Campagna is a small town in the province of Salerno, located between the Picentini mountains and the Sele valley, with a population of just under 17,000. It’s a quiet place for most of the year, known historically for its religious institutions and stone bridges, and more recently, as a stopping point for those exploring the hinterland between the Amalfi Coast and the Cilento National Park.

But every July and August, its stone-paved Corso Umberto I becomes something else entirely: a shallow waterway that runs through the centre of town, soaking everyone and everything in its path. Yes, you read that right! Every summer, its main streets are deliberately flooded with water from the nearby Tenza River, following a centuries-old practice known as ‘A Chiena, which began as a way to clean and cool the streets during the hottest months, but ended up becoming a distinctive local tradition, still carried out using the same basic diversion system designed some 400 years ago.