Pre-Christmas Holiday and Gnomes

Did you know that Italy has 22 observed holidays where offices are closed? The US has 7. That gives Italians a wide range of reasons to celebrate, eat heavy, go on day trips and relax. It should be easy to keep my Italian Food Baby Diet . I grumblingly remember having to work every Christmas Eve and Thanksgiving Eve because my dean was positive that a student would need use of our office and all students were home. Here in Italy, holidays are a right. Their importance is up there with the importance of pasta, wine and cheese. Very important things here. So, while 99.9% of churches are Catholic, who knows what percent of the population is Catholic, 100% of people who have Catholic Holidays celebrate the day off. This particular holiday was "All Saints Day" on November 1. It is the day when all of the Saints of the Catholic church are celebrated and recognized. Saint Francis, Rita, Cecilia, all of them. The next day is Day of the Dead where people go back to work. Anyway, for All Saints Day we were all together, went to mass and decided to visit BorghettoValeggio, a beautiful small 14th century medieval town in the middle of the Mince River.

Borghetto

Water flowing under the town

I adore Borghetto for several reasons. There is a perfect castle at the top of a hill overlooking the village. The Mincio river was used as a natural protection of the castle and the little town. The town is in the middle of the river: dreamy, timeless and with a bit of fog it looks like the kind of place where magical things could happen. The strong wide river is powerful and flows forcefully under the old castle walls (10th century) under and under the village.

Mincio River

Anyone up for Tea for Two?

Castle overlooking the village

I loved some of the reflections in the water of both the old castle and Borghetto.

My Husband and I went for a walk down the path next to the river. It was very romantic and beautiful. During our walk something dawned on me. This would be the perfect place for Gnomes to live!

Hello!

Ok, laugh at me. This book I checked out at the library is on gnomes and it was in the Folklore section, not children. I find that lighter books in Italian are sometimes more helpful for me to get the language than serious books like Dante's "Divina Comedia". I like to have a well-rounded knowledge of things and gnomes had escaped my informal education. There in the library there was a well loved 40 year old encyclopedia on gnomes so I checked it out. I thought gnomes were only from Norway but it turns out that there are Ukrainian gnomes, Italian gnomes, Primitive gnomes, British gnomes, African gnomes (desert gnomes), and Irish gnomes.

Gnome Geography

Italian gnomes

Siberian gnome

Mediterranean gnome

Primitive Age of Gnomes

Home Gnome: they live in your house and secretly tip-toe around

That's a lot of gnomes. They were first discovered in the 12th century and all share similar features:

1. Height: 15 centimeters
2. Age: up to around 400 years
3. Average age of marriage: 138 years old

 They are fast runners, good carpenters, 7 times stronger than men and terribly vindictive if someone wrongs them. Watch out and don't offend a gnome.

Female Gnome dress, girls get green hats, boys red

The best part about gnomes, for me at least, is there homes. They live under big trees like the ones in Borghetto. Absolutely fabulous.

I bet there is a little home under here

This would be the perfect place for a Gnomo di Casa (Home Gnome)

Gnomes begin building their houses 15 years before marriage so that they can offer a secure and pretty place for their new families to live.
The entrance to the house is outside of a big tree, then they must travel through an underground tunnel before arriving to their main doorway.

la Casa = the home

Gnome homes are known for having elaborate painted woodwork in their bathrooms

Mrs. Gnome fixes Mr. Gnome a hot bath while their children (younger than 140) prepare the table for dinner

Gnome Toilette

Beautiful kitchens

Gnome home

And often end their days by sitting on trees and watching people of the nearby cities, towns and villages. Borghetto, for sure is one of the best types of villages where gnomes would be likely to live by. But don't be surprised if there are gnomes peeping in on you in other places. I bet there are Baltimore, Miami, and Mexico City gnomes too. Maybe even office gnomes. Just watch out if you suddenly see a little red hat quickly pop away. 

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