Unbekanntes Italien

The Romans thought that Monte Viso was the highest mountain in the world. It is not, but at almost 4000 metres, the giant enjoys a special status in Piedmont. It stands so dominant in the southern Alps that you can even see it from Milan Cathedral on a clear day. But the mountain also has great political significance for Italy. That is why Simona Caminada dares to attempt to climb it. On her way, she walks through an area steeped in history and meets people with surprising biographies. There is the woman who wants to teach her a strange language, the man who has made hiking his profession, and a host who, thanks to his Italian talent for improvisation, quickly organizes a concert for the village's young musicians. After revelling in canzoni, Simona Caminada also comes across sad stories: Elena Tron breaks her decades-old silence and tells of a tragedy that occurred during the Second World War.

This stage of the hike takes Simona Caminada and her hiking companion Yuri Basilicò to two regions: Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany. Both are popular holiday destinations. But instead of busy cities like Bologna and Florence, Simona and Yuri are drawn to the hinterland. They pass places that do not correspond to common ideas - but are nevertheless representative of this region. Simona and Yuri follow in Michelangelo's footsteps, explore a gigantic marble quarry and visit a workshop where delicate sculptures are made from stone blocks. Emilia-Romagna has a reputation as a stronghold of the left and prides itself on its modern and hardworking population. Here Simona meets a mayor whose age and biography are unusual for this office, and a busy woman who combines entrepreneurship and social commitment with inventiveness.

Simona Caminada reaches the center of the country. She is at the height of Rome, but not in the capital of Italy, but on the east coast: in Abruzzo. This region is full of overwhelming nature - for better or for worse. Together with her hiking companion Yuri Basilicò, she explores an area with numerous wild animals. Simona also spends the night in a village that was long abandoned and "reclaimed" by nature. A Roman woman has now turned this enchanted place into an Albergo Diffuso, a hotel spread over several buildings and alleys. In 2009, a severe earthquake occurred nearby, claiming a large number of victims. Simona Caminada visits the particularly badly affected community of Onna, a suburb of L'Aquila. The community received reconstruction support from Germany, but the people are still suffering enormously from the consequences.

At the end of their tour of Italy, Simona and her travel companion Yuri arrive in Sicily. The island is full of contrasts: it combines unspoilt nature, the active volcano Etna and idyllic villages. But Italy's poorest region suffers from unemployment, rural exodus and organised crime. Simona and Yuri meet courageous people who are not letting the adverse circumstances get them down: a young mother, for example, who has decided to have a child, bucking the trend of low birth rates in Italy, and who has had to make major compromises as a result. Or the head of an agricultural cooperative in an area that the government has confiscated from the mafia. Not an easy job in one of the driest regions in Italy, where the criminal organisation remains omnipresent. Simona also travels with Yuri to Gangi. Houses there that need renovation cost just one euro, because the village hopes that this will save it from decay.