Piona Abbey, a place where silence speaks

There is a place on Lake Como where silence reigns supreme. This is Piona Abbey, on the north-eastern shore of the lake, a corner with a unique and surreal atmosphere.

A place where the most striking thing of all is the silence.

I arrived there by car, from Colico, and the sensation, as I got closer, was more and more that of being directed towards a space “out of this world”, far removed from the noise and frenetic rhythms more typical of other areas of the lake.

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A few signs pointing to the Abbey (but not too many!), a series of uphill hairpin bends, and finally a cobbled road, along which you have the doubt of having done something wrong or at least of having to abandon the car…but, unless you feel like going for a 3 km walk, the advice is to continue.

At a certain point, you will find yourself in front of two imposing columns of overlapping stones and you will realise that you have arrived.

I admit that my mood that day helped me to appreciate the place in a special way…I was looking for peace more than anything else, after fractious days in the midst of hundreds of people, and I immediately knew I was in the right place, at the right time!

But I am sure that, whatever your mood, a place like this will only surprise you too.

Not far from Piona is the beautiful medieval village of Corenno Plinio. Have you already visited it?

What to see at Piona Abbey

• the church dedicated to St Nicholas, in the Lombard Romanesque style, small, cosy and with a frescoed apse;
• the cloister, dating back to 1242 and the heart of the entire monastic complex, with beautiful Gothic capitals and traces of frescoes on the walls;
• the olive grove leading to the Grotto of Lourdes, a truly suggestive and very cosy corner in which to lose oneself in a thousand thoughts, the rustling of leaves in the wind and the chirping of birds.

Woe to those who think that only those who are believers can feel comfortable here! This is a place that feeds the soul, regardless.

It actually nourishes the body too! Near the entrance you can buy products from the abbey workshops: honey, liqueurs, medicinal herbs and creams.

It is the Cistercian monks themselves who take care of the orchard, olive grove, vineyard and vegetable gardens, thus putting the Benedictine rule “Ora et labora” into practice.

A curiosity: among the monks of Piona there is also a real artist, Frà Pier, and I fell in love with his paintings! Balances of geometric shapes and bright colours are the characteristics of his works, exhibited on one of the four walls of the cloister.

I even read that “his paintings are in many collections in Italy and abroad”!

To conclude, one last suggestion.

As you drive up to the Abbey, you will notice the priceless view of the turquoise-blue Piona Lake. I am sure that, like me, you will not be able to resist the temptation to park, get out of the car, and stop at least for a moment to admire the spectacle and take a few photos!

Read also my local Pocket Guide on what to see on Lake Como!