Strolling through Perugia, Italy, is like visiting a living museum. The already very long history of this city, which surprises us at every corner, serves as the basis for Perugia's candidacy for European Capital of Culture in 2019, but also for a broader plan of economic and social development, which this distinction will allow to be placed in march.
Perugia, whose cultural heritage begins in the Etruscans (pre-Rome) and spans the history of Western civilization, has put forward a candidacy that goes beyond its borders and will include neighboring Assisi, where Saint Francis of Assisi was born, and several localities in the region. of Umbria, in which it is inserted.
It was with the aim of making known the potential of its proposal that the «Perugiasisi2019» foundation, which coordinates the application, invited journalists from several European countries, including the Sul Informação, visiting Perugia and some of its most emblematic places.
Looking at the millenary and imposing walls of most buildings in the historic center of Perugia, it is easy to see that this city is already, in some way, a capital of culture.
And it's not just because of its vast heritage, but also because of the creative industries it already houses, such as the artistic glassworks of the Moretti Caselli family, which has been dedicated to the production of stained glass for four generations, or the weaving workshop of Judith Brozzetti, which combines the aspects of artisanal production with that of a museum pole.
The decision of which Italian city will become the Capital of Culture in 2019, and will join the Bulgarian Plovdiv, will be known soon. In addition to Perugia, the cities of Cagliari, Siena, Ravenna, Lecce and Matera are part of the final selection.
If it wins, Perugia will invest a total of 125 million euros in initiatives and infrastructure. Part of this money will be used to promote culture, namely in the construction of a Central Library, in a historic building, thinking of the approximately 150 thousand inhabitants of Perugia and the close to 30 thousand university students who study there, in four different academies: the University of Perugia, the University for Foreigners, the Academy of Fine Arts and the Conservatory of Music.
But there will also be investment in the economy and social development, a premise of the European Capitals of Culture, through the restoration of the old Perugia prison and its transformation into a center dedicated to creative industries and the rehabilitation of the new market.
The strengths of this candidacy were disclosed last week by the «Perugiasissi2019» foundation, in a session attended by the mayors of Perugia and Assisi and the president of the Umbria region.
Photos: Hugo Rodrigues/Sul Informação; Pedro Duarte and Sónia Rosa/RUA FM
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