While walking around Caligo Hills I came upon an unfamiliar district of the ancient city. It was mid-day and I was hungry.

Next to an old church at the highest part of the walled city was a long alley-way tampered with small cafès, bistros, and quiet traces of the farmer's market earlier at dawn.

Casa Este offered a delectable selection of meals and beverages using locally sourced ingredients from the region. Amidst the sparse square, my eyes fell upon a well-tended terrace garden from an old building. Its painted walls flaking and aged by the passage of time. Red tulips and blue violets are in full bloom. Flowers quite unusual for a city renown for its gloomy atmosphere.

At the top of a surviving castle tower, a golden sculpture of an angel. With a sword and a trumpet, one on each side, it watches over the city, eternally vigilant.