Still Listening to the Mountains
I headed toward Valle d'Aosta. It was my first time taking the van into the mountains.
I had to reach a small village called Introd, where Giuppi had organized the first nomad retreat. I drove up narrow roads, bends, and steep climbs. But the van handled it well. Actually, better than in the city. I was getting used to it.
The Chalets
Waiting for me was a group of chalets I would share with the other participants. They were beautiful, surrounded by a large garden full of trees. And there was also a fantastic treehouse we could use for our activities.
When I arrived, I finally got to see Giuppi again, after several months since the last time in Turin. And I met all the other people taking part in the retreat.
We were mostly software developers. Some of them worked at the garden tables, morning and afternoon, right in the middle of nature. It was already interesting just to begin talking with them.
In the evening we all went out for dinner together. The conversations kept going: experiences, questions, curiosities. Everyone had a different story, a different path. But we were all there for the same reason.
Meditation and Mountains
Right after waking up, in the morning, we would go in front of the tipi tent to meditate with Giuppi. Those were very important moments to pause and reconnect with ourselves.
Each person had a different experience and a different perspective on how to work in our field. There was a beautiful exchange of ideas, life, and reflections.
In the afternoon we also managed to do a wonderful hike to the Entrelor waterfall, still in Valle d'Aosta. We were met by rain, many sheep, and a truly immense waterfall.
In the evening we stayed nearby, in a mountain hut. We had dinner together, with plenty of polenta, while outside we could still hear the sound of the water. Giuppi took out his manouche guitar and started playing. A simple moment, but a full one.
The Unconference
On Saturday there was the Unconference: the "non-conference." Everyone could propose a topic, an area, or any question they wanted to bring, and then we would talk about it together.
It was truly important to me.
We talked about everything: time management while working as freelancers, how to organize your days without an office setting your schedule. How to separate private life and work when your office can be anywhere. Some worked as remote employees, others as freelancers, and others had their own small businesses.
We talked about the differences between traveling in converted vans, full-size campers, or simply alternating Workaway and Couchsurfing. Everyone had a different approach: some preferred the freedom of the van, others the comfort of the camper, and others chose to rent apartments for longer periods to have more stability.
We talked about travel itself: the difference between spending months in Asia, moving only around Europe, or staying in Italy and exploring region by region.
But above all, we talked about financial management: how to save money without a fixed salary, how to plan taxes as freelancers, how to handle the months when work becomes scarce.
It showed me different perspectives on working life, but also completely different ways of living. And practical aspects I had never considered before.
All of this increased my desire for change and improvement.
The Treehouse
But the most meaningful conversation was the one in the treehouse.
I do not even remember all the details of what we said anymore. I only remember coming down from that house with my head full of questions. Questions about future life choices. Questions that, even today, I am still processing.
That conversation gave me many insights. And maybe, without even realizing it in that moment, it planted the seeds of some decisions I would make in the following months.
The Last Days
There was also room for a nice barbecue, where we kept talking and having fun.
The nomad retreat ended with a walk in Aosta, a bit of climbing practice, and pleasant moments of relaxation in a park.
And then I got ready to reach my next destination: Nomaglio, near Ivrea.
I got into my van and drove along the mountain roads that brought me just above the Via Francigena, into this small village known for its chestnut flour.
The retreat was over. But what it had left inside me kept working.
📻 Soundtrack
📻 Colonna Sonora
🎵 Caricamento...
YouTube Music
I chose Mountains because it fits the memory of those suspended days well, when everything felt open but still undefined.
"And we could run away before the light of day... you know we always could" stayed like a thought in the background, a constant possibility: the possibility of changing everything, without yet having decided whether to actually do it.
"The mountains say" and in that context it felt almost physical, as if they were speaking in our place. I was simply there, listening, between new people and roads I still had to understand.