Pictures: Lyle Such

Words: Thu Buu

Camera: Canon 5d MkIV

During our short stay in Italy, we took a nice sunrise hike through Civita di Bagnoregio and out into the surrounding forest. **Music** "Shadows" by CHPTRS Licensed by The Music Bed, LLC. My Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lylesuch My Website: Lylesuch.com

Civita di Bagnoregio is a small medieval village precariously perched atop a crumbling hilltop in the central region of Italy. Founded over 2500 years ago, this quiet place was considered a dying village. The young have left in search of a more modern lifestyle and the old have moved to the convenience of the new sister town just across the bridge. Civita has no emergency services and all supplies must be driven in on the back of mopeds. But the handful of resilient residents who still call it home have doubled-down on Civita’s lifeline, renovating old buildings into enticing AirB&b rentals, opening up small businesses and restaurants catering to tourists. Their gamble has paid off. Now it is among the must-see hidden gems of Italy. Most tourists flock to the city in busloads during the day, take a quick picture for their social media posts and leave without really getting acquainted with the village at all. On weekends, over 10,000 visitors pay the 5 Euro fee to cross the footbridge, the only easy access entrance into the village. By nightfall, all the noise and crowds dwindle away, leaving only the residents and their overnight guests. We wanted to linger in this place where time seems to have been frozen, and the best way to do it was to stay overnight.

We arrived well past midnight. Amber glows lighting our path across the bridge and up the main passageway into the village summoned us forward to the promise of a comfortable bed after a long day of traveling. The rumbling wheels beneath our suitcases echoed loudly as they tumbled over each time-smoothened cobblestone, so loud and deafening, almost sacrilegious amid the calm rural night.

Our fist day, we wandered the streets in search of windows and staircases that led to nowhere as recent landslides have taken portions of building along with them. There were so many magical nooks and crannies all around the village that brought us bits of pleasure, from the ivy covered walls to the cracked wooden shutters to the lonely bike graveyard that somehow had secured one of the most scenic plot of land. We continued scouting the area past the woods, following our hosts’ advice. Around the backside of the village we found the tunnel that led directly under the village into the woods on the other side. Following a small path, we found ourselves upon a narrow ridge far past Civita. This seemed like a wonderful spot to see sunrise on the village. The best part was that I found a most perfect hiking staff, which became a fun companion on the following hikes.

Our second day in Civita di Bagnoregio, we woke up before dawn to begin our early morning hike. Starting from the stone entrance, we walked the length of the village, a whole five minutes worth. At the end of the village, we retraced our steps from the day before through the tunnel and onto the ridge before the sun poked its golden rays above the horizon.

The previous day we had scouted out our sunrise location. We were looking for a view that would allow us to see both the sun rising in the east over the mountainous landscape, and the sun illuminating the hilltop village to the west. We found the perfect spot, and it was an excellant choice. As the sun rose, the colors of the forest intensified. The enormous rock walls, formed by centuries of landslides reshaping the unstable earth, added a unique texture to the surrounding landscape. The only thing missing were the clouds in the sky. Unfortunately we picked a day with perfectly blue skies, which doesn’t work very well for a timelapse. Oh well, we can’t have everything, right?

Once the hilltop was fully lit, we continued on our hike exploring the surrounding countryside. We followed a small trail down to the stream until a barbed-wire fence stopped our progress. After recounting our excursion to our hosts, we learned that we could have just easily climbed over the fence and continued on without any problems.

Civita di Bagnoregio is most definitely a lovely little town suspended in time and well worth our time to stay overnight.

Italian Countryside

On our way from Civita to Soriano where we were to meet up with Lien and Tyler, we passed an abandoned field blooming with spring flowers. How could we not stop? Lyle made a u-turn on that small country road. We sang and danced and ran through the field of flowers with no burdens or cares in the world. Okay. I sang and I danced and I ran through the field of flowers. But I’m sure Hang and Lyle shared my enthusiasm for Mother Nature’s beauties.

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