“But this is a port!” The President of the Club Nautico Sambenedettese replied it, when I thanked him for the aid. Just before, the President of the Navy League Sandro Nulli replied the same, too. Sandro Nulli and Gigi Anelli are the reason why we’re here. “Come here for the winter! ” they answered months ago, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, when I called them because we did not know where to take “Mediterranea” for the winter. “It’s natural that we welcome you!” Thank you, friends. Thanks Navy League . This is a port…
Mediterranea feels as like a guest of the entire city of San Benedetto del Tronto: the Port, the Navy League, the Club Nautico, the smiling people on the embankment while we are landing. Someone has come to say “hallo”, to see “Mediterranea”, as like a private pilgrimage, to greet . “Mediterranea” is guest of a port that has true maritime traditions, people of the sea sweat, spit blood. Always. And it is guest of the Navy League’s Chef, who has prepared, with Gigi, a wonderful dinner for us. And “Mediterreanea” is guest of an organic ice-cream vendor, who invites us to taste her ice-cream; it is guest of the gasoline station team; we are guests of Marco, who works at the shipyard and told us that he can help us if we need, and we are guests of that archaeologist who comes to greet us. “Mediterranea” is guest of the CNS (Circolo Nautico Sambenedettese), which could say “but you are a guest of the Navy League!” and instead they opened their doors. Mediterranea is hosted, therefore, in a beautiful piece of Italy that looks away from pessimism, hell, nervousness, chaos, envy and that about the sea’s things gives the best. During the first night in the Port, each of us has asked himself what it would be happen if we were back in La Spezia, Naples or Rome, our ports of origin. We would welcome on the same way? We hope…
” This is a port!” Some time ago, a Canadian sailor man has had a failure. We brought him here, we gave him help. This is normal!” In this “Italy of the places on transit” , places that are not available or only with an admission fee, in this country, where someone will deny to you the access in the port ,even if the weather is bad, the Boot where the burocratic formalities seem more important than substance (the sea…), well, in this country, there is still a place as San Benedetto del Tronto, where a port is still a port, and where the people are in a world that is still alive.
So we decided that for the next 5 years, “Mediterranea” would bring the colours of San Benedetto del Tronto, because it is right. None of us comes from here, but the sea does not belong to those who live next door, but of those who live in it. The sea belongs to those who arrive in a port and immediately feel there as if it were his own home. A sailor is not where he comes from, but where he makes a pit stop. From San Benedetto del Tronto it will start the Mediterranea’s great journey and there seems a good thing. On the next spring, we will have a lot of friends here, true people. They will tell to others “We have met Mediterranea” while they will say us ” Goodbye.”
Mediterranea is also these “thank you” that you didn’t know you have to say. Thank you, San Benedetto del Tronto! Seafarers. Mediterranea’s people.
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