Il Pollino (August 2017)

In the summer of 2017, Antonio invited me (along with 13 other of his friends) to his country house, which is located in Viggianello, a small village in the middle of the Natural Park of Il Pollino. Located in the Basilicata—or as the locals traditionally call it, the Lucania—Il Pollino is the largest protected area of Italy. The park comprises a chain of mountains, the highest of which reaches 2,267 m of height (so, still some 400 m bellow the altitude of Bogotá), and which off course is called the Pollino Massif.

Driving around the labyrinthine roads of Viggianello, Antonio was greeting his friends—young and old—which inevitably brought back my childhood years strolling in my grandmothers' town back in Colombia. In fact, the idiosyncrasy of the italian people reminds me a lot of mine. Antonio's family are one of the most friendliest people I have the luck to meet: regardless of the moment of the day, they were always ready to welcome us into their home and in fact they made us feel like it was our own as well. Saying "hello" to a stranger is enough to become friends and enjoy a conversation over a coffee or a glass of wine. In fact, people in Viggianello tend to keep a bottle of wine always available, so that they can offer a glass of wine to every passerby, with no other reason than to share a glass of wine with a friend.

And so, in such a friendly town, were you could fill your lungs with peacefulness and rest from the hectic life of the city, we spend four wonderful days:

The Pollino's peak from Antonio's balcony
and the country house his grandfather built
next to the woods that the light can barely enter
While Rosanna and Antonio collected raspberries
Lello was in charge of preparing the embers
The woods keep safe sources of fresh water
several kinds of spiders
and beautiful landscapes
that inspired deep thoughts
but also a lot of laughter
Rosanna lead the way to the sunset
and when the sun went down, Pippo gave us light
so that the food and wine could run
The next day we fetched Valentina and Francesco
we went to see the Sorgente Mercure
a sight that left us with a smile upon our faces
The last shot before fetching Ricardo
but most importantly, Anna's joy
We hoped for good weather for the Raganello
and were rewarded with a flooded canyon
and a lot of fun!