Living in a small Village in Valdichiana Senese by Nicolò Duchini

The Little Beauty

"Country life is like that, news is flying like confetti, but the day after the carnival is over and nobody cares about it anymore." Starting a description of life in the tuscan villages with the quote of a comic film like Pieraccioni's "Il Ciclone" may not seem like a great advertisement. But in these words there is a deep essence that must be discovered and investigated. Yes, because life in small villages such as the magnificent ones that arise in the Sienese Valdichiana is marked by small events, and small events trigger small emotions that one by one, go to make up a rich mosaic called village life. Each town has its own personal story that varies from Chianciano to Cetona, from Montepulciano to Chiusi, passing through Trequanda, Sarteano, Torrita, Sinalunga and San Casiano dei Bagni. In each of these countries there is a little emotion a day, perhaps not an epic tale, an event of the incredible ones that occur in the city, but the story of the "Lido's Ape car", rather than the donkey of "that man" or the dog of someone else... The stories and lives of others therefore become common heritage; here, in some way, everyone lives and enriches his life with that of others. There are the places where these mosaic cards are created spontaneously, such as the shops of the historical centers, the squares, the festivals, the districts or the weekly market. Life is created outside, outdoors or in meeting places, precisely those places that have now been forbidden from us. But they will return to teeming with anecdotes and laughter, with skirmishes and hugs, stronger and more alive than before. And if it is true that it is a party every day, when this dark period will over, the party that will come will be even bigger. All the events here become entertainment and all are branded good-naturedly as the person whose happened this or that fact. Anyone who has had the good fortune of having a grandfather in the town and a grandfather in the city understands well what we are talking about. The narration becomes compelling and exciting in front of the stove with the chicken broth and the flask of wine on the table and more boring, devoid of verve on the sofa with mint green tea and classical background music.

Self-irony and sense of community

The small town is a gym of life where people develop an essential weapon to be together and to move around the world: self-irony. It does not matter to be mocked or made fun of, those who do not have an easy life are those who do not play, for this reason the touchy people in the towns of the Sienese Valdichiana can be counted on the fingers of one hand. What might seem like a real negative point, an unwanted intrusion, is actually a precious resource that everyone in the village carries in their hearts and they miss it a lot when they are away from home. The honor here is not defended by avoiding to enter into the stories of others or their sneers, but by playing the trump card at the right time, with the right energy and the right exclamation. In short, nobody has to take it seriously because it is like being made fun of by mom and dad, in the knowledge that the person who "make fun of you" yesterday, is willing to give you all of himself today. Moreover, the rhythms are different, just take a few meters to be surrounded by the most beautiful countryside in the world. Here we can finally find, with a walk or a bicycle ride, the contact with nature that we miss so much. Then you go back to the village and dive back into the carnival of life. The good here goes beyond everything, nobody really judges you for what you do, but what really matters, after all, is who you are. And if you are in the village, you are a member of a huge family that protects you. In a town of 100 souls, you can find 50 people ready for everything for you, in a city of 1,000,000, many less. And all in all, perhaps, in a world where difficulty, snares and troubles are always lurking, it feels better to make fun of yourself, but to know that you can always count on someone, in our small villages.

Local ambassador: Nicolò Duchini
He attended the Faculty of Law at the University of Florence and was a competitor of the last edition of Masterchef Italia. Counselor in the Contrada "Collazzi" in the context of the historic re-enactment Bravìo delle Botti di Montepulciano, he recently moved to Sesto Fiorentino, but the passion for his territory and his traditions didn't dismissed from his commitment for Contrada "Collazzi" in Montepulciano.