37/50.- Umbria, Prodo Castle

Twenty km and 120 curves away from Orvieto, Prodo is a small 70-house village dominated by a Castello (which is not open to visitors), a manor farm whose owners still exploit the olive groves and vineyards in the surrounding valleys and hills, and thus provide seasonal work for some of the inhabitants in surrounding villages. Some of these hamlets progressively evolve into ghost towns as the elderly die and youngsters seek employment in the cities ; but in others, the houses are increasingly being turned into holiday residences by people in need of peace and quiet in a natural environment, far from the noise, dust and bustle of the cities.

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