Autumn in Ischia

Ischia is wonderfully calm in the Autumn. After a busy summer, jammed packed with visitors taking advantage of the great weather and sandy beaches, Ischia calms down completely in the autumn and winter months.

With cooler temps and sometimes very rainy weather, islanders find themselves other activities to consume their day....picking olives and making wine :) Yup, autumn in Ischia is olive and wine season!

The grapes are usually harvested for wine making in September - October and the new wine which is legal to drink after one month is called Vino Novello: a semi sweet wine with a slight fizz. October is the time of picking olives and Ischia olives make wonderful, fragrant oil. The damp weather also creates the perfect environment for picking mushrooms and there is a vast forest area on the Mnt Epomeo on which to spend the day in search of the delicious yet well disguised Porcini. Please note, it is wise to go mushroom picking with an islander who has a good knowledge of mushrooms as some varieties are even too poisonous to touch.

So after months of long, dry sunny days, islanders retire to the fire side with some good red wine, taglietelle pasta with porcini mushrooms, crusty bread and roasted chestnuts. Get your green fingers on and experience whats Ischia's earth has to offer.

Contact me for further info on an agroturismo experience in Ischia including harvesting grapes and wine making, mushroom and chestnut picking, and olive picking for jarring and pressing olive oil.

Couldn't resist....

The French film, Villa Amalia - filmed in Ischia

Over 20 movies filmed in Ischia

Producers of internationally successful movies have long been coming to film on the island of Ischia, most frequently in the ancient borgo of Ischia Ponte, where for instance Anthony Minghella shot most of “The Talented Mr Ripley”. In recent years, Ischia's scenery has proven to be a popular backdrop for TV shows such as Italy's version of Top Gear and a few of Bud Spencer's latest productions.

During the last week of June each year Ischia Ponte is the setting for the Ischia Film Festival, an international event dedicated to location cinema - www.ischiafilmfestival.it . In July the Ischia GlobalFest, a celebration of Film and Music, takes place in Lacco Ameno. www.ischiaglobal.com

  

If you're curious to take a look at some of the films which gave Ischia it's brush with fame, try Amazon.com or IBS.it:


1937 - Il Corsaro nero (It.). Amleto Palermi
1937 - Il Dottor Antonio (It.). Enrico Guazzoni
1949 - Campane a martello (It.) Luigi Zampa
1950 - Il Mulatto (It.). Francesco De Robertis
1950 - La Scogliera del peccato (It.). Roberto Bianchi Montero
1952 – The Crimson Pirate (USA). Robert Siodmak - (Burt Lancaster, Eva Bartok)
1953 - Il Mostro dell'isola (It.). Roberto Bianchi Montero
1954 - Lacrime d'amore (It.). Pino Mercanti
1956 - Suor Letizia/Il più grande amore (It.). Mario Camerini
1957 - Vacanze a Ischia (It.-Fr.-RFT). Mario Camerini
1958 - Sissi a Ischia/Scampolo. Alfred Weidenmann
1959 – Purple Noon (Plein soleil) (Fr.). René Clément - (Alain Delon)
1960 - Appuntamento a Ischia (It.). Mario Mattòli
1960 - Morgan il pirata (It.). Primo Zeglio
1962 - Diciottenni al sole (It.). Camillo Mastrocinque
1963 - Cleopatra (USA). Joseph L. Mankiewicz - (Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton)
1966 - After the Fox (It.-USA-GB). Vittorio De Sica - (Peter Sellers, Britt Ekland)1966 - Ischia operazione amore (It.). Vittorio Sala 
1972 – Avanti (USA). Billy Wilder - (Jack Lemmon, Juliet Mills)
1976 - La Professoressa di scienze naturali (It.). Michele Massimo Tarantini
1977 - La Vergine, il Toro e il Capricorno (It.). Luciano Martino
1985 - Una tenera follia (It.). Ninì Grassia
1998 - Il Commissario Raimondi (TV). Paolo Costella
1999 - Cient'anne (It.). Ninì Grassia
1999 - The Talented Mr. Ripley (USA). Anthony Minghella - (Matt Damon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law)
2001 - Se lo sai sono guai (It.). Michele M. Tarantin
2003 – Suddenly Paradise (It.) Leonardo Pieraccioni
2005 - Un estate al mare
2008 - Villa Amalia
2009 - I delitti del cuoco (TV)

