The world tour of the Amerigo Vespucci, the historic sailing ship and training ship of the Italian Navy, Ambassador of Made in Italy in the world, stops in Qatar for the first time in its 93-year history. It will stop in Doha from 17 to 22 December, the 30th stop on the Vespucci World Tour, which started from Italy on 1 July 2023.

During its stay in Doha, the Amerigo Vespucci will be flanked by Villaggio Italia, the international exposition of Made in Italy which brings together the “nationals of Italian excellence”, so that the Amerigo Vespucci’s round-the-world trip is a unitary expression of the values of the entire nation and a showcase of Italian excellence and supply chains, a driving force for the economy and for the diffusion of Italian culture.

The initiative “Vespucci World Tour – Villaggio Italia“, strongly desired by the Minister of Defence of the Italian Government Guido Crosetto and to which 11 Ministries adhere, together with the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, combines the traditional training and naval diplomacy of the training ship with the promotion of Made in Italy excellence in the main ports covered by the campaign. This is the sixth appointment with the Villaggio Italia after those in Los Angeles, Tokyo, Darwin, Singapore and Mumbai, held in Qatar with the support of the Italian Embassy in Doha, the Italian Trade Agency and local partners Qatar Tourism, Katara Cultural Village and Old Doha Port.

The Minister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forests of the Italian Government Francesco Lollobrigida, the Undersecretary of State to the Italian Ministry of Defence Matteo Perego di Cremnago , the Italian Ambassador to the State of Qatar Paolo Toschi, the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Italian Navy Admiral Giuseppe Berutti Bergotto, and the CEO of Difesa Servizi Luca Andreoli, the in-house company of the Ministry of Defense that creates and supports all phases of the initiative, are expected at the Villaggio Italia in Doha.

The arrival in Doha of the Vespucci World Tour and the Villaggio Italia is part of the intense bilateral relationship between Italy and Qatar that has strengthened in recent years thanks to constant institutional dialogue. In fact, there were three visits to Italy by the Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad al Thani between 2016 and 2023 preceded, in January 2020, by the State visit to Doha of the President of the Republic while in September 2023 the Prime Minister Meloni went to Doha to meet the Emir. On the occasion of the last State Visit, last October 21, it was the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella himself who announced to the Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani the arrival in Doha of the Vespucci ship, in conjunction with the celebrations of the National Day of Qatar, on December 18, 2024. A tangible sign of the deep bond that binds the two Nations.

As evidence of the growing relationship between the two countries, the growing ties in the fields of politics and diplomacy, economics, security and defense, culture, science, sports and much more.

During the stopover in Doha, the Amerigo Vespucci and the Villaggio Italia will be open to the public free of charge. Prior booking on the website https://tourvespucci.it/en/doha-17-22-december-2024/ it will be possible to go aboard to experience first-hand the charm of the ship defined as “the most beautiful in the world”, guardian of the most ancient naval and seafaring traditions for over ninety years and emblem of the Italian Armed Forces. Always after registration it will also be possible to access free of charge the Villaggio Italia, which in Doha offers a rich artistic, musical and gastronomic program.

The activities proposed by the Villaggio Italia in Doha

Villaggio Italia, with all its exhibitions, will be open to the public every day from 10AM to 11PM (with the exception of Tuesday 17 December when it will open to the public at 5PM after the inaugural ceremony and Sunday 22 December when it will close at 12PM after the unmooring of the ship).

Entrance to Villaggio Italia is free.

On the website you can find more information and reserve your places for the activities scheduled at the Villaggio Italia with limited places: https://tourvespucci.it/en/doha-17-22-december-2024/ 

Culture

Music:

• Every day the Italian Carabinieri band directed by Maestro Massimo Martinelli (in the morning at 11AM – with the exception of December 17 when it will play at 12PM and in the afternoon at 5PM ) will offer visitors extraordinary musical moments.
• The concert “Navigating under the stars” by Qatar Concert Choir & Friends will be held on Tuesday 17 December at 7.30PM
• Wednesday 18 December at 7.30PM the concert “Il Villaggio” by the baritone-tenor David Riccardo, a soloist specialized in classical works who, together with the Once Upon a Time Orchestra, will perform some of the most famous Italian songs and music of all time revisited in a classical-crossover key;
• Saturday 21 December at 7PM the artists of the renowned Fondazione Arena di Verona, which has recently concluded its 2024 international promotional tour in Asia, will take to the stage of the Villaggio Italia and will bring the excellence of its artists to Doha with the World Heritage Italian opera. 

