Strengthening the partnership between San Marino and Tuscany on spiritual tourism, while extending cooperation to historical re-enactments and other cultural initiatives. That was the goal of the operational summit held on Saturday, 29 August, in La Verna, aimed at following up on the memorandum of understanding signed last 3 June concerning the promotion of spiritual tourism and the tradition of the nativity scene.
Taking part in the talks were representatives of the Secretariat of State for Tourism, led by Alan Gasperoni, and the leadership of the National Nativity Scene Association (Associazione Nazionale dei Presepi), coordinated by Fabrizio Mandorlini. Also present were mayors and delegates from nine Tuscan municipalities in the provinces of Florence, Pisa and Arezzo, as well as, for San Marino, Elena Gasperoni, Secretary of the Castle Council of Montegiardino.
“The meeting sought primarily to give fresh momentum to the goals of the memorandum of understanding, while also exploring the possibility of broadening the scope of territorial cooperation,” the Secretariat of State explained.
The project could indeed extend beyond religious tourism and the nativity-scene tradition. Among the ideas discussed were the joint promotion of historical re-enactments and the tradition of the tourist train.
Also on the table was the possibility of involving the Tuscan municipalities in the The Lovely Places territorial promotion project, following the path already taken with the areas of Bassa Romagna-Toscana.
Finally, the summit led to a proposal to establish a permanent working group, which could be based either at the Secretariat of State for Tourism or at the San Marino Colony in La Verna (Colonia Sammarinese della Verna). The aim is to ensure continuity in the collaboration and to develop new joint initiatives dedicated to spiritual tourism and the preservation of the nativity-scene tradition.
