Impressions of Italy

Having recently returned from the beautiful region of Tuscany, I had some thoughts and impressions that I wanted to share.

First Impression

One of my first impressions is always and will forever be this: Italy is beautiful. And the Val d'Orcia, where our Walkabout Tours group spent a week, is absolutely stunning. I have hundreds of pictures from various viewpoints, and I never get tired of looking at the landscape because it changes every day. Sometimes every hour!

The Val d'Orcia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is one of the lesser-known places in Tuscany. While people love to visit Florence, Siena and even San Gimignano, I've met very few people who make it as deep into the countryside as Pienza and Montalcino.

And I've certainly never met anyone (aside from people who have been on my trips) who has been to Castelmuzio! 

But these places, the smaller towns and villages of the Val d'Orcia, are the most beautiful. While they are the hardest to get to (you definitely need a car when you're there), it's worth the winding roads because you've never see anything like it.

Take, for instance, this view from Pienza. It's stunning! So stunning the the filmmakers who made Gladiator used that curvy road for one of the most famous scenes in all of filmmaking history.

The road from the famous scene in Gladiator.

But this view . . .

This is the view from our villa, and it spans the entire Val d'Orcia. From our garden you could see Montepulciano, Pienza, and Montalcino. The vineyards here make some of the best wines in the world. And the fresh produce--tomatoes, figs, almonds, melons . . . you name it--is some of the best I've ever tasted. 

In the background you see Mt. Amiata, the highest point in the Val d'Orcia, which you can see from pretty much anywhere you go.

A Second Impression

On one of our last nights together I asked the group what had made an impression on them throughout the week. Several different things came to mind, but the one that we all agreed on was this: community matters.

Everywhere we went, we noticed people slowing down, taking their time, talking to one another. We saw families out enjoying themselves. We saw friends chatting (like this photo I snapped in Pienza--don't you just love these two?!).

We observed village festivals and celebrations.

We visited a local market where people bought their groceries for the week.

What I noticed more than anything is that people were PRESENT. They weren't on their phones. They just talked. They laughed. They enjoyed life.

Our little village of Castelmuzio is one of the loveliest I've ever seen. I am completely obsessed with this little town. It's a walled village, and within the walls there couldn't be more than 200 people living there. (There are also a few houses outside the walls, but also within a one or two block distance.) Cars are limited to residents only, and the streets are NARROW.

At the entrance to the village, there's an archway, and just before you walk under the arch, to the left, is a small piazza or square where the people of the town have brought out some tables and chairs. It's a mismatched grouping--the tables are old and rickety and the chairs look slightly precarious. 

But every evening, a group of villagers meet up there. Some bring wine. Some have a smoke. Others just sit there, soaking in the warmth of community. 

Every night, as we came back home from dinner, I'd park our van in a nearby parking lot and walk the rest of the way to our villa. The route required our group to walk past this tiny gathering spot, and every night we observed people outside, talking. And every night, as we walked past, we'd all call to one another "buona sera!" 

We don't share a common language, but we shared a greeting, a smile, and a wave. And that was enough.

I've thought about these beautiful people and their evening gatherings, many times since we left Castelmuzio. I've thought about their lives, how different they are from mine. I've thought about the way we greeted each other, like a ritual, every night.

And what I think is this: these are important moments. At the end of the day, people from this small village come together to simply connect with one another.

Surely not everyone in the town gets along. They may not all worship God in the same way. Some may not worship at all. They may not agree on the next village improvement that should be done. They may not vote for the same people.

But there they are, each evening, talking to one another. Getting the day's gossip, perhaps. Sharing a glass of wine. Caring for one another. 

I think about these sweet Italians and their small, small village life, and I think that maybe they've got it right.

Hebrews 13:16 in The Message says this: 

"Make sure you don’t take things for granted and go slack in working for the common good; share what you have with others. God takes particular pleasure in acts of worship—a different kind of 'sacrifice'—that take place in kitchen and workplace and on the streets."

What if our gathering with neighbors, to simply talk and share our lives, was done as an act of worship? How might that change us? Our neighborhoods? Our perspectives?

And I wonder, how can we make use of the public spaces in our own towns?

I think it's time to bring back the piazza.