The Nervia – valley
Pigna, an old fortress of the Piedmont at the bottom of the Maritime Alps, hiding in its labyrinth of narrow alleys
( called “CHIBI”) some important evidences of Medieval architecture:
the gothic church of Saint Michael, the Loggia of the Parliament, the remarkable gates sculptured in local slate and the Saint Bernhard rural chapel with the most impressive series of frescoes of the late Middle Ages in Western Liguria, showing the “Passion and Death of Christ” , painted by Giovanni Canavesio da Pinerolo in 1482.
Dolceacqua, a medieval jewel where the superb “Roman” bridge enchanted Claude Monet in 1884 and where
the dark alleyways guide you to the neo-baroque parish church of Saint Anthony Abbot and to the immense feudal castle, once home of the family Doria.
Taking a stroll across the village you might taste the local red wine “Rossese di Dolceacqua” accompanied by a tasty “Michetta” (pastry).
Apricale, a superb village of the hinterland is perched on a rock high above the green mountains of Western Liguria, surrounded by olive-trees and built in concentric circles around the feudal castle which recently became the seat of important art events.