Milan, chasing the fireflies in the lands of the Polyclinic

Chasing bright spots in the scented night of the countryside. Not just any campaign, but that of the Milan Polyclinic. The maxi rural heritage of the Milanese Irccs is home to thousands of fireflies. And for three evenings in June, from Friday 10 to Sunday 12, you will be able to admire these spectacular insects in four night excursions in the Oasi Ca ‘Granda, “the first rural oasis in Italy” created by the Ca’ Granda Heritage Foundation on the ancient lands Ospedale Maggiore, between the springs of Morimondo, from the Ticino valley to that of the Adda. With this initiative the summer season of the Oasis is inaugurated, with many outdoor activities, according to the Foundation. The second weekend of June is dedicated to fireflies, “one of the most anticipated natural and romantic spectacles of the summer”, explain the promoters. A night trip to the hospital grounds. “In this month the countryside becomes a stage for courtship dances: it is the mating period, when the females, from larvae to insects, light up and flutter in search of attention”, underline from Fondazione Patrimonio Ca ‘Granda. By communicating via light signals, fireflies need dark and isolated places: for this reason they can only be admired by moving away from cities, in vast fields, on the banks of streams, along water channels and in humid and temperate areas. “In the Oasi Ca ‘Granda these endangered insects are preserved: environments without light pollution and cultivated fields without resorting to pesticides protect biodiversity, becoming the ideal habitat for fireflies”, they assure the institution. The program to admire them includes on Friday 10 a journey between reality and fantasy accompanied by the guide of ‘Adventure on the legs’ that will lead children and adults to discover the magical dancing fairies in the Ticino Valley (Pavia). Saturday 11 double appointment scheduled: the proposal is that of an enchanted evening in Morimondo (Milan) with ‘Fourseasons Nature and Culture’, which offers an excursion of an hour and a half through the countryside surrounding the ancient village. Along the way anecdotes and curiosities about fireflies and their ecosystem, told by a guide who knows the area well in its naturalistic and historical peculiarities. And on the same day, the Paradise Fish Park (Lodi) offers a guided tour of the surrounding habitats, ideal places to see fireflies and learn about secrets and curiosities from the experts of the park. Sunday 12 in Cascina Caiella (Pavia) walk in the orchard which is decorated with many small lights at nightfall. The Oasi Ca ‘Granda, highlighted by the Foundation that manages the lands of the Policlinico, presents a calendar of events for all ages, to make known this heritage with a long history. The focus is on still little-known itineraries, food and wine experiences, zero-kilometer shopping, from balloon flights between Ticino and Adda to excursions on foot or by bike in nature along canals and springs, and in between some stops to rediscover cuisine traditional Lombard (information is available on the website www.oasicagranda.it). Few people know the huge patrimony donated by many benefactors since 1456 to the Ca ‘Granda. In ancient times these lands brought resources to all the sick of the Maggiore hospital in Milan (food for the patients, wood for heating, straw for mattresses, herbs used by the medicine of the time) which, in turn, could thus cure people coming from the city and the countryside of all social backgrounds, from the nobles to the needy. This social bond continues today with the activities of the Ca ‘Granda Heritage Foundation, created in 2015 by the Milan Polyclinic to enhance a heritage made up of 8,500 hectares of land, 100 farmhouses, 4 churches, an abbey and a natural monument. The profits deriving from the Foundation’s enhancement activities are allocated to scientific research projects, humanization of care and protection of the hospital’s cultural assets: 4.2 million euros from 2016 to 2021.