"Call Me By Your Name" Tour: Discovering Italy's Hidden Gems

by Sarah Johnson (Canada)

I didn't expect to find Italy

This is the story of how I risked getting kidnapped to live out my Italian fantasy. To set the stage, you must know that I have only ever had one true obsession: the movie “Call My By Your Name”. In this timeless coming-of-age story, precarious Elio falls hard for grad student Oliver. Northern Italy is the lush backdrop to their 80’s summer romance. By the time the credits were rolling, my best friend and I had booked a plane ticket. An hour east of Milan, nestled in the bottom of the Lombardy region, we finally made it to Crema: the relatively unknown town where the movie was filmed. We arrived at Crema’s train stop with no plan, hoping we would simply stumble onto the filming locations. What we found was a quaint and quiet town, half full with elderly tourists and locals. After some wandering, we found Duomo Square. Lined by its signature Gothic archways, this piazza is a notable setting in the film. Here, the town paid homage to the movie with a table and two bicycles on display. We were sure this was the only nod to our beloved film we would find. Like clockwork, a Canadian woman named Shirley biked up to us. After falling in love with the movie, she visited Crema and fell in love with a local. She moved in with Alberto and together they started a Call Me By Your Name tour - the first of its kind. Shirley explained that the film’s locations were scattered throughout Lombardy and could only be visited by car or bike. In Alberto’s tiny car, she could show us the best of them. Our first thought was the obvious one. We were about to willingly climb into a stranger’s vehicle. We could get kidnapped or worse, a la “Taken”. It was everything our parents told us not to do. But as a fellow Canadian, we trusted Shirley and took a leap of faith into the back seat of their Fiat. Spoiler alert: Liam Neeson did not save us. Instead, we spent an afternoon immersed in the scorching beauty and romanticism of the Italian countryside. Our first stop was Moscazzano to see the dreamy 16th century villa where the main characters live. Rustic and grandiose, the villa is a statue of Italian wealth and style. If you’ve seen the movie, you probably fell head over heels for this home. To see it in person is to fall again. Tucked down a nearby road, we got a glimpse inside the now closed Bar Belvedere where Oliver plays poker. We met the owner, who told us about being cast as the bartender in the movie. Then off to Pandino, where the stunning World War 1 monument in Piazza Vittorio Emanuele set the stage for Elio’s one-shot confession. Although few tourists would seek out this tiny town, it’s steeped in both rich history and everyday culture. Case in point: just outside the entrance to the striking Visconti Castle is a rundown bodega where Oliver buys cigarettes. Next stop: Fontanile Quarantina. Hiding in a grove of willow trees in nearby Capalbra, this secluded spring water pond is Elio’s “secret spot” where he first kisses Oliver. An oasis for the locals to cool off on a hot afternoon, the crystal water is only a few inches deep and runs over a bed of pebbles. In a word, it was magic. Along the way, we listened to the iconic soundtrack and made unexpected stops: a gorgeous stone villa in Corte Palasio where the characters stop on a bike ride, an emerald green lake in Ricengo where they swim, and the bus stop where they depart on their last weekend together. We returned to Crema, hearts full from being thrown headfirst into our favourite film. As a goodbye gift, Shirley gave us a pencil drawing of Elio and Oliver embracing. Whether you love the film or not, this tour was a raw and unfiltered plunge into the deep end of Italy. It was a tranquil treasure hunt, unveiling the hidden gems in Lombardy’s piazzas and abundant landscapes. And for us, it was a testament to ditching the plan and taking a chance on being kidnapped.