Dear Steemians

we would like to tell you about two excellent and curious day that we spent in one of the least populated villages in Italy. We are always on the hunt for interesting motives, so we drove up to:

CERVATTO

Cervatto is one of the smallest villages in Italy located in the Province of Vercelli in the region of Piedmon. It takes us around 2 hours to drive up there but time passes easily with music and good friends in the car. In our boot we have 1x drone, 1x Canon C300, 1x tooth brush - which we didn't think, was needed.

The little village is fighting against disappearing from the earth but with a population that mostly consists of gentlemen over 70, this is a fight that they will loose.

Source of graph: Wiki

Our plan is to spend the day in Cervatto and drive back to Milan in the evening. Little did we know that the place will be so full of life that day - because we didn't know that it's a special event on the village's calendar: Carnival

This castle used to be a casino. Cervatto's mayor explains that - in case the gamblers fail to pay their depth, they would through them down the mountain. Suddenly we all feel a little less safe. This didn't happen in the middle ages but pretty recently - at a time, when splendour and commerce was garnishing the village.

We would like to present you a couple of personalities that we met in Cervatto. People are so chatty and open, there is no problem getting in touch with them and they always take time - even for strangers like us.

Around the village you can find a German lady living all by herself in a little house and never leaves the village. You can find three houses on the other side of the mountain which is exclusively inhabited by cats. You can find tragic love stories and real friendship, jealousy and endless jokes.

The village has a strong Walser heritage.

THE WALSER

The Walser are a people with German heritage who settled in the Alps during the peak of the Middle Ages. Until today they speak Walser German, a variety of Highest Alemannic and mix it with Italian. The Walser can also be found in Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Austria 🇦🇹.

The Walser are particularly famous for their excellent knowledge of mountaineering and their capacity to grow crops in the most difficult of circumstances available in Europe 🇪🇺 . You can still follow their old paths - they are some of the most impressive hiking routes that you can take in the Alps. These routes show how the Walser were not only searching for the quickest route from one point to the other but were exploring new corners of the mountains to inhabit 🏔.

VILLAGE LIFE

🐾One thing is sure: This village has got character. 🐾

In the evening, the Cervattinians invite us for dinner. One of the gentle cooks of the evening accompanies us into the city hall. Well, it's a very multi functional building. There is a bar, storage, an archive, public toilets, a community room - but no office for the mayor. Who needs that, to be honest?

We are the first people to arrive and witness the magic happening in the kitchen. The two gentlemen have been friends ever since and were both born in Cervatto. They are clearly the soul of the place.

At 8pm more and more people arrive until the room is cooking from the cheerful bodies, wine and song. Between each meal the residents chat. Everybody seems to know the lyrics and one sings louder than the other. I feel like they are even battling each other - who is the loudest, who sings the longest?

The food is brilliant, even though served on unspectacular plates, it tastes like cooked by angels. And the songs are never ending.

Tomorrow we will tell you about our second day in Cervatto which was just as spectacular and unforgettable. We end up sleeping over because we had too much wine and the mood is too good to leave already.

Steem on and stay curious! 🌻
Yours,
Elena & Ale 🌻