities. Easter is another ideal time to visit Civita as in Bagnoregio, and in the nearby villages, traditional religious feasts and mass are held,
especially on the Good Friday and on Easter Sunday.