Good Things From Italy - Le Cose Buone d'Italia

Il Parco Nazionale dei Monti Sibillini ospita al suo interno un piccolo borgo impreziosito dal tocco magico di Madre Natura, parliamo di Castelluccio di Norcia (PG) e del cosiddetto fenomeno della Fioritura. Localizzato a 1.452 metri di altitudine e a circa 30 km da Norcia, Castelluccio domina, dalla cima di una collina, un vastissimo altopiano.
La prima impressione rimanda all’immagine di un presepe dove antiche e piccole case si intersecano l’una con l’altra dando vita allo storico borgo. Da giugno a luglio, quando la neve è ormai sciolta e le temperature sono diventate decisamente miti, Castelluccio si veste a festa e indossa abiti fioriti! È proprio in questo periodo che ha luogo lo straordinario fenomeno della fioritura!
Tutto ha origine con la semina della lenticchia, la cosiddetta "Lénta", il prezioso legume prodotto in queste terre da centinaia di anni! Di fatto quella della lenticchia è l’unica coltivazione effettuata e le migliaia di fiori pronte a sbocciare e a colorare gli appezzamenti altro non sono che piante spontanee fiorite in seguito ai cicli di aratura, a semenze portate dal vento o accidentalmente seminate con le lenticchie! Narcisi, papaveri, ranuncoli, violette, trifogli e tante altre specie, costituiscono lo straordinario patchwork di campi multicolore! [...]

Nature in all her dazzling beauty: Stunning new landscape photos capture the breath-taking countryside of Le Marche
Italian photographer Alessio Andreani captured beautiful shots of the European landscapes for a series of images
The 25-year-old says he often had 'only a few seconds' to capture the shot he wanted as the sun rose or went down
From the crisp, snow clad mountains to vivid bright blue seas, these breath-taking photographs capture the raw and arresting beauty of the natural landscape.
With subjects ranging from the morning sunrise to the dazzling night sky, the images - all of which were taken in France and Italy - catch these calm and tranquil settings in all their glory.
This picture, showing the Sibillini Mountains in Italy, was taken by photographer Alessio Andreani as part of a series of landscape shots taken throughout France and Italy
The awe-inspiring shots, taken throughout 2012, also manage to display the changing colours of the mountains and lakes, from oranges to yellows and purples to blues.
Mr Andreani, 25, who is from Italy, says he feels a 'strong link with the land where I live'.
He added: 'The sun has a massive impact on how the photographs will turn out; it is like one big flame of light.
'Whilst photographing a lot of these images, I had only a few seconds to get the exact capture I needed, as the sun moves so quickly at sunrise.'
The stunning photographs of greenery were taken in the town of Castelluccio di Norcia and in the hills near Recanati in Italy, showing the landscape off to its best advantage.
Mr Andreani, who was born in Loreto, said: 'Taking these photographs of the vast countryside was very relaxing for me; I was able to just walk and enjoy the moment.'
The images of the calm and eerie night sky were also taken in Italy in Mount Argentella and capture the Milky Way above the same town.
Mr Andreani added: 'It was very quiet during the taking of these photographs, and because there was no moon, there were only the stars to light up the sky, making it seem so dark.'
In stark contrast to the pictures taken at night are the shots showing the precise moments of sunrise, which were taken at various places including Monte Conero and Tellaro in Italy, and Cannes in France.