Art: at the Villaggio Italia in Doha there will be, for the first time, an exclusive space dedicated to the Italian artist JAGO (Jacopo Cardillo), a young Italian sculptor  already famous around the world, the first artist to have sent a marble sculpture to the International Space Station, in 2019, on the occasion of the “Beyond” mission of the European Space Agency. In Doha Jago will exhibit the marble work “Family” in which three forearms intertwine and embrace each other in a continuous and fluid movement where each hand holds the other creating a seamless circle that reveals the importance of cohesion and mutual belonging.

And Italian marble, much appreciated in Qatar, is among the excellent protagonists of the Villaggio Italia, with an ad hoc masterclass curated by the ICE Agency, Italian Trade Agency, on Thursday 19 December at 3PM.

At Villaggio Italia in Doha, three works created as part of the research project, developed by the Department of Master of Fine Arts (MFA) of VCUarts Qatar (Doha) in collaboration with Studio Nucleo of Turin, will also be exhibited. It concerns the production of sets of tea tables inspired by the furniture used by nomadic populations who travelled between North Africa and the Middle East. The tables will be made with a special manufacturing technology (3D prints of honeycombs, covered with layers of epoxy resin).

Design: the ‘Italia Geniale’ exhibition dedicated to Italian design will also be present in Doha , created by the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy and the Ministry of Defense in collaboration with ADI Design Museum, which tells the world about the invention, creativity and design capabilities of Made in Italy. Guided tours of the exhibition will also be available every day.

Cinema: at Villaggio Italia it will be possible to attend some film screenings selected in collaboration with the Venice International Film Festival of La Biennale di Venezia:18 and 20 December at 9PM the movie “Comandante ” by E. De Angelis; 19 and 21 December at 9PM the movie “The Lion’s Share” by Baptiste Etchegaray and Giuseppe Bucchi.

The gastronomy

At Villaggio Italia in Doha, many moments will be dedicated to Italian gastronomic excellence, which will be the protagonist with olive oil and the art of pizza , for a journey into the Italian taste and artisan tradition thanks to a program of events promoted by the Italian Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forests that will take place in a dedicated area, “Anima Italia“, which will also host the vegetable garden of Italian excellence, a corner of nature dedicated to typical Italian crops, a tribute to the rich tradition of Mediterranean cuisine and the authentic flavors of Italy.

• Italian olive oil tasting masterclass: every day from 17 to 21 December at 6PM there will be free masterclasses by Italia Olivicola, the National Consortium of Olive Growers (free reservations on the website https://tourvespucci.it/en/ until all places are taken).Masterclass dedicated to table olives: Thursday 19 December at 4:30PM there will be a masterclass curated by Veronafiere dedicated to table olives, Sol d’Oro oils proposed in combination with three different types of bread.”Pizze Stellate” event: Thursday 19 December from 6.30PM to 8.30PM there will be an event in support of the candidacy of Italian cuisine as an intangible heritage of UNESCO, curated by Italia Olivicola which will offer a selection of doughs and processing techniques curated by pizza chefs Michele Pascarella , Michele Circhirillo and Alfonso Saviello with a selection of oils paired with the dishes curated by Chef NatalizioShow cooking: on December 19 and 21 at 6PM it will be possible to attend the show cooking curated by chef Emanuele Natalizio and sous chef Rocco Natalizio

Conferences:

Tuesday 17 December at 5.45PM The Italian press agency ANSA will organize a forum on bilateral relations between Italy and Qatar, which will be attended by institutions and protagonists of the civil world, with a broad overview of the relations between the two Countries, from lifestyle to culture, through sport and disability.

On Saturday 21 December at 11AM , there will be a conference dedicated to sport and disability with the protagonists of the “WoW Project – Wheels on Waves Ruote sulle Onde – Around the World 2023-2025”, the journey of the catamaran “Lo Spirito di Stella“, completely accessible and engaged in a world tour. The “Wheels on Waves – Ruote sulle Onde” project, born from an idea by Andrea Stella, founder and President of the “Lo Spirito di Stella” Association, is promoted by the Italian Ministry of Defense, the Defense General Staff and Difesa Servizi, and is aimed at military personnel and civilians with disabilities who have suffered permanent injuries in the performance of their service, who, regardless of their physical, cognitive or sensorial characteristics, have the opportunity to live a unique sea and sailing experience with the mission of demonstrating that breaking down barriers is possible.

The conference will feature the advisor for international relations of the Italian Ministry for Disability Pier Luigi Zamporlini; Andrea Stella; and some representatives of the Defense Paralympic Sports Group.

Visits on board the Amerigo Vespucci

Visits on board will be available from Wednesday 18 to Saturday 21 December every morning from 10am to 12pm and every afternoon from 3pm to 7pm except for Friday 20 December when they will end at 5pm. 

Visits are free, to access it is possible to book your entrance at the following link https://tourvespucci.it/en/doha-17-22-december-2024/