Ischia Poetry Retreat with well-known Canadian poet, Lorna Crozier

Ischia Poetry Workshop: May 3-7th , 2012

Lorna Crozier is one of Canada's most beloved and talented poets, and a wonderful teacher. She is a recent recipient of the Order of Canada and is a recognized Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. 

THE ISCHIA WORKSHOP: A Note From Lorna
This three-day workshop in the beautiful setting of Ischia will be all about inspiration. We’ll get together, soak up the sun and let the sounds of the ocean seduce us into the music of poetry. I’ll be your guide and facilitator, but the most important part of such a workshop will be what we share with one another. Creativity spawns creativity. My goal is to help you find your stories and to propel you into writing new work, poetry that matters to you and to other people. I’ll be giving you writing prompts, some to generate in-class writing and some for you to take away and work on during the day. As well, I’ll spend a couple of hours every day discussing issues of craft, such things as diction, meter, line structure, and form. Though you’ll be working hard, we’ll make sure there’s time to walk the beach, taste the local cuisine and renew yourself. When you leave the island to return home, you will have poems in your pocket, ones you can work on over the next several weeks. I can’t wait to leave my island (Vancouver Island) for this one and to work and play with you.
Bring pen and paper, a few favourite poetry books, and your laptop, if you have one

Cost of the Workshop: $425 CAD (325 Euros)

For registration and for information about the practical side of the retreat, please contact Lynette Shultz directly at lshultz@ualberta.ca

The workshop will be taking place in and around Forio on the Colella Family premises. Accommodation is available from 55euro pp/day including a light breakfast and dinner. Please contact Giuseppe for bookings: info@larotondasulmare.com or info@hotelpoggiodelsole.com 

Tanning Secrets of the Med

Ever wondered how the beach goers of the Med turn that golden bronzed colour? It not only has something to do with the sun and mild UV (apart from August where you may feel the need the for higher spf  protection).

Husk of Walnut Oil aka Olio Mallo di Noce.
The husk is the fleshy part produced by the  plant which is covering the fruit itself. The nuts we commonly buy at the supermarket are not quite how you would find them on the trees - they have been stripped from the husk and dried, roasted or salted. The true walnut (or endocarp) is in fact wrapped by a layer pulposus, the husk (or mesocarp), in turn covered by a peel (or exocarp).

The walnut is traditionally used as a colouring and flavouring in the production of liqueurs (walnut liqueur). Interesting however are the health benefits stemming from this natural colourant and the structures of the oils. The oil extracted from the husk has been traditionally used in protecting the skin from the sun as well as to promote tanning. The extent to which the oil is able to perform these functions relies on the natural compounds naphthoquinones (Vitamin K compound) and juglone (aromatic compound present in naphthoquinones) found present in the cells which make up the husk. When applied these substances react with the keratin present in hair and epidermis of the skin, creating a complex brown pigmentation, explaining the use of walnut shells as a hair dye for red-brown reflections.

Immediately after application your skin will begin to look tanned purely due to the pigmenting effects of the oil properties. Once in the presence of ultraviolet radiation, the chemical complex naphthoquinone - keratin  acts as selective filter, helping  to shield the skin from the UVB rays as well as accelerating the melanogenesis (production of melanin) induced by UVA rays. For this reason the walnut oil is extensively used in the formulation of suncare products.

The juglone present in the walnut husk and leaves of the tree is equipped with allelopathic properties (a biological phenomenon by which an organism produces one or more biochemicals that influence the growth, survival, and reproduction of other organisms - wikipedia), and thus is able to condition the growth and development of other living organisms; in particular, the juglone prevents the growth of the other botanical species with which it comes into contact, for instance: juglone is also able to inhibit fungal growth as well as exhibit antibacterial properties. And so in addition to its pigmenting properties, the walnut husks are recognized as an antiseptic, vermifuge and keratinizing.

