It’s Sunday morning, just after seven. It’s raining cats and dogs in Rome, a typical summer shower after months of drought. Nothing better than waking up like this while I can still feel the sun that seems to have gotten under my skin, and find the grains of sand still in my hair. Could this really be the end of summer? Mariona, my Spanish friend who has been living in the Netherlands for six years now – we met in 2014 during the very first week of our master’s studies in Amsterdam – jumps out of bed, throws some last things in her suitcase and then has to leave. On her way to the airport, where her plane to Eindhoven will depart in a few hours. For me, this Sunday will be all about tidying up, doing groceries to refill the empty fridge and doing the laundry. A laundry of mainly bikinis, because that was my standard outfit this past week.
On Tuesday morning we booked a hotel, and on Wednesday morning we jumped on the train. In Naples, where we had our train to, they would probably be able to tell us how to get to the island from there
We spent the last days of August on Ischia, the largest island of the famous volcanic trio off the coast of Naples, which also includes Capri and Procida. Although, famous… Capri needs no further explanation with its worldwide fame and allure, but I discovered that the other two islands do not really seem to ring a bell outside Italy. I had already visited Capri and Procida last summer from my temporary home in Naples, but somehow I didn’t make it to Ischia. It is said that Ischia would be ‘the most ordinary’ island of the three. With its different villages, harbours, many beaches, mountains, but also hospitals and schools, Ischia is an island with a vibrant local life. No less than 60,000 people live here, making it quite densely populated. On Monday evening, when Mariona and I were discussing over a plate of pasta carbonara in Trastevere, a beautiful district of Rome, how we actually wanted to get out of the hot city for a few days, Ischia suddenly came to my mind. On Tuesday morning we booked a hotel, and on Wednesday morning we jumped on the train. In Naples, where we had our train to, they would probably be able to tell us how to get to the island from there. I love that, just leaving the house without printed itineraries with strict boat times or other planned things you could probably only miss. Hence, two impulsive and rather chaotic personalities in a southern Italian city requires a go-with-the-flow approach.
Where the international jet-set stays a little further down the sea on Capri paying twenty-five euros for a pizza, Ischia is mainly populated by Neapolitans. Something you notice (and hear) immediately
Ischia exceeded all of my expectations. Its nature is breathtaking, not to mention the crystal clear and azure blue sea that surrounds the island. Where the international jet-set stays a little further down the sea on Capri paying twenty-five euros for a pizza, Ischia is mainly populated by Neapolitans. Something you notice (and hear) immediately. Never in my life have I eaten such a tasty pizza margherita that was far too big for the plate it was served on and for which we had to pay a total of three euros fifty. On the pleasantly crowded beaches, entire Neapolitan families – the youngest of them of just a few months old on a blanket in the shade of a colourful parasol, the eldest of the family well into their eighties with deep tanned skin and many wrinkles that reveal a lifetime in the sun – did not just bring delicious panini for lunch, but also trays full of parmigiana di melanzane and dishes full of mozzarelline. Because, something we once again noticed too, being at the beach makes incredibly hungry.
It was the unusual combination of our spoken languages and our appearance that confused the islanders
So, as two non-Italians, we kind of stood out, but it was the unusual combination of our spoken languages and our appearance that confused the islanders. We often had to repeat it twice when people asked us where we came from. After hearing Mariona and me speaking English with each other, they tried to ask us a bit stiffly and sometimes falteringly: “You? Where from?” And from that moment on, the confusion started. Not all too strange perhaps, because try to imagine the picture for yourself.
Anyway, after our standard introduction, which took a few seconds to land, the questions erupted. So what did we do? And how did we know each other?
In fluent Italian the very blond one of the duo answers “I live in Rome, but I am Dutch” while the lady with a distinctly southern European appearance (making the Italians think she would actually be Italian, or even a local from the island) replies “I live in the Netherlands, but I am Spanish”. Knowing that Spanish would probably be easier to understand for them than English, and especially for Neapolitans who have a long history of Spanish Kings which has influenced the Neapolitan language tremendously, Mariona decided to reply in her mother tongue. When they asked us why on earth we then spoke English between us with Mariona understanding Italian almost fluently and me understanding Spanish for the biggest part, we did not really have a very clear answer. I guess it feels a little weird, of course, to answer in a language other than the one spoken to you, even though you understand each other perfectly. Anyway, after our standard introduction, which took a few seconds to land, the questions erupted. So what did we do? And how did we know each other? Surely, it gave us enough stuff to talk about with the locals, although Neapolitans – and I discovered Ischians, too – never really lack topics for discussion.
And while I was floating on the surface and witnessing how the sun turned the water into a big glittering blanket like thousands of stars sparkling in a dark blue sky, I realised that there is magic in the air here
It turned out to be a fantastic little holiday on Ischia. The highlight for me was, as always, being in the sea. Swimming in water that was so clear that I saw all the little fish underneath me. While floating on my belly, my gaze turned to the horizon where the sun slowly set. For me, this is the most beautiful feeling in the world. The waves literally wash away all the stress and worries and there in the water I felt the inspiration come naturally. Where the beach can be very lively and crowded, there is nothing but serenity in the water. Every sound disappears gently to the background by the rippling of the waves. I felt how I was filled with new energy for September, when normal life begins again. And while I was floating on the surface and witnessing how the sun turned the water into a big glittering blanket like thousands of stars sparkling in a dark blue sky, I realised that there is magic in the air here. When, on the last morning in Ischia, a ladybird suddenly came to sit on my arm for a long time, I got a confirmation of that magic: that fine, energetic feeling with which I returned to Rome.
People already started to wonder whether this will be the end of summer. However… that doesn’t seem to be the case
By the time I put the third laundry and bikini number four on the drying rack, it is noon. The sky starts to brighten up and the sun peeps out for a little. It’s super humid and still very warm today but tomorrow, on the last day of August, temperatures will plunge to only 20 degrees Celsius. People already started to wonder whether this will be the end of summer. However… that doesn’t seem to be the case. In spite of the fact that for me the first of September feels like the unofficial beginning of the autumn season in which normal life starts again, the summer is not completely done with Italy yet. The weather forecasts indicate temperatures of over 30 degrees again for upcoming weekend, as if the sun wants to show off one last time again. But I have to admit, I actually kind of like that with the beach at only a short distance from Rome making it a perfect little escape from the city. So those bikinis? Let me not put them away completely yet.