“Vicoforte! Vicoforte! Where’s the bus to Vicoforte:? WHERE is Vicoforte? What IS Vicoforte?”
“Vicoforte! Vicoforte! Where’s the bus to Vicoforte:? WHERE is Vicoforte? What IS Vicoforte?” Questions exploded from our contingent as we struggled to find our first night “home” We knew that the Hortel Portici (Por-TI-chi!) was there and that it was to be our sleeping headquarters for the next five nights. And that was all.
The colorful Olympic-style opening of Terra Madre, during which every represented country’s flag carrier dramatically processed in as the country’s name boomed out over the huge former Olympic skiing rink, now Ligotto conference Center, had ended. Hundreds of delegates swarmed about seeking guides, groups, buses, help!
Part of the Slow Food Triangle contingent had been assigned to stay in Vicoforte. So once having gathered ourselves by a certain window, we were led by a cheerful young female volunteer, Tiara, (one of hundreds!) up a nearby hill to a huge parking lot of buses. After standing around for over an hour, pummeled by jet lag and exhilarated by what promised to be an exciting four days to come, we dutifully and finally, like tired sheep, boarded a certain bus – to Vicoforte!
Although our first trip “home” didn’t start til dusk, we nevertheless began to see towns and villages of Valle d’Aoste, the region surrounding Torino. Once under way, our remarkably dexterous driver drove our huge Greyhound-sized bus around hairpin curves, up and down foot hills, (by day we saw the Alps to the West!), through narrow passageways between ancient moss-covered, stone walls enclosing homes on both sides of the road. The forests alternated with small fields and farms, some terraced on hillsides, some flat. They looked as one might expect those living the Slow Food philosophy of traditional farming methods and sustainable agriculture.
After stops at three other pensiones to deliver a few of our passengers, and nearly two hours of driving later, we wound our way through the town of Mondavi, Then up some hills and into a lovely flat piazza- a treed square in the center of which was a huge pilgrimage church, the Regina Montis Regalis Santuario di Vicoforte,, and around which were old two-story stone connecting buildings. The elliptical dome of the church, built 1672-1750, is the largest of its kind in the world. Some of the surrounding buildings were and are a working monastery, part of which the practical monks converted into a large, attractive cellar restaurant (where we had our evening meals, usually 8-8:30).
Across the square, more similar buildings included a few small shops and – voila! Our Hotel Portici. This part of the structure had served as a hospital but now was attractively converted and renovated into a spare but comfortable hotel. The main charm of it, aside from its antiquity, was a young woman named Chiara, who warmly greeted us at night, stayed up with us until midnight answering our questions, and at 6:30 was cheerily waking us for early morning walks and breakfast. When she slept we never knew! But her constant good humor and obvious competence were undaunted. She and her parents ran the hotel as well as the little bar-café-candy shop down a few doors. This was the site for the diehard after-dinner revelers who had the energy to drop by for a coffee or sweet or something stronger.
One hilarious night, a group of us partook of a tasting a variety of Italian amatos (after-diner herbal digestives- ever heard of Limoncello or San Simone?) under the direction of a crazy, delightful Russian journalist who just happened to be on his way form Albania to Bulgaria but dropped in on his friend, a TM delegate. Many sips and laughs!
Nevertheless, the twice-daily bus rides proved not to be as arduous as the first, since we all were bound for the same destination. And riding through the beautiful serene countryside by morning and evening light framed our intense daytime hours of meetings, sessions, conversations, food lines, crowds at Salone del Gusto, offering a therapeutic contrast of relaxation.. Plus we had the opportunity to unwind together and get to know each other better –in a setting atypical to our farms and restaurants! We saw each other from half asleep in the morning -“Be on the bus by 7:45!”- to exhausted to jovial - all great fun. Vicoforte turned out to be not only the focal point of our accommodations but also it provided new vistas, new experiences, and new friends….an unexpected but welcome aspect of our Terra Madre adventure.
Submitted by Daryl Walker and Bill Dow