So now you know!

My recommendation: Kodrap Olio al mallo di noce - approx. 4euro a bottle in stores.

Best Beaches

Ischia Island boasts some of the most beautiful sandy beaches in the Italy. Clean, white, soft sand, calm sea waters, fresh water with temps ranging between 21 and 24 degrees celcius (70 farenheit). Most bays are secluded and often you can scout around for the smaller, more private ones if you are looking to get away from the crowds. Beaches are public, however there are a few spots where locals rent parts of the beach and hire out lounge chairs and umbrellas (prices start at 10euro for the day). Its well worth it if you plan to spend the day as there are ablutions provided such as showers, toilets and changing cubicles, and your umbrella will provide some much needed shade. By law, each beach on the island offers public sections where the beach is free for all.

First off, we have the beaches of Forio. The west coast beaches begin filling up around 10am so I recommend heading down around 9.30 to grab your chairs and umbrellas. The beach of Chiaia is very popular with families and parents of small children. The bay is protected by rocky barriers making the shoreline even calmer. The shoreline is rather shallow and you'll find women and kids sitting on the edge in the lapping waters. There are restaurants lining the boardwalk and takeaway kiosks on either end selling wonderfully refreshing granita (try the famous limone - made with freshly squeezed lemons) and paninis. Further on towards the cliff-side of the bay lies the beach of San Francesco (named so after the Saint Francesco of whose church sits perched up on the hillside overlooking the bay). Quaint and much quieter than the Chiaia, San Francesco bay is lined with many 4 to 5 star hotels and resorts. The snorkeling is wonderful along the cliff side.

Note: August is peak season and the national summer holidays. I would recommend working around this time when planning your visit to Ischia to avoid the crowds and the intense heat.

Submissions open for Ischia Film Festival 2012

If you are the owner/producer/writer/actor of an independent film or short-film, documentary or music video, and would like to have your shot at being considered in this years Ischia Film Festival, submit your entry to ischiafilmfestival.it and fill in the online form.

Entries close 30 April 2012. Please don't hesitate to contact me for assistance.

There's something in the water...

Ischia is well-known for it's hot springs, mineral mud and thermal waters. But one thing not known to many - let's call it a well kept secret amongst the locals - is Nitrodi, more specifically La Sorgente di Nitrodi.

In the heart of Buonapane (good bread) a town in the hills of the southern part of the island, the healing water spring of Nitrodi was once considered sacred by Apollo and the nymphs of "Nitrodes".

Brief History (taken from www.fonteninfenitrodi.com)

In 1759 farmers discovered a series of votive images while they were digging trenches for the vines. These stones which are of great importance for the “bathing” history of the Island of Ischia are now at the National Museum of Naples. The twelve reliefs dedicated to Nitrodi’s Nymphs cover a period that went from the 1st century BC to the 3rd century AD, and they depict just a few of the many people of different social classes that visited the spring. One of the first women to be healed was Argenna, former slave of Poppea Augusta, who dedicated a votive relief to Apollo and the Nymphs hanging it in the sacred woods.

In the 1st century AD the doctor called Menippo “Menippos iatròs upalpinos” arrived in Nitrodi from Northern Italy. He was followed by two other doctors together with their assistants and students: “Aur (elius) Monnus” and “Num (erius) Fabius”.

A good friend of mine, once a Napoletano who now teaches history in New York, has extensive knowledge about the spring and it's healing powers. From his research he discovered that the Roman soldiers knew something about the powers of the Nitrodi spring and used to visit Ischia regularly after battle to heal their woundss. The healing power of Nitrodi not only assists mending of the skin but has extreme benefits from consumption. It has been known that to drink a glass of spring water a day can help as a diurectic, improve kidney functions, breaks down uric acid, assists in treatment of arthritis, treatment or improvement of gastritis and other gastric problems, helps reduce hypochloridia (condition of lower stomach acid causing indigestion, IBS), an optimal co-adjuvant in treating stomach ulcers, and possesses healing qualities at a cutaneous level: mucous membrane, heals varicose ulcers, wounds, abbrassions, burns, acne, and leaves your skin clean, soft and luminous.

