From Loveno to Illinois: A Tale of Roots Tourism
Well, well, well! Gather ’round, folks, because it seems that the Calvetti family has taken a journey that even a plot twist in a soap opera would envy! You’ve got Louis, the American grandchild of Italian immigrants, who decided it was high time to reconnect with his roots. Not by scrolling through an ancestry website, mind you, but by literally hopping on a plane and heading back to the beautiful Valcamonica. Now, if that isn’t a scene straight out of a feel-good movie, I don’t know what is!
A little background for you: the Calvetti clan started their adventure way back in 1900. Can you imagine? They got hitched in a small church in Loveno and then thought, ‘Hey, let’s leave this picturesque village for the hustle and bustle of America!’ A classic case of “the grass is always greener,” right? Well, it looks like Louis has now decided the grass is quite green back home in Italy—just don’t forget the lawn mower!
Meet Martina, the Family Detective
Enter Martina, age 21 and studying “Tourism sciences and local community.” I mean, if that’s not the coolest major with a sprinkle of adventure, I don’t know what is! With a passion for her roots (and perhaps some help from her family tree-building detective squad), she dove into her ancestry like a kid into a chocolate fountain at a wedding buffet. She even had help from a book titled “Family Trees of Loveno Grumello – Christmas 2002.” Now that’s what I call a holiday gift that keeps on giving!
“I am very attached to my territory,” says Martina, and you can bet that she wasn’t just talking about her Wi-Fi connection! With Louis visiting, it was a chance to embrace her family’s legacy while sipping a cappuccino, all the while where her grandparents lived and loved. It’s almost like a live-action episode of “Who Do You Think You Are?” Except, let’s face it, it’s much better, because there’s real family drama—and perhaps even better food!
Roots Tourism: The New Travel Trend
As discussed at the TTG-Travel Experience event in Rimini, roots tourism is gathering momentum faster than my stomach after an all-you-can-eat buffet. Eleonora Rigotti, President of Cna Turismo e Commercio Lombardia, reminded us that this isn’t just a sentimental journey; it’s a booming industry with about 10 million people involved in Italy alone! They’re spending around 8 billion euros! That’s a significant amount—enough to roll in pasta and wine all day long!
But here’s the kicker—the real advantage of roots tourism isn’t just about fat wallets. It’s about revitalizing those charming small communities that have been on the brink of depopulation. We’re talking about places that are definitely “Instagrammable” but need a bit of love (and tourists) to keep the shops open and the shutters lifted. “It represents an act of love,” says Martina, proving that sometimes, love does mean leaving your trendy Milan café for a quaint village. What a brave soul!
Conclusion: Nature, Nurture, and Nostalgia
So there you have it, folks! The tale of Louis and Martina is more than a family reunion; it’s a heartwarming reminder that our roots define us, even if they’ve taken a detour through another continent. And as more people find solace in their historical connections, maybe it’s time to update our travel itineraries. Instead of hopping on a plane to Paris or New York City, how about a jaunt to your ancestral village? You might just find that the best views—and the best stories—are in the places you never thought to look. Just remember, folks: always pack a good map and, of course, your sense of adventure!
Paisco Loveno (Brescia) – “You are one too Calvetti? I had never seen him, but in that embrace I heard from the family”. Martina is 21 years old and studies “Tourism sciences and local community” at the University of Milan-Bicocca. Louis, 55, lives in Illinois, USA. He is the grandson of Antonio Calvetti and Maria Mansini, Brescians who got married in 1900 in the small church of Loveno, a small mountain village in Valcamonica, before emigrate to the United States, in search of fortune. The younger son became the father of Louis, the first “Calvetti of America” to return to their place of origin. “A guide to Valcamonica, Marta Ghirardelli, she got in touch with my distant cousins Graziella, Mattia and Martina Calvetti – says Louis –. We had a wonderful day meeting family and new friends, seeing where my grandparents grew up, the church where they got married, and feeling right at home. An experience I will never forget.”
She was the “director” of Louis’ return to his origins his wife Katherine, who accompanied him to discover the Camunian village and its Calvetti which represent the bridge with its past. “When I heard about this possibility I was in Milan, I was studying: I left everything and returned to the valley – says Martina -. I am very attached to my territory, I reconstructed my family’s family tree with the initial help of the book “Family Trees of Loveno Grumello – Christmas 2002” by Angelo Filafusi. It helped me reconstruct the initial part that reaches back to my great-grandparents. The meeting with Louis and his wife made me reflect on the importance of ‘roots tourism’: it represents an act of love”.
Also at TTG–Travel Experience of Rimini, reference event for the promotion of global tourism which for the first time saw the participation of Cna Lombardy Tourism and Commerce, it’s been talked about. The story of the Calvettis was brought by the Cna of Brescia as an example of tourism to be encouraged in Lombardy. In Italy it currently affects 10 million people, with an economic impact of 8 billion. “One of the main advantages of roots tourism – underlines Eleonora Rigotti, president of Cna Turismo e Commercio Lombardia – is the ability to redistribute tourist flows throughout the territory, favoring deseasonalization and revealing to the world the Italy of small communities and villages. By visiting these small towns, as happened in Valcamonica, these tourists revitalize communities at risk of depopulation, promoting local economic development”.