Tourist’s eyes

Telling the story of Italy to the world is not simple; it’s a complex narrative that easily risks becoming banal.
You are never the first to do it, and certainly not the best, after so many great masters who have tried their hand at it before and with more talent. Commonplaces are numerous, stereotypes abound, so what is so interesting about doing it?

Passion. The great love for this country, for its culture, its traditions, its genius and its geniuses.

I remember as an indelible photograph when the idea for “The Ambassador” came to me, more than two years ago. Alessia (Malcaus) and I were in those days in the mountains, on the Alpe di Siusi, in Trentino Alto Adige, an enchanting place where you can relax and breathe good air (and eat exquisite and genuine food). Our hotel room had a balcony overlooking the mountains, a breathtaking view, and was located on the first floor: right below us was the restaurant’s terrace. It was a resort very popular with foreign tourists: in fact, we were among the very few Italians there.

One afternoon I was busy admiring the view, when I happened (I swear, unintentionally! It was impossible not to hear, given the short distance) to listen to a dialogue between a pair of tourists, they seemed British from their way of speaking. The woman asked the waiter if she could try a carbonara! That’s right: at 1000 meters above sea level, in the region farthest from Lazio, where you can taste many local specialties, this lady was asking for this dish of Roman tradition. The waiter went to ask in the kitchen and came back with good news: he could satisfy the customer! Once she received the dish, the woman devoured the spaghetti (or at least, that’s what she called them, I couldn’t see them) and began to praise them to her husband, who had chosen something else, I don’t remember, but he also began to extol that dish. Now: that the chef was good, there is no doubt, I remember that cuisine too; that he could have made an authentic Roman carbonara, I have my doubts. It must have been, let’s say, tasty.

But this amusing “scene” sparked something in my head. Italy is so loved that everyone wants a piece of it, even if they go to the mountains and then want to indulge in a specialty from another area. We Italians are inured to the beauty and goodness that surrounds us and now take them for granted, but there is such interest in our country, despite the fact that tourism as we know it today has been around for two hundred years and probably “everyone” (so to speak) has been to Italy at least once.

The other reflection was that there was probably also a bit of confusion about the geography of our country and what is best to do where. I immediately talked to Alessia, who appreciated the idea and helped me develop it, so that we then also chose the name: “The Ambassador,” like a messenger who carries information about Italy, in the world. The idea remained in a drawer for quite a while, and now here we are! Returning to the initial question, it is true, it is a complex challenge. We want to do it with simplicity and talking also and especially about the small realities, in every area, that perhaps abroad do not have resonance, but that can receive great feedback.

Ours is a great country! You would just have to see it with the eyes of a foreign tourist.