Abruzzo

I have been to Abruzzo a couple of times; the first as a child with my mother on a trip to see the National Park, probably the most important in Italy. Given my age I expected to spot some animal along the route in the park, and not seeing any was a big disappointment for me. We passed through Pescasseroli and stopped for lunch at Avezzano. On another occasion I came to Abruzzo as a journalist during the Roller Artistic Skating World Championships held at Roccaraso. I stayed with the cameraman in a local hotel, which also allowed me to see the pleasant surroundings, Sulmona and Civitella Alfedena. I went with the cameraman colleague to Pescara too, to transfer some footage to a local television station.

The opening ceremony of the World Championships offered the chance to discover some aspects of regional folklore, such as dancers in characteristic costume performing around a tall pole with multi-coloured ribbons at its top.