In Vallepietra with Flavio De Santis looking for his Town Ambassadors

It's a cloudy Saturday morning and the road to Vallepietra  seems mystical to me. I'm going to meet the mayor Flavio De Santis, and crossing the Monti Simbruini Park is like going on a journey of discovery.

In winter I knew Vallepietra more for its flavours, the tasty Ciavattone bean and the Agostinella corn polenta, than for the landscape of the woods.

I park the car and pleasantly walk the narrow streets that lead to the town square surprisingly animated by busy people, and first of all I go to the grocery store to buy the precious beans.

A jovial face appears from an alley, and the smile of the mayor Flavio de Santis invades the square, with him we go to the municipality to the registry office. We had met the day before on the Amico Comune broadcast on Radio Radio (promoted by Anci Lazio), but we had already met at a festival of small towns in Villa Borghese in Rome where I announced my forthcoming visit.

The purpose of my visit is a project of the Metropolitan Area of Rome on the search for Town Ambassadors (www.townambassador.org) for small municipalities. Councillor Alessia Pieretti strongly believes that to internationalize these villages we can start with those who already love them and have them in their hearts. And if this is the beginning, I think we will have many nice surprises!

Vallepietra does not have members in the AIRE - Registry of Italians Resident Abroad and the history of emigration is particular. Many of those who left the country in the early post-first world war period made their fortunes and returned to Italy, so strong ties with communities abroad have been lost.

Since the Second World War, however, emigration has remained within national borders and Vallepietrani can be found throughout Italy.

But by further investigating Vallepietra's intertwining and international ties, we discover two beautiful stories, one in America and one in New Zealand.

The first is told by Cristina Dantini that a few years ago she had been contacted by John Paparella, a distant relative of hers in Ohio who was reconstructing his family tree and who had discovered that he had roots in Vallepietra. John did a great job to rediscover the ‘Italianity’ of his surname and is now proud of it.

The second story is truly amazing and concerns the family of Major Hilary Evans and his son Malcolm. The major had come to Italy with the ANZAC army - Australian and New Zealand Army Corps and had been captured. He fled the prison camps twice and he took refuge in a cave in Vallepietra where he was protected and fed by the Rotondi family.

After the war, the 'major' returned to New Zealand 'but the bond between our two families still continues and we have reached the fourth generation', says Silvia Rotondi, daughter of the person who had saved the major. The story is told in a documentary that has won many awards in NZ and Australia and we will investigate further in the coming days.

The day ended in the Italian style with an aperitif in the square while I was introduced to Tiziana Ilari, a young blogger who guides people on the discovery of the paths of Vallepietra and the Monti Simbruini Park (https://www.facebook.com/vallepietraplanet), find out this beautiful territory with her because her passion will make you live unforgettable experiences.