Have you ever heard of the Aniene Valley? And Guizhou?

Aniene Valley is a green and still authentic corner, east of Rome. Easy to reach, full of paths, villages and stories. Guizhou, on the other hand, is a name that few people know: a remote mountainous province of China, inhabited by over 35 million people and guardian of ancient traditions and cultures, such as those of the Miao ethnic group.

And yet, on a Roman afternoon with a vibrant climate, these distant worlds met. It happened at the Mountain Tourism Forum, an event organized to celebrate the opening of a new flight between Italy and Guizhou.

A meeting of cultures, territories and visions.

The initiative involved the Aniene Valley, the Castelli Romani, Paliano and other territories of the Metropolitan Area of ​​Rome, thanks to the Town Ambassador Award project, which has created links between local administrations and cultural, economic and artistic realities. Also present was Councilor Alessia Pieretti, who despite an unexpected return, followed the developments of the meeting step by step.

The goal? To create long-lasting twinning and collaborations between Italian and Chinese communities, in the wake of experiences already underway, such as the one between the Horse Museum Foundation of Paliano and the Chinese artists' residencies in Rocca Santo Stefano.

Representing the Foundation was Bruno Grassetti, awarded the prestigious Friendship Medal by the Chinese Government. Next to him, the artist Wang Yongxu, representing the mayor of Rocca Santo Stefano, Sandro Runieri, who in the past had awarded the title of Town Ambassador to three Chinese artists.

The meeting began with an emotional video, introduced by Wen Weiya, director of the Guizhou Tourism Center, and Song Xiaolu, director of the province's Department of Culture and Tourism. On the screen, images of ancient caves, wild horses, climbing walls and villages suspended in time followed one another. Meanwhile, the Italian mayors present imagined how to intertwine those landscapes with the stories of their territories.

Claudio Fatelli, mayor of Rocca Priora - the highest municipality in the Castelli Romani - proudly spoke of the long equestrian tradition of the area, where there is also a federal center and numerous breeding farms.

Fulvio Proietti, mayor of Rocca Canterano, instead brought to the fore the mountain vocation of his municipality, with climbing schools and trails frequented by mountaineers and university students: on that very day, some students from the Sapienza Master in Alpine Rescue were training on the local walls.

Then Fabio Zambon, mayor of Bellegra, spoke and proposed a twinning between his spectacular cave, over a kilometer long and decorated with rock frescoes, and the underground wonders of Guizhou.

When someone observed that there was a lack of concrete experiences of cooperation between local Italian communities and Chinese realities, Wang Yongxu took the floor, in Italian, describing the project of artistic residences in Rocca Santo Stefano, made possible thanks to Professor Oriana Impei, Town Ambassador and professor at the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome.

Alessia Pieretti was constantly updated, while I – as president of the Town Ambassador Award and ambassador of Cesanese wine and Horses – was able to see up close how small seeds, planted with care, can blossom into authentic and profound projects.

A special thanks goes to Destination Italia, leader in incoming tourism, always attentive to promoting the lesser-known pearls of our country. With them we hope to make these relationships grow with the same harmony and enthusiasm with which they were born, on a warm Roman afternoon that will remain in the heart.

And then off, running, to Donna Vittori (www.donnavittori.com) where the birthday of a Chinese artist was waiting for us. As a surprise, we received an art book from China: the author, Zhang Xiaou, also portrayed our president Maria Vittori together with her beautiful mare, Lettera.

What a day!
Italy and China have never been so close.