Mateo Sanchez Luna and his wife Micaela Ailin Blanco have started a research thanks to Italea Piemonte – Radici Piemontesi ETS to start a genealogical research and, in recent days, they have been welcomed in the town hall by Mayor Gasco

Mateo Sanchez Luna and his wife Micaela Ailin Blanco, originally from Buenos Aires (Argentina), took advantage of their honeymoon in Europe to visit the places of origin of Mateo’s great-great-grandfather, Domenico Giuseppe Basso, born in Piedmont and later emigrated to Argentina.

The reconstruction of this path in search of roots began at the end of 2024, when Mateo turned to Italea Piemonte – Radici Piemontesi ETS to start a genealogical research. After an initial remote interview and the exchange of some letters and photographs of the time – kept by Mateo as real family relics – Marco Bernardi, genealogist and local history enthusiast, carried out archival research and reconstructed the family tree, also identifying some family ties that had emigrated in turn to central France.

During the morning, the couple visited the places in Mondovì mentioned in the letters preserved, and then went to Vicoforte in the afternoon, where they were welcomed by the mayor Gian Piero Gasco and the staff of the registry office. At the end of their itinerary to discover their family roots, they visited the Sanctuary of Vicoforte, whose beauty and majesty aroused great emotion and amazement in them.

Italea Piemonte – Radici Piemontesi ETS, based in Turin, was founded in 2023 as part of the 2024 Year of Roots project, promoted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with the aim of building a tourist offer dedicated to “roots travellers”, i.e. the more than six million Piedmontese of origin residing abroad. The cooperative is committed to taking care of every aspect of the travel experience in Italy, offering personalized services. Equal attention is paid to local communities, through events, meetings and workshops aimed at strengthening hospitality and strengthening ties with Piedmontese communities abroad, enhancing territories and villages through respectful, sustainable and seasonally adjusted tourism. To this end, Italea Piemonte makes use of the collaboration of designers, tour operators, researchers, guides, genealogists, tour operators active throughout the region, as well as institutional, public and private partners.