Umbria is the green heart of Italy. This slogan is still used to promote the region… but we don’t actually like it! Quite apart from the fact that neighboring Abruzzo is greener, Umbria has so many more qualities that we can focus on.
So what does Umbria mean to us? For us, Umbria is about authenticity and quality of life. That’s why we love it.
It is authentic because it is… A story waiting to be heard. Stories of people. Stories of passion. These are what make it authentic. In Umbria you can find people who have always lived in the same place, in the same village, sometimes in the same house from the beginning of their lives. As well as keeping our traditions alive, these people are true treasure chests full of gold and the gold is their stories that are waiting to be discovered.
Stories that talk about ways of doing things and about ways of thinking that are true to their past, about philosophies that reflect passion, from food to artisan products; simple things that simple people turn into precious gifts because of the love invested in them during their creation.
It is about quality of life because… It’s about humans being at one with nature. Slowly, enjoying the moment, the rediscovery of small things. Everyday life and day-by-day work often means that we forget the things that matter most, things that are simple but marvellous. By living and experiencing Umbria, we are somehow, in some small way, returning to primitive ways. And by doing this, we discover the sensation of living slowly according to the rhythm of nature. And this doesn’t mean doing less but enjoying the moment, going deeper into the understanding of what you are doing, often rediscovering small things such as the magic sounds, the colors of nature, the different tastes and appreciation of food eaten slowly, the peace gained from a relaxing walk in an uncrowded street protected by the walls of a medieval village, or simply the joy of talking with people who care and respect products, earth and life. Those things that so easily put a smile on your face. All of these things make Umbria the perfect environment.
Umbria isn’t as well-known as its neighbors. This means that it is less commercial, its people can be quite shy, closed, somewhat distrustful maybe… but once ‘unlocked’, it can open itself up as a rich world full of ideas, products, stories, traditions that can stay in a person’s heart forever. And through our blog, we like to think that we are helping to unlock this world to those who otherwise would never have discovered it.
More on this Guest Blogger
Federica and Gabriele write UmbriaLoversBlog for a couple of reasons: first, they want to spread their passion about Umbria to the widest range of people, to make them in love of this region as they are. Second, they would like to help visitors to find the best non-touristic travel experiences reading about local people like them.
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