🇬🇧 Scotland in a (Italian) Nutshell

Did you know that there’s a corner of Scotland in Italy?

Barga, the most Scottish town in Italy, is a small village in the Garfagnana area of Tuscany where the majority of the population is of Scottish descent. If you are wondering why Barga and what the connection is, here is a brief history: the links between Barga and Scotland date back to the 1800s when many Italians moved to Scotland. A lot of people from Barga chose to start a new life there, but no one really knows why. After the Second World War, many came back and those who didn’t would only come for their holidays. So now, Barga becomes an actual corner of Scotland in Italy, especially during the Summer season.

You can sense the connection from the very first moments you step into this town, also famous for being one of the “più bei borghi d’Italia” – one of the most beautiful hamlets in Italy. In fact, the strong connection is visible as soon as you drive up towards the centre: the first things you see when driving up to the town are a balcony full of Celtic flags – if you are a football fan, Barga is the only town in Italy with an official Celtic club – and a Scottish flag in the main square. These are visible throughout the village and there is also an old red phone box in the centre, now a library, to further highlight the links to Britain. Shops have many Scottish products available for purchase (albeit a bit expensive!), so if you want to try Irn-Bru or Tunnock’s teacakes you can do so without hopping on a plane.

Those are not the only things that remind you of the UK; one thing that struck me when I visited last weekend was the similarity between the colourful buildings in Barga and the buildings in Tobermory (Mull), made famous by the BBC children’s programme Balamory. However, if you really want to experience Barga in all its Scottish glory, you should attend the Scottish week (usually at the beginning of September), where there are many activities and events, among which are small-scale Highland Games, ceilidh, talks, and much more… or attend the fish and chips festival in August.

Lastly, let’s talk about famous people! The violinist Nicola Benedetti’s father is from Barga, and so is singer Paolo Nutini’s family – although they don’t speak Italian. While two famous artists, John Bellany, a painter, and Hamish Moore, a musician, have chosen Barga as their new home.

Nevertheless, I would advise not to focus only on this town. Barga is in Garfagnana, a beautiful, maybe less famous, area in the Tuscan Apennines. There are a lot of little villages and towns to visit, like Castelnuovo di Garfagnana, where a statue of Don Quixote will greet you at the gates of the town (who knows why…?), the submerged village of Fabbriche di Careggine, in Vagli, although it won’t be visible this year, and let’s not forget the Ponte del Diavolo, the Devil’s bridge, in Borgo a Mozzano.

I would definitely recommend a weekend in this area, as it has much to offer. There’s so much nature and natural trails, if you like exploring and walking, as well as trying new things like ziplining across the lake above the dam. If art and literature are more your thing, the area is linked to author Ludovico Ariosto, to composer Giacomo Puccini and the poet Giovanni Pascoli, who made these lands famous in his poems when he moved to Castelnuovo. The main city in the area is Lucca (also home of Italy’s biggest Comic con – Lucca Comics), which is also worth a visit; I thought it looked like a little Florence, but I would be happy to hear your opinions too!

Go on then, take a trip to the most Scottish town in Italy and you might even be able to practice a bit of English!