Matera and Tétouan: the Mediterranean up close
Some meetings are mainly about understanding each other, even when you are far apart, and realizing you are not as distant as you thought.
The first official meeting between Matera and Tétouan, held on Friday, December 12 and Saturday, December 13, started from exactly this awareness: what does it truly mean to be Mediterranean Capitals of Culture and Dialogue in 2026?
In Tétouan, together the delegation from the Municipality of Matera, we experienced two intense days, full of institutional meetings, visits, and conversations that continued beyond the official spaces. The Medina, the Kasbah, the archaeological site of Tamouda, the museums: diverse places, yet connected by the same sense of historical and cultural layering, a history that does not stand still but continues to live and evolve in the present.
It is perhaps here that Matera and Tétouan recognized each other the most.
Two different cities, yet united by a long history of exchanges, cultural contamination, and relationships across Mediterranean cultures and shores. Matera from the inland territories, Tétouan with the sea just a few steps away and a historic role as a bridge between worlds: two different ways of inhabiting the same cultural space.
During the visit, there was also time for exchanges with the Italian cultural institutions present in Morocco, such as the Italian Cultural Institute in Rabat, and with those who animate Tétouan's cultural and creative scene every day. These were concrete encounters, helping to understand the kind of path that can truly emerge from this dialogue and the relationships that can be nurtured over time.
For Matera, this first meeting marks an important step in the journey toward 2026.
It is not a countdown to an event, but the start of a process that requires time, trust, and relationships built step by step. This is the guiding idea behind Matera as Mediterranean Capital of Culture and Dialogue: to think of the Mediterranean not as a line on a map, but as a human space to inhabit together.
The joint journey between the two cities has begun.
And it's the most important takeaway is the feeling that 2026 will not be an endpoint, but a milestone in a story that is worth continuing to build.
