Green mountains

• 1. The song is about a little girl who spent her youth between green mountains and animals in southern Italy, running without the risk of being hit by some car, in total freedom and connection with nature.
• 2. But one bad day she had to move to northern Italy and had to deal with industrialization, since the north was the first truly industrialized area in Italy.
• 3. The child looked at the sky, but she could no longer see the sun, probably because it was covered by the tall buildings. There were no green mountains because of course there is asphalt on the roads in the city. Furthermore, the line "Quante volte ho mangiato sale" is a Dantesque quote used to describe the difficulties she had to deal with to get used to the new environment (a less literal translation would be "how many times it has been hard to swallow").
• 4. The little girl, now grown up, meets her first great love.
• 5. This boy is probably a fellow countryman from the south, because in his eyes she sees the green mountains where she grew up.
• 6. This stanza confirm they have a similar story. This boy had to move to the north too, probably in search of his fortune, and he had to deal with industrialization and this new reality that is far from what he was used to.
• 7. Industrialization destroyed a little girl's dreams but not the memories of her childhood. These memories find a place in her love, in the eyes of her man, even if actually they will never return and will remain definitely as sweet memories.