SAN PIETRO AL NATISONE
San Pietro al Natisone is considered, both in terms of population and surface density, the capital of the Natisone Valleys. This area, known by the name of Benecia (from Benetka, Venice), has always maintained a very close relationship with the Slovenian territory, whose language and culture has been integrated to form unique and original folk traditions.
While San Pietro offers numerous activities and places of interest, such as the SMO interactive multimedia museum, it is also an ideal starting point for exploring a much wider and richer territory.
The Natisone Valleys offer many routes for all interests: spiritual, discovering the 44 votive churches scattered in different villages; routes immersed in nature – trekking on the Matajur, to the Kot waterfalls or discovering the over 250 caves, chasms and natural wells (the most famous is the Cave of San Giovanni d’Antro).
If you want to get a taste of Benecian culture, don’t miss a visit to the carnival, famous for its processions with special masks. The most typical of these is the “Pust”, a popular representation of the devil: coloured clothes, face painted red and black, elongated pincers to scare people and a stocking full of ashes.Another unmissable event is the bonfire of San Giovanni, a tradition deriving from ancestral pagan beliefs and held in the valleys on the occasion of the summer solstice.
Finally, this area, having been directly affected by the events of the First World War, is a wealth of opportunities to explore the sites of those tragic events, including visiting the restored trenches
While San Pietro offers numerous activities and places of interest, such as the SMO interactive multimedia museum, it is also an ideal starting point for exploring a much wider and richer territory.
The Natisone Valleys offer many routes for all interests: spiritual, discovering the 44 votive churches scattered in different villages; routes immersed in nature – trekking on the Matajur, to the Kot waterfalls or discovering the over 250 caves, chasms and natural wells (the most famous is the Cave of San Giovanni d’Antro).
If you want to get a taste of Benecian culture, don’t miss a visit to the carnival, famous for its processions with special masks. The most typical of these is the “Pust”, a popular representation of the devil: coloured clothes, face painted red and black, elongated pincers to scare people and a stocking full of ashes.Another unmissable event is the bonfire of San Giovanni, a tradition deriving from ancestral pagan beliefs and held in the valleys on the occasion of the summer solstice.
Finally, this area, having been directly affected by the events of the First World War, is a wealth of opportunities to explore the sites of those tragic events, including visiting the restored trenches
