I Am Here – Your Home in the Heart of Basilicata

Experiences, Emotions and Memories to take with you.

By Filomena Benevento

“Io Sono Qui” is not just a tourist rental, but a place of the soul. Here, in Tricarico, in the heart of Basilicata, holidays turn into a slow journey, made up of authentic discoveries, stories to listen to and bonds to mend. My project is based on sustainability, recycling and slow travel, with special attention to the families of the roots: guests who arrive with the desire to rediscover their past, to reconstruct the history of their ancestors, to fill the missing pages of their family album.

A trip down memory lane

They all have a common denominator: the desire to find the country of memories, yellowed photos, stories handed down. And when they arrive, I recognize them immediately. Curious, but uncertain looks. They wonder what they will find, who they will meet, if they will really be able to reconstruct their family puzzle.

First impressions are crucial, both for them and for me. I try to welcome them warmly, to dissolve that initial shyness, to make them feel at home. The tour of my house always ends with a magical moment: the panoramic balcony from which you can admire Tricarico, with its Norman tower and the ancient village. And it is there that I see their faces light up: a moment of silence, then wonder and finally happiness. Because that view is not just a landscape, it is a piece of family history that comes back to life before their eyes.

A tailor-made welcome

Every journey is unique, and so must the welcome. I help my guests find documents, meet distant relatives, enter the houses that once belonged to their grandparents. It is a journey made up of intense emotions: the joy of finding an old photo, the emotion of touching the roots of one’s family, the emotion of shaking hands with a relative who until then was only a name on a family tree.

I remember a 13-year-old boy who woke up at dawn to record videos and photos from my balcony with the drone, to preserve the memory of that moment exactly as his great-great-grandfathers had experienced it. Another guest began looking for his family after his father’s death, finding old photographs and reconstructing his story piece by piece until he met his Italian relatives.

From guests to friends

At the end of their stay, I take a piece of their stories with me, just as they take away a fragment of Tricarico in their hearts. I often hear people say:

“Filomena is fantastic, a true ambassador of Tricarico! She was our translator, guide, photographer and friend.”

And perhaps the secret of my small success is precisely this: to make each guest feel special, to help him live an unforgettable experience, to welcome him with the same warmth with which you welcome a friend back home.

Because in the end, those who arrive here are never just guests. He is someone who starts with a new story to tell and a heart full of emotions.

I am here. To welcome you. To help you find your roots. To make you feel at home.

Find out my reality on the link https://www.instagram.com/iosonoqui_locazioneturistica/.