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Heart in the hills



Home was in a tiny village,
high up in the hills. 
A forty-five minute drive up narrow spaghetti roads,
leaving behind the chic villas
and restaurant terraces lined with tourists,
the scene shifting to forest-clad mountains 
dotted with simple, rustic stone buildings.

Candle-lit shrines in small caves, 
the flames fervently burning 
despite never seeing a soul when passing by.

The sounds of donkeys, hens and church bells ringing in the air.

Old, friendly faces uttering 'bella bambini' 
as the children would pass by,
curious, interested, welcoming,
gathering at the nearby hotel for a game of bocce or cards
and some pleasant banter over an afternoon drink.

Shrieking over a scorpion we found in the hallway one morning.
Tightly holding hands,
when we returned from dinner in the neighbouring village
in the dark of the night,
the forest path lit up by fireflies, bats flying over our heads 
(Pure magic and a little eerie at the same time).

Gulp, pieces of my heart are ending up all over the place... 


tinajo said...

Beautiful post, love how you´ve described it. :-)

Flowers for Rakshabandhan said...

I love natural beauty...lovely flowers and bouquets !!

LeeAnn at Mrs Black's said...

What lovely photographs and wonderful place to have been. I love those old shrines and the way you come upon them unexpected but feel the presence of such a place at once. Enjoy! Minerva x

Merja said...

Scorpions.. I'm glad I'm finding out only after the fact that they exist in Sardinia as well... although I read that they are not really dangerous, unlike their relatives in other countries.

Rebecca / Sanctuary said...

Thank you for being so kind tinajo -
this holiday is still so much on the back of my mind,
hoping the glimpses will stay etched on my soul for good.
x

Rebecca / Sanctuary said...

Yes, those shrines. You just have to stop and quieten down.
A sense of mystery, beauty, melancholy even...
All those prayers whispered with every candle that's been lit.
Thank you Mrs Black for always leaving such thoughtful messages,
a joy to read!

Rebecca / Sanctuary said...

My goodness that black thing shook us up,
as we were all ignorant enough to realise they existed in Italy
(apparently also in the mountain regions of Switzerland, Austria and Germany).
But yes, we were assured afterwards that they're not particularly dangerous,
comparable to a wasp sting. But boy do they look mean :)
I beat the h*^+ out of it with the sole of my converse
before flushing it down the loo, as I really didn't want to set my eyes on it again.
And what happened last week,
I popped into a shop in the centre of town displaying a framed scorpion
for a fairly hefty price tag... Just didn't really come to think of making
the enemy a thing to admire at the time :)

Audrey said...

Beautiful images! the light is fabulous! and how you describe it, must be beautiful to spend some time in this area.

honeypieLivingetc said...



L O V E

it all to

B I T S .


x, h


Rebecca / Sanctuary said...


♥ to you lovely hannah!

Rebecca / Sanctuary said...

The light in Italy,
yes, tinged with a dash of gold
and a special softness...
A gorgeous spot in the world to spend time in, x

Hyman said...

This is awesome!

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Sanctuary.