Pennabili, the village of the soul

In the border area and disputed between Romagna and Marche, rises on the slopes of Mount Carpegna the small village of Pennabilli since 2010 Orange Flag of the Italian Touring Club. The upper valley of the river Marecchia is a wonderful natural amphitheater near the Natural Park of Sasso Simone and Simoncello and since ancient times, destination of many famous people, still attracted by an excellent traditional cuisine, a rich calendar of events and a sort of cultural route absolutely to be seen.Tonino Guerra baptized it "the place of the soul", both for its reality, and for the strong link that binds it to the Tibetan culture, so as to create an open-air museum called in the same way: "Places of the Soul". Seven exhibition realities located between the village and the surrounding area, which follow a particular poetic path with paintings, installations, sculptures and ceramics. The Garden of Forgotten Fruits in the convent of the Missionary Friars; The Road of Sundials in the centre of the village; The Petrified Garden at the foot of the Bascio Tower; The Angel with a Moustache in the little church of the Fallen; The Sanctuary of Thoughts located within the walls of the ancient castle of Penna; The Refuge of Abandoned Madonnas and The Madonna of the Snow Rectangle in the hamlet of Ca' Romano.On the top of Roccione, it is still possible to admire the Tibetan bells donated by the Dalai Lama. But where does the name Pannabilli come from? Around the year one thousand, there were two settlements around the castles, located on the characteristic spurs of the area: the Roccione, once called Penna, and the Rupe, formerly called Billi. Only in 1350 did the two municipalities unite their forces under a single coat of arms, also rearranging the town with a new set of walls.Worth visiting are the Duomo, also known as the Cathedral of San Leone in the main square of the town, the church of Sant'Agostino, also known as the Sanctuary of Madonna delle Grazie, and the 16th century monastery of Sant'Antonio da Padova. Two curiosities: in the Sanctuary, legend has it that the painting of Antonio Alberti, miraculously wept in 1489 and still celebrates the event on the third Friday in March, while where there are the ruins of the ancient fortress of Billi, you can admire a view that seems to be present in the painting of the "Mona Lisa".