(by correspondent Domenico Palesse)
The sky is colored green, white and red, while the silhouette of
the most famous sailing ship in the world appears on the
horizon.
The Frecce Tricolori (Tricolor Arrows) aerobatics team stands
out among the masts of the Amerigo Vespucci, symbolically
accompanying the return to Italy of the Navy training ship, at
the end of a 20-month, 46,000-nautical-mile tour of the world.
Trieste welcomes the "most beautiful ship in the world",
'escorting' it with the 1,333 boats that participated in the
evocative special edition of the Barcolana iconic regatta.
The Riva del Mandracchio, in the heart of the city, is not only
the end of the world tour, but the beginning of the
Mediterranean tour that, in the next three months, will touch 17
ports, including the foreign ones of Durres in Albania and
Valletta in Malta.
"It is a hug that we send to Italy and the Italians", says Luca
Andreoli, the CEO of Difesa Servizi, the in-house company of the
Ministry of Defense that managed the planning and implementation
of the tour, organized together with 12 ministries.
The greetings from the dock and the hugs with the families were
the backdrop to the arrival of the sailing ship, welcomed in
port by the latest arrival of the Navy, the aircraft carrier
Trieste, the largest ever built to date in Italy.
The alpha and the omega, tradition and innovation, met in the
gulf of the Julian capital, in a sort of passing of the baton 94
years later, many of those celebrated just a few days ago by the
"lady of the seas".
A "beautiful" moment, to use the words of the commander, Captain
Giuseppe Lai.
"When I watched the city approach from the bridge wing, black
and white images of the past came to mind", he said after the
traditional ribbon cutting that gave life to the "new adventure"
of the Amerigo Vespucci.
Until June 10, in fact, the sailing ship will sail along the
coast of Italy - except for the two stops in Albania and Malta -
to bring "the story of the world" encountered in the last two
years of navigation.
"Today a new adventure begins - says the Chief of Staff of the
Navy, Admiral Enrico Credendino - Up until now we have brought
Italy to the world, today the Vespucci brings the world to
Italy".
"We will make each stop a moment of comparison, growth and
sharing", echoed the Minister of Defense, Guido Crosetto, absent
with justification due to pneumonia that has forced him to rest
up.
"In 20 months, the Amerigo Vespucci has welcomed hundreds of
thousands of visitors and numerous authorities, allowing them to
learn about Italian excellence and traditions, also thanks to
the Villaggio Italia - says the Chief of Defence Staff, General
Luciano Portolano during the inauguration ceremony organised for
the occasion in the 'belly' of the Nave Trieste. The
Vespucci-Villaggio Italia duo has allowed us to build bridges
and strengthen institutional ties, promoting the culture of
Defence".
The mayor of Trieste, Roberto Dipiazza, and the president of
Friuli Venezia Giulia, Massimiliano Fedriga, played host.
"When you manage to work as a team, to row all in the same
direction - was their message - success is guaranteed and the
Vespucci tour is proof of this".
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