Time Is Ticking for the Eroding, Perched Village of Civita Di Bagnoregio in Italy
There are a number of gorgeous locations in Italy that are at risk of disappearing. The most famous is the historic city of Venice with its Carnival masks and romantic canals. Other locations under threat are the medieval stronghold of Ferrara, the picturesque towns in Sicily’s Val di Noto, and the unique views in Cinque Terre. Low-lying coastal areas in the Mediterranean sea struggling with the impact of flooding and coastal erosion.
Erosion is also what threatens the peculiar town captured in the picture above. At approx. 150 km from Rome, less than a 2-hour drive, Civita di Bagnoregio is what we Italians refer to as the city that dies — an appellation coined by the twentieth-century Italian writer, Bonaventura Tecchi.
And she stood like that for a moment, happy and thoughtful, against that flashing background of white scrims and fearful chasms, as if the beauty of a woman’s face descending into a man’s heart is truly one of the hardest things to die for in this short, fleeting life — Bonaventura Tecchi (1947).
The tuff crest that sustains this temerarious village gives in a little every year, more precisely 7 cm every year. Still, the city has held its ground for over 2,500 years when the ancient Etruscans first built it. After the Roman conquest, Ancient Romans, who are famous for their engineering genius, also attempted to address the erosion problem, but only with temporary solutions that were discontinued after the fall of the empire.
This should be enough to convince anyone to brace the moderate drive from Rome and spend half a day exploring the city that dies before it is gone forever. As a Roman by birth, I had wanted to go for the longest time, and finally, on a warm day in July, I crossed the 300-meter-long suspended bridge into the town. Since cars are forced to park outside, this is the only way in. Despite the July heat, we took our time to photograph the majestic town seen from the bridge. But be aware that it is nearly impossible to get a picture without other people as 700,000 tourists visit the town every year.
As it happens often in towns around Italy, the very moment we stepped through the arched way, we found ourselves catapulted into the Middle Ages. Little has changed in Civita. The main square is the beating heart of the town, with the civic fountain and the main Church. The perfect welcome into the city to take a deep breath, cool in the shade, recover from the hike, and look around. And yet, the magic lies in every single alley, hidden around every corner, with their warm stone buildings, ivy drapes, and picturesque glimpses that are only waiting for an artist to sketch them out.
Of course, before you leave, remember to look down and take in the majesty of the tuff walls that fall precipitously down the surrounding canyon. Notice the buildings that stand right at the edge of the cliff. Truly, there is nothing like it…
For how many pictures you may want to take from every single angle of the town, visiting Civita di Bagnoregio won’t take you more than a few hours. This jewel of a town is just that: a gem crowned on a tuff crest. So, if you want to make the most of your outing away from Rome, there is one more peculiar stop that would work just as well.
We climbed back in the car and drove another 45 minutes to reach what is widely known in Italy as the Park of the Monsters. Also named “Gardens of Bomarzo” or “Sacred Grove”, this strange complex is nested in a wooded valley and hosts a series of grotesque statues of giant animals, mythological creatures, and what looks positively like monsters.
Conceived in the sixteenth century by an eclectic prince and a talented architect, this garden was meant to astonish the visitor with its arcane symbolism. A lot is still unknown. The meaning of these sculptures, their correlations, and the very reason behind their existence. We know nothing, and yet, it is fun to explore this surreal place in the shade of the trees and the roar of the streams.
You who enter here, observe each separate element, then tell me whether these marvellous works have been made to astound us or are exhibited simply for their artistic value — asks the sphynx at the entrance of the park.
Giant turtles, elephants, bears, whales, dragons, nymphs, giants and tritons. These are some of the eclectic creatures we encountered within these woods. If you are someone who needs to know the why and how of all things, this park may not satisfy you. But for the rest of us who just want a little magic in life, these treks reverberate with it.
So, next time you are in Rome and are eager to escape the city buzz for just one day, don’t hesitate, rent a car and head to Civita di Bagnoregio and the Gardens of Bomarzo. On your way, you will find an ancient, eroding town that against all odds, withstands the passage of time despite its structural fragility, and a secret garden that a prince’s mind conceived to be the realm of magical, frightening creatures. The aura of mystery surrounding these places is guaranteed to stimulate your imagination and leave you with the feeling that you experienced something truly unique in Italy. A new kind of history.
