After the third year that the Italian Cultural Institute of Nairobi has repeated this popular and enjoyable initiative, as part of the Week of Italian Cuisine in the World, by now in Malindi, Watamu and Diani it is no longer a surprise to see a Tuk Tuk illustrated with pictures of tasty Italian dishes or food and wine products, but almost a habit. So much so that in Malindi, for example, we have found drivers of the famous taxis of the Swahili coast who now have their own nicknames and even local customers call them ‘Pizza’, ‘Ravioli’ and ‘Risotto’... and if once upon a time mozzarella was served ‘in carrozza’, today in Kenya you know how much easier it is for them to travel
The ‘Follow the Italian taste’ exhibition is always a success and the drivers are the first to be able to explain what dish they are carrying, and for example what the difference is between spaghetti and tagliatelle.
This year, the travelling exhibition, which is a successful way of bringing Kenyans but also international tourists closer to our food and wine culture, was inaugurated by Ambassador Roberto Natali who, remembering when he used to drive a Vespone 150, wanted to get on a Piaggio Tuk Tuk, start it up, and wander around the car park of the Blue Moon Mall in Watamu. Carrying around an appetising bologna, but also his serene expression, returned for a moment to his twenties. As the Tuk Tuk's façade casually read, a fleeting moment of ‘nostalgia’... and then introducing the meaning of the exhibition and recalling all that a simple photograph turned travelling poster brings with it apart from the evocative image and the mouth watering: culture, tradition, handicrafts, history and geography of a nation, its places, regions and ecosystems. Not forgetting the names of dishes, recipes and products, their correct pronunciation and the protection of their trademarks.