I met Milagros Costabel!
She is truly a special and charismatic young woman, full of energy and good humor.
Our meeting took place in Milan in March, a day full of clouds and rain.
But before starting my story of the meeting, I want to take a few steps back, to 2021 when Milagros sent an email to Flight Crew and Jana, our administrator, forwarded it to me.
She had written a beautiful letter that I then immediately published on Flight Crew, where she told us how she had become a fan of Il Volo and what their music had meant to her.
For those who have not read that post, I will report it here.
So Milagros got into Harvard, very impressive, kudos to her.
But let’s get to the present day.
About a month ago, towards the end of February, Milagros sent another email to Flight Crew for me, here’s what she wrote:
“Hi there! I hope you are well and excited for Il Volo’s US tour!
I don’t think you’ll remember me—I only talk to Jana regularly—but a while ago, 3 years ago I think, I wrote to you to tell you my story with Il Volo, how listening to one of their songs inspired me to try to change my life and I ended up leaving Uruguay, my home country, and getting into Harvard on a full scholarship. Time flies…and I’m about to graduate! (writing this seems a bit crazy to me)
I’ve done a lot of things over the years; I traveled to 14 countries with my guide dog, giving talks around the world, advocating for disability at the United Nations in New York… and obviously well, now
I’m about to graduate and the truth is I feel that none of this would have happened if not for that second of inspiration at a time that – no joke – was one of the darkest of my life.
I decided to buy a ticket to go and see them in Boston as a graduation present for myself…and the meet and greet! I saved for years for this so I’m very excited but obviously I’m also nervous because I’m afraid that everything will go wrong, that it will only be 5 seconds, a photo and that’s it… and well, as I’m blind at the end of the day the photo doesn’t matter so much to me, I kind of feel like I’m coming full circle and thanking all the things that brought me here today and this is my way of doing it with them even though of course they would not care at all.
I just wanted to write to share this with you all- I continue to read the site very often, I love it because you always post translations of the interviews and since I can’t see subtitles it’s very useful to me! Thank you for everything you do.
Best,
Mili.”
I immediately got in touch with Mili and she told me that she was thinking of coming to Italy for about ten days before the Boston concert and exactly that she was thinking of coming to Milan. What a nice surprise, Milan is an hour away by train from Brescia and so we agreed to meet in person in Milan, truly an unmissable opportunity!
So on the afternoon of Saturday, March 15, my husband and I took the train to Milan, we had agreed to meet in Piazza Duomo and exactly in front of a toy store.
Unfortunately the weather, which a week before had been splendid and warm, from the day before the meeting had become cold and rainy, but it didn’t matter.
Then there was the problem of the language, Milagros speaks Spanish and English, I speak Italian and a little English, but even that wasn’t an obstacle.
After a few minutes of visual search, the Piazza Duomo, despite the weather, was full of people, we knew that Mili had her trusty guide dog Indio with her, and finally I saw her, she was right on the other side of the intersection.
After greetings, we immediately felt in tune, she is truly a sunny girl, always smiling.
I thought that someone would accompany her to Piazza Duomo, but no, she was alone with her dog and she confided in me that she always travels alone with Indio. This was her first time in Italy and she came to Milan which is a chaotic city due to traffic and the amount of people.
While we were walking around Piazza Duomo she told me that she will graduate in May, and the gift she gave herself for her graduation was precisely the Il Volo concert.
She told me about her constant travels, she has been to 14 countries, to give conferences on disabilities, in fact I think that maybe Italy was the 15th country she visited.
As we crossed Piazza Duomo on our way to Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II she told me that the night before she had been to Navigli, a characteristic place in Milan, full of lively youth life during the evenings, in short certainly not a calm place and she liked it a lot. This place, Navigli, was also featured in the video of Il Volo di Musica Che Resta.
So, chatting pleasantly, we crossed the Gallery and I even had her step on the famous “bull’s balls” to wish her luck.
Milagros is on Facebook and Instagram and if you Google: MILAGROS COSTABEL, you will see how many interviews she has given to prestigious newspapers that have covered her and her lifestyle, such as: BBC, CNN, IL Corriere della Sera, El Observador, Model View Culture etc.
And so we arrived on the other side of the Galleria to take a picture in front of the Teatro La Scala.
Milagros immediately spoke of Piero about his dream of singing an entire opera, perhaps at La Scala!
I think I also understood that her favorite of the three is Piero!
We would have walked to the Castello di Milano if the weather had been more stable, but instead we walked back through the Galleria and then went to a coffee bar and sat down to talk comfortably.
Mili told us about her family, about her mother who had called her the night before worried to know what country she was in. As a mother I understand these worries very well, but I must say that Milagros gave me the feeling of being a very strong and self-confident young woman.
She told me that she was born really small, only 750 grams (1.65 lbs.) and they had to give her oxygen which however took away her sight, so at two and a half months she was already blind.
Her family currently consists of her father, mother, her and a 14-year-old brother.
While we sipped our hot chocolate with cream, she told me that she saved up to be able to buy the ticket for the Il Volo concert in Boston and also the Meet & Greet, but everyone told her that the time at the M&G is very short while her, instead, would like to ask them questions and maybe write about this experience.
Of course we at Flight Crew have passed Mili’s story forward, so that the guys would know about it. Who knows if she will get a few minutes of Piero, Gianluca and Ignazio at her disposal, we will know soon because the Boston concert is coming up.
Of course, we at Flight Crew are waiting for the review of the concert dear Milagros and the impression that our dear guys made on you.
The afternoon hours passed very pleasantly and we returned home, bidding a fond farewell to Milagros.
For my part I must say that I met a very determined young woman, not at all intimidated by life’s events, a strong and courageous woman who will soon graduate.
Let’s cross our fingers that her dream of being able to speak with Il Volo can come true, we wish it with all our hearts Milagros, on the other hand, as the meaning of your name shows, miracles always happen.
A big hug from me and my husband, proud to have made your acquaintance, and of course from all Flight Crew!! ❤️
Daniela 🤗❤️
Come in and share the love of life, friends and Il Volo!
