Carnia is like a great "village" on the Austria-Veneto border, formed by seven valleys that cut into the magical Carnic Alps.
In these valleys, of great natural beauty, an entire universe of folklore has been preserved intact.
Authentic villages
As you walk through the picturesque little villages with all their aromas, sounds and voices, time seems to take on a different quality as it adapts to the rhythms of nature and an everyday life based on agriculture and craftwork. The genuine beauty of the stone and wood houses is breathtaking, and there is accommodation in the albergo diffuso.
Nature that talks traditional products of Carnia, in Friuli Venezia Giulia The Carnic Hills Park is ideal for hill walking, pony trekking and mountain biking and the Friulian Dolomites Park has a network of Alpine mountain routes amongst the majestic peaks and countless waterfalls, canyons and high altitude lakes of the Dolomites, where there are roe deer and marmots.
Health and wellbeing
The mountain routes, including the Via delle Malghe and paths dating back to the front line of the Great War, lead up to a series of mountain huts and shelters. In the winter months there are the ski resorts of Zoncolan-Ravascletto-Sutrio, Forni di Sopra and Sauris and the soothing thermal springs of Terme di Arta are open all the year round.
Traditional products The Smoked ham of Sauris, cjarsòns (semi-sweet ravioli), wild herbs used as seasoning for first courses and omelettes, berry sauces and jams and the extraordinary schulta fumât (smoked shoulder of cooked ham); these are just some of the delicacies of nature transformed by the wisdom of the ages.
Craft shops The Magia del legno, that takes place in September in Sutrio, is a major craft event, featuring weaving, pottery and craft items in stone, iron and wood. The knowledge and skill of the craftsmen and women, handed down from generation to generation, can be seen in the preciousness of the items exhibited.
Folklore
If you keep your eyes open when you're walking through the woods you might catch a glimpse of the cheeky little local elves, known as sbilfs. Or, at night, rolling down some long, secluded slope, you might see las cidulas, blazing disks used by youngsters to declare the names of their loved ones. Or you might meet some of the strange creatures from the oldest carnival in the Alps in Sauris. Traditions from a very long time ago.
Museums and museum pieces
Local museums and sites of interest include: Pesariis, is a locality of Prato Carnico and an eighteenth century village known as the "village of the clocks", Paularo, with its "living" museum, the Mozartina, where you can listen to clavichords and violins, the Mulin dal Flec in Illegio a very old working mill, the Farie de Checo, a fifteenth century factory in Cercivento and, finally, in Tolmezzo, the Museum of folk arts and traditions, that gives a complete picture of life on the land.
