The second time it went well, very well indeed. The snow had made us postpone the meeting of all the members and partners of the DMO Comino Valley (Valle di Comino) (www.dmociociariavalledicomino.it) and yesterday Federico Campoli finally managed to perform the miracle.
It seemed that the weather was once again an enemy and the hail came just before the starting time. Despite this, there were so many of us, the overcrowded theater was full of the positive energy of those who love the area and know that together we can make a difference, as the president Giovanni Cannata of the PNALM National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise underlined with incredible class.
Everyone spoke with love and professionalism, as if they had been waiting for years for the opportunity to be together on a scene to bring Comino Valley to the world stage.
I was not born in Comino Valley and I live in the Alta Ciociaria but I love this area very much. Every time I go to Settefrati, which for me is the capital of experimenting with new relationships with descendants abroad, I think I'm traveling the entire lenght of Ciociaria, from Paliano (where I live) which is on the border with Rome to Settefrati which borders Abruzzo and Molise regions.
Here was born the Town Ambassador Award (www.townambassador.org) and the work done with the Canadian and American communities for the creation of the Felicita Back Home television format dedicated to descendants.
But on every trip I discover some new detail about Ciociaria that makes me love it more, then when I see the castle of Vicalvi it is the signal that I am entering the magic of the Comino Valley.
Alvito was the capital of the duchy, and the small theater is a symbol of its noble past which today has also become the symbol of the future. And the mayor Luciana Martini well embodies the role of attentive hostess. She is excited but she does not lose lucidity and ‘starts the dance’.
Federico Campoli opened 'the scenes' and illustrated the path taken so far, occasionally interrupted by the very good Luigi Gabriele of Consumerismo (but above all proud Sorano) who read the license plates of cars to be moved. A long web that has built up in recent months.
The institutions follow and Gianluca Quadrini first reads the speech of the president of the province of Frosinone and then goes off the cuff to participate personally in the emotion of building a community.
We become community with time and with life together.
Val Comino seems small but is made up of many small administrations. As Riccardo Frattaroli says, 'it is a daisy, and each village is a petal. If even one were missing, it would no longer be beautiful’, but uniting all these villages is not easy and Federico and his team have worked hard in recent months.
I should mention many people, but I will only focus on 2-3. The first is a young Luca Genovese representing the MAECI who has built a real political line of action on Italians abroad and on rooting tourism. I think he wasn't expecting so many people and so much passion that he was almost overwhelmed by the energy.
Then the rector of the university of Marco dell'Isola, with whom we have known each other since the days when I was an engineer and we both dealt with renewable energies, who reconfirmed the territorial role of his university and how in recent years it has always been in synergy with the local business growth. Unicas is now perceived by everyone as the certainty of having a high-value institution that plays alongside everyone.
The last speaker who excited everyone was Domenico Durante, the marketing manager of the Bosco delle Favole in Cassino (www.boscodellefavole.it), a theme park that has had over 1 million visits since its opening and has 2 million unique users on the web. His passion was enthralling but above all his generosity disarmed.
He shared the desire to increase the stay of visitors to the park and encourage them to stay in the area for at least one night. And this night can only be in the magical Comino Valley, a land of excellent DOC and DOP products, a land of castles and also a land of good time.
After the passion, Federico tempted us with delicacies and a buffet with Cabernet di Atina DOC wines organized by the hotellery school San Benedetto di Cassino.
If you haven't had a chance to visit Val Comino yet this is the right time to go, spring is coming and nature is waking up. And ask to the DMO Comino Valley for any possible information.
Happy to be part of this team.
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