The Enchanted Valley

Robert Musil, the author of The Man Without Qualities, called it the 'enchanted valley': a place that seems to exist on the border between the visible and the invisible, between legend and everyday life. Just a few kilometres from the city, the Valle dei Mòcheni occupies a special place in people's imaginations, as if time had stood still here. Surrounded by woods, farmsteads and silence, an ancient language and culture survive here, preserving precious and universal values such as care, respect and relationships.

As long as the language endures, so does the world it describes. With its disappearance, a whole way of feeling, thinking and experiencing reality will vanish. The Mòcheno language preserves the memory of the connection between humans and the landscape, and words and survival.

This valley serves as a living laboratory, a testament to the complexities of minority and identity issues. It's a small world that defies standardisation, challenging those who pass through it to reflect on their own desires, needs and dreams.

It is both a real and a legendary place, and it continues to enchant because it reminds us that the greatest distance is not geographical, but one we find within ourselves.