These theraputic properties of the Nitrodi water have been recognised by the Department of Health in Act 3509 since 09 October 2003.

The park itself is owned by the Municiple town of Barano and entrance during operating hours will cost you around 15 - 18euro. These entrance fees allow the upkeep and maintenance of the park, however, by law, the water is not allowed to be kept from the public out of operating hours, and so, you may visit Nitrodi early in the morning or late in the evening if you wish to enjoy the benefits of the water at no cost from the large storm water pipe through which the water is redirected after closing. The water is cold so I would suggest making the payment and visiting on a sunny day, making use of the facilities (which are very basic) and sun beds, change rooms and toilets. The park is divided up into sections so for instance if you are visiting for medical reasons, there are more private cubicles available but I recommend to get there early. The park is open from 10.30am in May and October and from 09.00am from June to September. The park is closed for the months of November through to April, but as I mentioned before, the water is released for your continued use. If you are just visiting out of curiousity, make sure to take with an empty water bottle as there is a fountain tap at the entrance for public to fill up on the spring's drinking water for free. The water does have an acquired taste and can be quite heavy on a first-timer but the benefits are well worth the endurement.

Leave me a comment if you have any other questions?

Thermal Spa Resorts

Ischia is a volcanic island making it world renowned for it's thermal spa parks and natural hot

springs. Tiny gas pockets and springs may be found all over the island. Some of those fortunate enough to have inherited land rich in thermal activity from their ancestors capitalized on the opportunity by creating thermal spa parks. Negombo Spa and Giardini (gardens) Poseidon are two of the most popular. Entrance starts at 33euro per person for a full day and from 23 euro per person for a half day (from 13h.00). All parks generally close at 19h00 and are closed for the winter months of November through April, during which you will find both accomodation and inhouse spa treatment available at the Hotel Villa Sorriso.

The thermal parks offer a number of different pools at varying temperatures: Turkish baths, Saunas, Japanese pools, Jacuzzi baths, Jet stream massagers and so on. Each of the above mentioned parks also offer private beach facilities as well as the use of sun bed deck chairs. Towels and robes are available for hire but if you wish you may bring your own. Remember to take along some flipflops or slippers. The parks are also rather relaxed about guests bringing in their own food and drinks so if you can make it to the supermarket just before and take along some water and refreshments (its important to keep hydrated in the heat) and some snacks, it might be worth your while, however, there are refreshment kiosks in the park. The canteen serves up hot pasta dishes, salads, fruit platters, and seafood or meat dishes in a self-service/buffet style. If you can afford to splash out, I highly recommend the restaurant or sushi bar in Negombo. For more information on other thermal parks on the island, please see the Thermal Spa Parks page.

If you would like to experience Ischia's thermal waters in their most natural state then Sorgeto is the way to go. Sorgeto, derived from sorgento meaning spring, is Ischia's public thermal bath. Situated in a cove in the sea water of the Bay of Sorgeto, the springs offer timeout to locals and foreigners alike. At any time of day or night these springs are available for public use and enjoyment and is free of charge access. There are however 230 stairs to be tackled before reaching the springs (coming up, I recommend you take it slowly and stop at the view points to catch your breath and take in the scenery). During the day is a great time to go to immerse yourself in the culture of the Ischitani people. But in the evenings, under the stars, Ischia reveals an indescribable beauty. Note: If visiting Sorgeto, I would recommend going when the sea is at its calmest as it is easier to relax in the water and the temperature of the rock pools are maintained (closer to the cove wall can reach over 60 degrees celsius, and further out the temperatures cool slightly by the sea water). If going at night, take some candles or a torch just to be sure you don't stand in any scorching hot pools.