Chianale

On the border with France, at an altitude of 1,800 metres, amidst woods and reminders of the ancient Occitan culture, we come across Chianale (a hamlet of Pontechianale), a small village that already tells us of its mountain soul in its architecture and the materials with which it is built. Here we see slate houses with characteristic slate roofs, everywhere wood and stone, beams and, in spring and summer, splendid flowered balconies. To arrive in the village and chat with its inhabitants is to immerse oneself in the fascinating Provençal culture, which takes us back in time, when troubadours composed poetic verses and soft, dreamy music. Cutting the village in two is the Varaita torrent, crossed by a stone bridge that has become the village's symbol and that takes us to the small square overlooked by the ancient church of Sant'Antonio. Chianale is a unique place, to be discovered.