Stromboli and Panarea islands: Mediterraneo puro
Take a stroll down the streets of Stromboli and Panarea islands and get lost in this Mediterranean maze.
Potless and potted
Carriers
Mirroresque flora
Ape traffic jams
Apero!
The white labyrinths of Panarea, Aeolian islands
Panarea, my Panarea, although mistreated by Nanni Moretti in his Caro Diario, still yours are the most beautiful streets of the Aeolian islands.
White walls of Panarea, arches
White walls of Panarea, walls
White walls of Panarea, entrances
White walls of Panarea, street plants
White walls of Panarea, windows
Walking on the house of Hephaestus, Vulcano, Aeolian islands
Climb up the steep paths of Vulcano island, home of Hephaestus and his servants, the Cyclops!
First pass through the black hashes of his forge, then take a rest on the iron-rich stones of the crest.
Here on the top boric acid, ammonium chloride and sulfur will poison your lungs and blind your sight!
Here on the top fumaroles will steam your feet and the stink will afflict your nose.
Follow the guide through the deadly steam and complete the round on the crater ring,
And before the sun will set, have a last look to the mighty Cratere della Fossa, where the blacksmith of Gods once forged the chariot of Sun and the arrows of Apollo …
PUMEX Spa, the place of pumice stone, Lipari, Italy
Pumex was one of the world leading pumice-stone industry since 1958. Then, Aeolian Islands were declared UNESCO Heritage. Nowadays in Pumex area you still find a few traces of what was pumice extraction and processing.
The factory from the sea side
Wind and sea erosion on the abandoned factory
The piers for cargo loading
Old power for the conveyor belts
In the engine rooms: rusty wheels and pistons
Inside the factory: pumice still covers every floor
In the warehouse: last pumice, empty bags.
“1000 meters up, 1000 meters down” – PART II
From end of PART I: […] the wind raised up bringing creepy noises from the dark forest… suddenly sleeping among the ferns lost its appeal: time to look for a shelter!
Mobile phone batteries and flashlights discharged in a couple of hours. We then waited for the end of the long night in the cold darkness. Then dawn, at last!
The familiar panorama came back to life. Towards East were Stromboli and Panarea, still no lights on the islands. We were now looking for sunlight like plants for photosynthesis …
A couple of early boats towards East, 1000 meters down. And here it is, from behind a wall of clouds on the sea, here it comes, the night-long awaited Mithras, Ra, Helios: his Majesty the Sun!
Time to say goodbye to our night-shelter. No light, no fire, no bed, but so happy we found four walls and a cold floor in the darkness. The 1000 meter-long descent can start!
1000 meters down on steps: Nature talks, birds sing … hikers crawl down in silence through stairs and ferns.
Then first signs of human presence appeared along the path, fences and vineyards welcomed us back to civilization.
Step by step, the “1000 meters up, 1000 meters down” was ended. An event to celebrate … with some rusty and warm but still amazingly refreshing water 🙂
Pictures shot with Nikon D800 (0.9 Kg) plus Nikkor 50 mm f/1.4G (0.3 Kg) or 70-200 mm f/2.8 VR-II (1.5 Kg) or 16-35 mm f/4 (0.7 Kg) with Manfrotto 055XProB tripod (2.9 Kg) all packed into a Lowepro Flipside 400 AW (1.6 Kg) – Click each picture of PART I and this last PART II to enlarge.
