Arnad Veillà

Thousands flock to the village for the atmospheric get-together.

Veillà social gathering relate to the long winter nights spent in the stable, chatting, playing cards, cutting small pieces of wood and carrying out maintenance work on agricultural equipment while the women spun wool or knitted. Nowadays, theyare primarily manifestations that are representative ofa past life-styles, recallingancient professions andthe traditional activities offarming life, primarily on a touristic level. Even the veillà held in Arnad, a village in the lower Valle d’Aosta, does not stray from this definition, except for one

thing: here the festival, which welcomes tourists with open arms, has been "developed" with the population in mind. So,along the path, which includes the hamlet of Ville, inhabited since the year 1000, all the inhabitants play an active part in the resurrection of the past; there is: a stable, a winery, a clearance for the preparation of charcoal for utilisation in the blacksmith's forge, acastle made of tree-trunks, with a vertical saw operated by 2 men, the threshing of wheat, the peeling of dried chestnutsand la hackling of hemp fibres, which once

spun, were brought to Champorcher, for weaving. The historical route requires the purchase of a ticket; inside, traditional products (Arnad lard, seupé, mahishtra de grì, apple strudel and fiocca macchiata with ground coffee) can all be tried. For one evening, the town once againcomes to life, a hub of fervent activity, just as it was in the past. The veillà is held every two years.

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