Aula ingles
Aosta Valley And Its Beauties
Hello everyone and welcome back to my channel!
Oh no wait, this is not my YouTube channel… I keep forgetting it…
Let’s start one more time.
Hello everyone and welcome back to the Hola People blog!
A place where you can read articles about different countries and cultures, as well as find worldwide job positions and language courses.
But hey, you’re here because we are talking about me and not about Hola People.
So, let me introduce myself. My name is Giulia, I’m 22 years old and I was asked by my boss Esteban to share with you something about my country or my hometown.
I am from Italy and in particular, I come from the smallest region of this country, Aosta Valley. My hometown is called Aosta and there are around 34,360 citizens in the whole region.
What? Did you really think that in Italy there were only Milan, Rome, Venice, and Florence? Like, seriously?
I can’t believe it… Anyway, don’t worry about that, you are about to discover another great Italian city!
Where should I start? Let me think about that…
Okay so, we live in the mountains and because we are from the North our temperatures are quite low during winter time, but they can be really high during summer time, so it’s fine. I mean, you have to get used to it but don’t you think I am, at all! I don’t like cold weather.
Saying that you can expect beautiful landscapes both in winter and summer. Just think about the Monte Bianco (White Mountain), isn’t it awesome?
During the cold months, you can go skiing and enjoy the large amount of snow that our mountains offer. You can drink a nice hot chocolate on the ski slope while relaxing after a long day skiing or you can have a lunch break and taste our delicious “polenta” (boiled cornmeal) or even better, “polenta concia” (boiled cornmeal with fontina, our typical cheese). Why don’t you add a delicious glass of wine? You can even do a “Route des vins“, a special tour that will bring you through vineyards and wine cellars. You’ll taste different wines, so just make sure you don’t go skiing after!
In January, you can combine a ski trip to Pila, La Thuile, Valtournenche, Rhemes or other different sites, with a city tour and our annual crafts fair called “Fiera di Sant’Orso“. It takes place on the 30th and 31st of January in Aosta city centre.
During this very typical fair artisans reunite themselves to sell and to promote their creations made out of wood, wrought iron, lace, leather, and many more materials. You can even spot some artisans in action while creating something new.
In addition to our typical fair and ski slopes, let me tell you that Aosta finds its origins thanks to the Salassi (Celtics) but then the Romans came and funded Augusta Praetoria Salassorum, the “Roman” version of Aosta. That’s why you’ll find many different Roman remains.
From the Roman Theater
To Porta Praetoria
Due to its strategic position close to the mountains and the missing monitor of the lands, people started to build castles and towers and to appoint themselves as lords of the lands.
Doesn’t it give you kind of GOT vibes?
Anyway, watching the centuries pass, these castles started to change. These constructions were now more complex, where defence and residential fortifications have seen their unification.
See how many different and beautiful things you can find in Aosta Valley?
But hey, we still haven’t finished yet!
Because of our beautiful environment, and our full immersion in nature, you can find one of the most interesting natural park, The Gran Paradiso National Park.
Here you can see amazing flora and fauna. From ibex to wolves, to ermine, to weasel. Eagle-owl, alpine accentor, and golden eagle are easy to spot as well.
Another typical relationship we have with animals is the one we have with the cows.
Every Sunday, from the end of March, with a small pause in June and July, cows fight against each other, thanks to their natural aggressive instinct, due to their pregnancy. Don’t worry, they are not in harm nor feel pain, that’s normal in nature. The only difference here is that we will crown the winner as the best cow, the “Queen“, or as we say “Reina”
We are nearly at the end of my speech, but I still have a few things that I want to share with you.
The first one could interest those people who really love the mountains.
Every September takes place the “Tor des Géants“, (Tour of Giants), where the most trained people come from all over the world to participate at this trail race, where they run “through” the mountains. It is 330 km long and it must be completed under 150 hours.
It’s a really tough competition, and usually, only 60% of the participants can get to the end.
Sun, rain, wind and even snow are just a small part of what they have to face.
Finally, if you are still not convinced yet on visiting Aosta Valley, then you should know that we are so close to France, that we are even bilingual, it means we speak both Italian and French!
Isn’t it cool?
Right, there’s still plenty of things to tell you but I think what I’ve told you so far is enough.
I just wanted to say a massive thank you to Davide, Sara, and Serena, who took most of the amazing photos in this blog post. Have a look at their Instagram pages for more stunning pictures: @dadografia.italia, @sarysassymwaniki & @serena_actis
Let me know in the comments if you liked the post and if you are thinking about coming to Aosta.
Talk to you soon!
Giulia
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