Italian Mummies

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It was a beautiful day this morning and I went out early to take some photographs. The house were we are staying has vineyards out the to one side and spring wild flowers all around it. On such a clear blue morning, it is a wonderful place to wake up.

We hadn't managed to get a hold of my parent's for Easter, so in the afternoon we headed over to the farm and called them over the computer using skype. As it turned out, my mother had had Evy's mother over for Easter dinner along with Evy's sister Lily and her family so the house was as full as ever.

After lunch at the farm, we went for a drive with Evy's cousin Luigi and two of the children, Lucia and Francesco. We drove North and West towards the start of the mountains. Here we stopped at the village of Venzone, which was one of the towns heavily hit by the earthquakes of 1976. One oddity of the town is a collection of naturally mummified bodies, preserved by the particular nature of the soil at the edge of the mountain. The mummies are on display in a small room of a circular church and are remarkably well preserved. While in Venzone, we also toured the town, much of which as been restored since the earthquake.

After Venzone, we drove on to the town of Gemona where we visited the cathedral. We are lucky to hear the enormous bell tower ring the 6 o'clock chimes. They sound is incredibly deep and carrying and plays, to Evy, a familiar tune of “ding, dang,-- ding, dang, dong”. As well, we climb up to the area where the castle is being restored. There is a spectacular view from this hill, and the strategic importance of this position is evident in the world war two armaments that point out from this vantage point. Joshua and Francesco in particular seemed to enjoy playing on the huge guns.

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