Milan brought them together. That hectic and foggy Milan where so many young people from the South arrive with a suitcase full of dreams and a heart torn between enthusiasm and nostalgia. She from Basilicata, he from Puglia, both with that accent that is never quite lost and that desire to make it that only those who start from afar really know. They had found each other by chance, as happens in big cities. And from there, everything had become natural. When the time came to say "yes," there was no doubt where to do it. Milan might have been their city, the place where they were building their future, but their hearts still beat in the South. And the South welcomed them with all of itself on a very hot July day. Trani Cathedral, with its white stone dazzling under the sun, saw them say their vows. That cathedral overlooking the sea, a perfect symbol of a beauty that endures the
time and distances. Inside was half of Basilicata and half of Apulia, plus a representation
Milanese who wiped his forehead wondering how anyone could get married in 38 degrees in the shade. But Alexander and Barbara also accomplished a in this feat.
The beautiful Villa Ciccorosella, in Palo del Colle, was the scene of the real party. And what a party it was! Friends arrived from all over Italy, relatives reuniting after a long time, children running around everywhere, tables full of people eating, drinking and most of all laughing. The heat didn't give regua, but at some point they all stopped paying attention to it: when you're dancing at ten o'clock at night with your shirt stuck on, the thermometer becomes a detail. Midway through the evening, the bride and groom's brothers took guitars and dedicated a song to the bride and groom. Two songs that contained irony and love for the bride and groom. Those guitars tell more than a thousand speeches: the affection of those who have known you forever, those who have shared bedrooms, quarrels, secrets and now are there, happy to see you happy. The evening went on until late, between wild dances and the last tarantella danced with shoes in hand. There's just the pure joy of being together, of celebrating a love that blossomed far away but found its consecration exactly where it was supposed to: at home. The bride and groom are left with the certainty that only a Southern wedding can give: that no matter where you go, no matter how far away, there is always a place you come back to and where they wait for you. Always.