Page 32 - AT

A32 FEATURE
Thursday 4 OcTOber 2018

On tiny Linosa, it's easy to adopt island's relaxed rhythms

By FRANCES D'EMILIO can be rented by the day.
Associated Press The electric "bici" are a
LINOSA ISLAND, Italy (AP) big hit as well with Linos-
— There are no hotels, but ani, whose cars are easily
islanders open up their sim- recognizable because the
ple, gaily painted homes salty sea air corrodes the
to those seeking relaxed paint.
rhythms. Come nightfall in late sum-
No banks either, but there's mer or early fall, on the
not a lot money can buy northerly side of the island
here. The sole souvenir shop you can hear the cries of
has a few knickknacks. thousands in a fascinat-
Costs are modest for meals ing feathered colony of
made from local ingredi- greater shearwater birds.
ents — lentils, eggplant, The bird is known as berta
peppers perhaps, plus the maggiore in Italian.
catch of the day from the A large group of them fly
emerald-hued, pristine wa- up and over the Mediter-
ters surrounding tiny Linosa ranean from Libya and Al-
island. geria, their cheek pouches
But stunning natural beauty full of fish for young chicks
is free and abundant on which have hatched in
this verdant paradise that In this photo taken on Sunday, Sept. 9, 2018 a woman swims in a cove of pristine water surround- crannies left by lava rocks
rises up in the form of an ed by volcanic rock formations on the island of Linosa, some 167 km (103.5 miles) south of Sicily, near the seaside.
extinct volcano from the southern Italy. After Linosa's first modern
Mediterranean seabed. Associated Press settlement was established,
Of the many splendid small lagie Archipelago, closer so. In September, there wine bar, which, on a late in 1845, with 30 hardy souls,
Italian islands that dot the the islanders would eat the
Mediterranean waters near to northern Africa than to were some 20 of us, several summer Saturday night, birds' eggs, rich in protein.
Sicily.
of us solitary travelers. With closed up shop before mid-
Sicily, only Linosa had elud- Now the birds' evening ritu-
ed me, vacation after va- This year, in the waning the exception of a French night. als help feed the island's
weeks of summer, I came, couple and myself, all were Ramirez recalled a couple
cation, perhaps because it economic mainstay, tour-
takes some determination accounting by my mere Italians. who lodged by him recent- ism.
presence for about 5 per-
Those numbers compare ly telling him, "'Linosa's not
to get here. Unlike some Giovanni Grana passion-
other islands, like Pantelle- cent of sojourners those to a year-round resident for us, it's too tranquil.'" ately shares with a hand-
population of about 300 "Here you come to relax,
days on Linosa.
ria, where Italian VIPs keep ful of tourists on his plain
summer homes, or Lampe- We swam or snorkeled in Linosani, as the locals call go to the sea, maybe have wooden motorboat the
themselves. In the sole an 'aperitivo' in the eve-
coves cradled by dramati-
dusa, known for lively night- details he's learned about
life, there are no flights from cally dark, jagged lava town, tidy streets are lined ning," Ramirez said. "There's shearwater flocks habits
no disco."
rocks, climbed volcanic with houses in hues of fi-
the Italian peninsula, no air- from his nightly observa-
port. craters and watched sun- ery ochre trimmed with or- On maps, Linosa resembles tions. He makes the facts of
sets near the black-sand ange, robin-blue highlight a roundish speck in the sea.
To enjoy Linosa's charms, bird life sound like poetry.
either you take a long ride beach where caretta by white, or sea green with One can stroll around the "My aim is to make the tour-
entire island, whose coastal
caretta loggerhead turtles doors framed in red.
by ferry, or, if waters are ists fall in love with the is-
calm, an infrequent hydro- waddle ashore each year In early morning — after- perimeter measures 11 kilo- land," said Grana.
noon temperatures in one meters (under 7 miles), in a
to lay their eggs.
foil from the nondescript For a reasonable fee
Sicilian port town of Porto On any given day during of Italy's hottest places can few hours. (about 25 euros, or $29), he
Only residents can bring
"high" season in July and climb into the 90s in Fahren-
Empedocle. Or you make takes visitors out to sea just
a shorter sea journey from August, there are at most heit (in the low to mid 30s cars on the island during before sunset to witness an
about 50 holiday-goers in Celsius) and feel like 115 summer, but motor scoot-
Lampedusa, the only other amazing spectacle.q
inhabited island in the Pe- who spend a few days or or higher — Linosani come ers and motorized bikes
out to sweep the tiled side-
walks and water potted
plants, including hibiscus
that grow as tall as trees.
With the cool of the eve-
ning, Linosani emerge
again, parking kitchen
chairs outside homes to
chat with neighbors. After
a couple of strolls in the few
streets, visitors can befriend
much of Linosa's popula-
tion.
"After a few days, you be-
come islanders, too," said
Alberto Ramirez, who runs
one of the two B&Bs on the In this photo taken on Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2018, a cat sits on a
In this photo taken on Monday, Sept. 10, 2018, a resident walks island and whose family flower pot, bottom right, along painted steps in the town of Li-
along a main street in the town of Linosa, on the island of Li- has lived here for six gen- nosa, on the island of Linosa, some 167 km (103.5 miles) south of
nosa, some 167 km (103.5 miles) south of Sicily, southern Italy. erations. Sicily, southern Italy.
Associated Press Linosa's only "night spot" is a Associated Press