After the suggestive “El Faro” which stands out behind Piazza Garibaldi, Vincenzo De Luca relaunches with another idea destined to get people talking: a yellow hot air balloon, anchored to the slopes of Vesuvius, in the centre of a bio-park of over 20.000 m² that will be created in Boscoreale.
During the usual Facebook live on Friday, the president of the Campania Region revealed the project for a “beautiful and enormous” botanical park, with woods, gardens, nature trails, a lake and the restoration of a historic building. “There will be a hot air balloon, an element of tourist attraction,” De Luca explained, specifying that from the new regional headquarters – the Lighthouse – it will be possible to admire this unusual “window” on Vesuvius, in a visual dialogue between contemporary architecture and ancient nature.
At first glance, someone might turn up their noses, calling it a new “delicacy” (the playful term of endearment used to identify the governor’s most eccentric ideas). Yet just think about how, over time, other similar initiatives have become true cult places, capable of transforming semi-unknown locations into internationally renowned destinations.
From “chocolate citadels” to open-air museums, creativity – especially if supported by targeted European funding – can generate revenue and jobs where “traditional” tourism struggles to arrive. So let’s welcome these “delicacy”: these are not just eccentricities, but investments to focus on to relaunch peripheral territories.
Speaking to us, several Boscoreale residents enthusiastically commented on the announcement.
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But there was no shortage of the usual haters, those who pontificate from the sofa and stop at criticism – «money wasted on campers and selfies!» – without proposing a concrete alternative. They forget that, often, the Regions are obliged to spend community funds exclusively for tourism, under penalty of restitution: it is therefore better to put them to good use, rather than let them evaporate.
Meanwhile, behind the scenes of this operation, there is also a bit of politics: Boscoreale is the electoral fiefdom of Mario Casillo, Pd group leader in the Region and "majority shareholder" of the party in Campania. With 40.000 preferences in the last regional elections, Casillo is part of the reformist area and supported Stefano Bonaccini at the national congress, together with De Luca. Among lists, coalitions and possible alliances in view of the autumn elections, the hot air balloon will not only be a tourist attraction, but also a symbol of internal cohesion within the Campania centre-left.
And about the third term? During the Facebook live, De Luca admitted that the League's amendment was rejected in the Senate, and that there will be no power games: «We don't have the time or desire to follow this nonsense.", he declared with his usual tone, promising however to work «until the last possible minute» to complete the health care construction and all the works already started.
In short, between hot air balloons, bio-parks and political strategies, Boscoreale is preparing to become one of the new strong points of tourism in Campania. And who knows, in a few years, it might become an unmissable destination for lovers of nature, history and – why not – a breathtaking selfie suspended above Vesuvius.
Comments (2)
The idea of the hot air balloon is very interesting, but I wonder if it will actually bring the desired results. There are already other projects that have not been successful and I would not want this to be another failure.
Yes, that's true. But we need to give these initiatives a chance. Maybe if they were well publicized they could attract tourists and grow the local economy, let's see how it goes.