If someone had told me eight years ago when I first walked into the piazza of our village, if someone had said then, Signora please will you speak about our village on televisione, tell the world how much you like it, I would have politely, in my faltering Italian, declined. But things change. And of course eight years later on Saturday evening I spoke, in slightly less faltering Italian, to the man from Rai 3 televisione about how we had found ourselves in paradise. I know spilling the beans was not in the original plan (our Italian village) but then nor is a declining population and I have long ago made it my mission to invite like-minded people here and encourage Italians to return. Thus the village will stay alive and the local economy thrive.
However the best thing of all was the excitement the whole shabang created in the community. Ma perche siamo stati al televisione? (But why were we on television?) asked an elderly woman whilst buying her bread the morning after our limelight. There followed a noted silence, most unusual in the grocery shop. I suggested it would bring more people to Mauro's shop so he could sell more bread and thereby take Luciana, his wife, on holiday. I don't want a holiday she replied, I want a new car.
And most wonderful was the delight of my neighbour Angela (she with the moody hens) whose husband Sergio, a retired farmer, spoke so passionately about the need to protect the young oak trees in this landscape. The message we sent out live to the world was clear. We have a lovely village, wonderful food, a perfect climate, an exquisite theatre, beautiful trees. What more could one need? We invite you friends, foreigners, family, neighbours; stay here with us and look after it.
