Exploring the Italian countryside

Exploring the countryside is definitely one of my favourite activities in this boot-shaped country. Just outside the ancient city walls of Rome there are too many beautiful places to count, from picture -perfect villages resting on the Apennine mountains, grand gorges, to lakes and rivers interrupted by occasional waterfalls. I am not exaggerating when I tell you that sometimes everything looks so unrealistically beautiful that I feel as if I've gotten lost in some sort of enchanted forest, just without unicorns or witches hiding inside the candy huts. Still, it is not rare to run into some friendly horses nibbling the grass; and when it comes to witches here in Italy things are different from the grim northern European counterparts. The Italian witch is called the Befana and her sole purpose in life is to bring candy to children on the 5th of January. Some things are just better in Italy.

Trevi waterfall (Not to be confused with Trevi fountain)

The world turns brightly yellow around November. 

It's a long way down from here

After moving to Rome, I was lucky enough to explore the little less known parts of the central Italy in a company of well-organized guides who know what they are doing and where they are going. This was definitely a lovely change for me. My early days as a hiker weren't most conventional, let's put it this way. The first time I decided to try out the mountain hiking alone, I was chased by wild boars, got myself stranded in the least accessible village in the country, witnessed a local religious festival and ended up sleeping in a church - but that's a story for another time.

The "Pathfinders" as our little club is called, are made up from Italian locals and expats seeking to colour their weekends with some minor escapades. I take great pleasure in the excursions with them. Firstly, you never know what group of people will show up, and you always end up befriending people wouldn't have met under normal circumstances. They are people from all walks of life with some fascinating stories to tell which I am happy to listen to while enjoying a day out in nature.

My beautiful Lithuania

Coming from Lithuania, a spectacularly green country which prides itself on its legendary woods, countless lakes and rivers, I do feel irresistibly drawn to nature. To be honest, in a way it makes me feel a bit closer to home. Nevertheless, my homeland is known to be quite flat despite some baby hills here and there. Probably this is the reason why I find mountains to be exceptionally attractive, exotic even. Hence, Italy scores another point.

My weekend hikes are always a surprising experience. I rarely do in-depth research about the locations we are about to visit before signing up to the excursion, but I like the fact of not knowing what will lie ahead.

Some paths we take are perfect for peaceful meditation - strolling down the wooded hills along clear streams, listening to the soothing sounds of running water. And then, occasionally you need cling to rope for your dear life while sliding down steep slopes, crawl across narrow and slippery mountain paths, cross rivers balancing from one shaky rock to another or jump over spiky fences. It's all good fun and at the end of the day you get a sense of achievement.

In my opinion, the Italian countryside could also be called a 'Nature Museum'. At every turn you can find crumbling remnants of the past and observe how nature slowly swallows up medieval bridges, mills, walls and all sorts of ancient ruins. However, if the idea of a museum makes you yawn, it is also not unusual for us to find mysterious caves with bats peacefully snoozing above heads.

During my last hike, a curious situation presented itself - I have seen hell. Literally. So, here's the 

story, I was trekking in the woods with my group of "Pathfinders" around the village of Jenne, which offers some stunning panoramic views to the lands of Lazio. After we had a well-deserved lunch in the mountains, we reached a cave that didn't seem all too different from the other caves I've seen.

Boy, was I wrong.

Down the rabbit hole we go.

At the beginning, it didn't look like the most exciting part of the day until I've noticed a narrow opening in the ground leading somewhere interesting. It made me realise that we were all only standing  in the lobby of the cave that goes way down to the depths of the earth. A large portion of the group decided to stay behind when we were offered to take a look at what's there. I had no idea how deep, steep or dangerous it would be, so naturally I grabbed the rope and steadily made my way down to the unknown.

The Grotta Inferniglio, as it is accurately named, literally translates into the Cave of Little Hell. The legend has it that it was called so, because of the eerie atmosphere created by the strange rock formations and underground lakes, which flood the entire place from time to time. An unfortunate town nearby was named after the Inferniglio Cave which gave the name 'Gehenna,' nowadays known as Jenne; it is another ancient word for a place of eternal suffering, what seems to be a bit harsh on a little Italian mountain village.

There was nothing but darkness. All I could make out was that I was surrounded by wet and uneven surfaces, generously carved with holes going nowhere as far as I could tell. Falling down a hell cave is not my idea of a great weekend, so I was gripping the rope with both of my hands which made it nearly impossible to use a flashlight. I was kindly guided by the light of my companions as we slowly moved forward. Sometime during our slow procession, there was an unusual commotion. Something of great importance was being spotted. It was a worm of some sorts. It got plenty of attention and a photoshoot. Apparently, years ago two new species of cave beetles had been discovered here in this very cave, but let's not get into that. After plenty of climbing and sliding, we appreciated the otherworldly beauty of the underground sitting on what appeared to be a melted stone, surrounded by stalactites stretching from the ceiling. The thing is that I really enjoy experiencing the unfamiliar environments and this was definitely that. I can relate to the characters from Jules Verne's 'Journey to the Centre of the Earth' on a much deeper level now. Soon after, we came out into the daylight which was glorious. It felt like I have walked through hell and back. Quite a memorable weekend.

Welcome to Hell Cave

For anyone interested how hell looks like there are quite a few videos on youtube showing small groups of brave souls going down Inferniglio like this one.