(Iron Mountain - November 06, 2018) - In September of
2016, Iron Mountain and Sassoferrato, Italy adopted each other as "sister
cities."
Until recently, the only contact between the two
sisters had been written and on the internet.
That all changed on October
28th, when Mayor Dale Alessandrini and Mayor Ugo Pesciarelli shook hands for the
first time on the streets of Rome, Italy.
While planning a family trip
to Italy, Mayor Alessandrini decided to contact Mayor Pesciarelli in hopes of
setting up a meeting. Mayor Pesciarelli enthusiastically accepted Mayor
Alessandrini's proposal, and the two were able to set up a meeting midway
between their two locations, in Rome. Mayor Alessandrini said he had a two hour
train ride, while Mayor Pesciarelli had a similar drive. The two are pictured
above in front of Palazzo del Quirinale, which is the Italian equivalent of our
White House.
Mayor Alessandrini said that they had originally
planned about a two hour meeting, but that it actually extended to over four
hours, as Mayor Pesciarelli and his party gave him and his party a guided tour
of the ancient city.
Mayor Alessandrini said they spoke of many things,
including closer ties, cultural exchanges and tourism. But most notable was
Mayor Pesciarelli's desire to return the courtesy by visiting Iron Mountain.
Prior to the trip, Mayor
Alessandrini had downloaded a "translator" app, expecting language issues.
However, one member of Mayor Pesciarelli's party spoke fluent English, and the
Mayor himself is able to speak broken English.
No timetable has been set for
Mayor Pesciarelli's visit. Unlike here, in Sassoferrato, the Mayor actually
handles the day-to-day operations of the city government.
Mayor Alessandrini reported on
his trip to the City Council at its regular meeting on Monday evening. The
meeting was conducted at no cost to the taxpayers of Iron Mountain.

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