The Italian anthem and the lowered flag to greet a special day: The Queen of the Seas has resumed her journey after an exciting day in Castellammare di Stabia, the city that 90 years ago saw her dive into the waters of the gulf for the first time.
The Amerigo Vespucci turned 90, a different birthday due to the pandemic. No visits on board, few institutional moments such as the delivery of a plaque by the mayor Gaetano Cimmino, upon his arrival in the port, but certainly the affection and emotions of always.
“We had a wonderful welcome in Castellammare and we have to apologize because we feel the affection of the citizens but in this moment of pandemic we cannot welcome them on board, we hope that everything changes soon”. Said Captain Massimiliano Siragusa, new commander of the Amerigo Vespucci, describing the day in Castellammare di Stabia of the Navy ship that celebrates its 1931th anniversary in the place where it was built in 90.
A party without being able to get on board due to covid, but with great affection: "Seeing the population - explains Siragusa - crowding in front of the barriers makes us appreciate those who come doubly, it would be a great pleasure for us to have guests on board and we feel the feeling of those who receive the embrace. The Vespucci is a symbol of Italy, it makes us recognize ourselves as citizens and we are ambassadors of this abroad too. Perhaps a positive aspect of the pandemic period is that there have not been many campaigns abroad but a presence closer to the 7500 km of Italian coastline, always with emotions, as happened last night with the lowering of the flag in Vico and the tour of the Gulf of Naples. There are social groups of tens of thousands of people who post photos, we have seen many with great enthusiasm that pushes us to keep the ship alive, waiting for when we can return on board with a big party".
This evening the Vespucci left Castellammare at 23pm to sail the sea northwards again: “The next stop – concludes Siragusa – will be Livorno from 25 to 26 September for an event and then we will go to our base port of La Spezia and begin the maintenance break of a few months, hoping that the pandemic will allow us to embrace the people on board again next year”.
Throughout the day, hundreds of people crowded the dock of the Castellammare pier, eyes fixed on the three-masted ship of the Navy, taking photos and selfies to immortalize the moment.
“Proud of this great ship – says a citizen of Castellammare di Stabia – we look at it and feel proud as if we had participated in its construction. But in the end it is like this. In every family from Castellammare there is a member who was on the construction site and participated in its construction”.
The atmosphere at sunset was beautiful, when the Vespucci lit up, little by little, as dusk came and the sky turned red for the sunset. Preceding this emotional moment, the Italian anthem echoed in the silence that suddenly fell over the entire area of the Stabia port. And as the flag was lowered, applause, greetings, and emotions exploded. The joy was renewed every time the Vespucci let us glimpse its three majestic masts and the sails that have sailed the seas of half the world.
“We were preparing for the round the world trip – says a young sailor – but Covid stopped us. We hope to start next year”.
And as night falls it is already time to set off again, the tugboats begin to maneuver, in the background the cranes of the shipyards from which the queen of the seas, the training ship jewel of the Navy, left 90 years ago, on September 22, 1931. And the wind fills the sails for a new voyage around the world.
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