Some Ghost Towns in Southern Italy

Ghost towns in Calabria and Basilicata may seem mystical and even romantic. But it’s not just about villages, it’s also about people who once lived there and about their stories, often tragic ones. Earthquakes, landslides, floods, and emigration are the most common reasons for the depopulation of the small inland villages located in the mountains and hills. To be realistic, the term ghost town is attractive to tourists. But during our visit, the villages were truly abandoned, we met only a few other visitors.

Mesta duhov v Kalabriji in Bazilikati se morda zdijo skrivnostna in celo romantična, a v resnici so te zgodbe o ljudeh, ki so tam nekoč živeli pogosto tragične. Potresi, zemeljski plazovi, poplave in izseljevanje so najpogostejši razlogi za izselitev iz majhnih vasi na hribih. Po pravici, že samo ime mesto duhov privabi turiste. Ampak med najinim obiskom so bila ta mesta resnično zapuščena, srečala sva le par drugih obiskovalcev.

The ghost town of Craco is located in the Basilicata region. It was abandoned in 1963 after a major landslide, the last in a series that began at the end of the 19th century. Craco was once a thriving town. Today, it is a haunting collection of ruins and memories. Only guided visits are allowed, and helmets are mandatory. We joined a guided tour with an Italian guide who spoke very slowly, occasionally using a few helpful words in English. The ruins have their own unique beauty and charm, so it's no surprise that Craco has been used as a filming location for several movies.

Mesto duhov Craco se nahaja v pokrajini Bazilikata. Leta 1963 je bilo zapuščeno zaradi velikega zemeljskega plazu, zadnjega v seriji plazov, ki so se začeli že konec 19. stoletja. Craco je bilo nekoč uspešno mesto. Danes je zbirka razvalin in spominov. Obisk je možen samo z vodičem, čelade pa so obvezne. Pridružili smo se vodenemu ogledu z italijanskim vodičem, ki je govoril zelo počasi in občasno dodal nekaj angleških besed. Ruševine imajo svojo posebno lepoto in čar, zato ni presenetljivo, da je bil Craco večkrat filmska lokacija.

As I mentioned in the previous post, we walked from Bova to Africo Vecchio and back. We didn’t meet anyone along the trail. The path is steep and narrow in places. When we arrived, we saw houses, a school, and a church, but most of the buildings were inaccessible. Mighty old oak trees have grown throughout the village. In our minds, we imagined the people who once lived there, sitting in the shade of those trees, talking and going about their lives. We tried to guess why they left, maybe because of the difficult access or lack of job opportunities. Later, we googled the story and found out it was far more tragic. After several days of heavy rain, devastating floods struck Africo Vecchio in the last days of October 1951, destroying much of the village. This disaster forced the residents to relocate and start new lives elsewhere.

Reaching the ruins of Africo Vecchio hidden deep in the heart of the Aspromonte mountains took us about six hours of walking, but the reward of discovering this place is worth every step. Everything appears frozen in time: the houses, the primary school, and the church.

Kot sem že omenila, sva šla peš iz Bove do vasi Africo Vecchio in nazaj. Na poti nisva srečala nikogar. Pot je na nekaterih delih strma in ozka. Ko sva prispela, sva zagledala nekaj hiš, šolo in cerkev, vendar večine stavb nisva mogla obiskati. Med hišami v vasi rastejo mogočni stari hrasti. V mislih sva si predstavljala ljudi, ki so nekoč sedeli v njihovi senci, se pogovarjali ... Ugibala sva, zakaj so zapustili kraj, morda zaradi težkega dostopa ali pomanjkanja dela. Kasneje sva pogooglala zgodovino kraja in ugotovila, da je zgodba veliko bolj žalostna. Po nekajdnevnem močnem deževju so konec oktobra 1951 Africo Vecchio prizadele hude poplave, ki so uničile skoraj celotno vas. Zaradi te katastrofe so se prebivalci morali preseliti in si drugje ustvariti novo življenje.

Da sva prišla do razvalin Africa Vecchia, ki so skrite globoko v središču nac. parka Aspromonte, sva porabila približno šest ur, a nagrada ob prihodu je vredna poti. Vse izgleda, kot da se je čas ustavil, hiše, osnovna šola in cerkev.

Somewhere on our way...

Nekje na najini poti...

On our way back to Bova, we visited Pentedattilo. The name of the village comes from the Greek word meaning "five fingers," referring to the distinctive shape of the rock formation behind the village. As soon as we arrived, a friendly Italian man welcomed us and explained the village's story. Pentedattilo was severely damaged by an earthquake in 1783. Over time, continued threats from floods and tremors forced the residents to abandon the village. According to legend, one day the five fingers of the mountain will close into a fist and crush the town.

But among all the ghost villages we visited, Pentedattilo felt the most alive. The cheerful Italian man was selling souvenirs and he was excellent at it and he had cats, flowers, and stories. According to him, the village now has four ghost houses, four guesthouses, a friendly pub, a lot of flowers, a bench for lovers, and signs with poems. I liked this one:

"Whoever makes you laugh saves your life without realizing it."

Na poti nazaj proti Bovi sva obiskala še Pentedattilo. Ime vasi v grščini pomeni »pet prstov« in se nanaša na značilno obliko skalnate gmote za vasjo. Takoj ko sva prispela, naju je prijazen Italijan pozdravil in nama povedal zgodbo kraja. Vas Pentedattilo je bila močno poškodovana v potresu leta 1783. Zaradi ponavljajočih se nevarnosti potresov in poplav so prebivalci sčasoma zapustili kraj. Po legendi naj bi nekoč pet prstov gore zaprlo svojo pest in pokopalo vas.

A med vsemi zapuščenimi kraji, ki sva jih obiskala, je bil Pentedattilo najbolj živ. Zgovorni Italijan je prodajal spominke, kar mu je šlo odlično, imel je mačke, rože in zgodbe. Po njegovih besedah ima vas štiri hiše duhov, štiri prenočišča, prijetno gostilno, veliko rož, klop za zaljubljence in napise s pesmimi. Meni je bil najbolj všeč ta:

"Tisti, ki te nasmeje, ti reši življenje, ne da bi se tega zavedal."