On Thursday, 4th December 2014 at 6:00pm at The Istituto Italiano di Cultura, the Travel Journal of 24-year old Valerio Daniel de Simoni was presented; a document both exhilarating and dramatic, private and at the same time shared, reporting his experience of a nine-month long exploit which excited thousands of people on two continents. In 2011, accompanied by two friends, Valerio broke the world record for travel on small four-wheeled vehicles (an achievement celebrated in the Guinness World Records, 2013). But his journey was above all one of initiation into the heart of the World.
With his Quad Squad Expedition, Valerio crossed Europe and Africa in arder to gather delightful images, strong feelings and a great deal of funds for humanitarian causes. Valerio is the young representative of a possibly better world who passionately dialogues in two languages, with all the means at his disposal, with every person of good will, from Sydney, where he was born, to Lilongwe, the city where he met his death.
The book was presented by Dr Gino Moliterno (ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences), Anna Maria Dell'Oso (author), George Alexander (author) and Vittoria Pasquini, Valerio's mother and founder of the Valerio De Simoni Association
The diary was a finalist for the Pieve Saverio Tutina Prize in 2013.
Photos from the Event
