destination calabria:photo tour of a medieval village in southern italy (part I)

48 CommentsThursday • September 6, 2007 • by michelle

It’s been a while since I’ve posted some photos, and I think it’s time. I’m still camera-less, but I do have some shots stored away, so let’s go back to a lovely day in May when Luna and I took a walking tour around a section of the village.

It all started out in the little piazza near my house where the main church is located; truth be told, I hadn’t even brought my camera but then I saw these: So I went back home and grabbed the macchina fotografica. I don’t know how these roses ended up there, but it’s certainly not uncommon to find flowers outside the church in the morning.

By the way, we have 13 churches here in all (reminder: 300 people), but only one operates full time. I promise to write more about the history of the village at some point and how it’s been largely abandoned (inspired by Farfallina!) but until I can get more photos to accompany it, we’ll just have to stick with what I’ve got.

Here’s the bell tower of La Chiesa Matrice/La Chiesa di San Salvatore, built in 1218. After we wound down one of the winding streets, I saw this cactus giving a helping hand to a piece of fallen fruit: The fruit is a fico d’india (Indian fig) aka prickly pear. I’m not quite sure why the one in the grip of the cactus is ripe when none of the others are–and actually I’m not sure why that one is ripe at all.

Remember this was May, and their season is now (sorry I can’t get a good photo for you Gil, but do check out Sara’s post!), so that coddled one sure was special.

Moving on. . . .

Want to go in? Sorry, but there’s really nothing else behind there except this: No one (human) lives in this part of the village, and so much of it is falling down, boarded up, and otherwise abandoned-looking.

Here is my very favorite abandoned house. If you peek in through the crack in the front door, you can see la famiglia gathered inside the small room on the first chilly night of the year:

La Mamma stirring the sugo one last time before getting the water ready for pasta, resting the wooden spoon on the side of the terra cotta pot, and wiping her hands on her well-worn but clean apron.

La figlia embroidering sheets in preparation of her upcoming matrimonio, pulling the thread up through the fabric and back down, over and over, her feet resting on the old braciere.

Il figliolo and Papà playing briscola in another corner, their many layers of clothes making each throw of a card less dramatic than it normally would be.

[I may or may not have spent many hours sitting near this house over the past four years.]

But back to 2007, and back to greenery, which is just around the corner.

Can you find Luna? And finally, a quick glance back at where we’ve been before we move on. Won’t you come back and continue our passeggiata?

[tags]calabria, southern italy, badolato, medieval villages, dogs[/tags]

Posted in: life in calabria, puppy love, scenes from village life

48 Beans of Wisdom to “destination calabria:photo tour of a medieval village in southern italy (part I)” Michelle Fabio is an American attorney-turned-freelance writer living in her family's ancestral village in Calabria, Italy and savoring simplicity one sip at a time.
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