| The days on this sailing trip are so compressed | | | | back of the boat when Herbert, our experienced |
| and amazingly full of diverse experiences: waking | | | | TV travel journalist, called us excitedly and said |
| yesterday in beautiful Lipari, followed by a driving | | | | "Dolphins! Come on, see the dolphins". Sure |
| tour of this, the largest Eolian island. Then our | | | | enough, we all scrambled to the front of the boat |
| journey continued to Vulcano, where we had an | | | | and there were four dolphins, swimming beside |
| intense Italian lesson, followed by a nourishing | | | | our boat, swimming ahead of us left and right, |
| on-board dinner and candlelit evening of soulful | | | | jumping out of the water, and generally playing |
| music, provided by two of our shipmates. There | | | | with us. Herbert explained that they hear our |
| are hardly words to describe the intense | | | | voices, and being the curious, playful creatures |
| sensations that one experiences on a trip so | | | | that they are, they come say hello to accompany |
| outside of the norm. Today was going to be our | | | | us for a while. These four graceful grey creatures |
| last day at sea, time was passing just so quickly. | | | | were beautiful, and all of us were in awe at this |
| We got an early start this morning at about 8:30 | | | | unexpected display. The dolphins swam and |
| am, and using the dingy, our trusted skipper | | | | jumped alongside our boat for about 5, 7 minutes |
| Francesco ferried us on land from our location in | | | | until they had enough and swam off in a westerly |
| the bay in front of Porto di Levante. The plan | | | | direction. I had caught everything on my camera |
| was to hike up the mountain of Vulcano to the | | | | and made several video clips and was still tickled |
| "Gran Cratere" (the Great Crater) to see an | | | | pink about this experience. For some reason, |
| active volcanco up close. After a brief morning | | | | dolphins always seem like they are smiling to me, |
| granita, the crushed ice drink that I had gotten so | | | | and these four sleek water animals certainly |
| fond of, we all gathered and started our ascent | | | | appeared to be in a great mood. I already thought |
| to Vulcano. We started to climb along a pathway | | | | the excitement was over, but no, the |
| covered by black volcanic sand that turned into a | | | | Mediterranean had even more surprises in store |
| hard brown rock closer to the top. The total | | | | for us. We had been trailing fishing lines behind our |
| ascent took only about an hour and was not | | | | boat and with all the excitement surrounding the |
| extremely strenuous. The view got progressively | | | | dolphins we had basically forgotten about the |
| better the higher we climbed, and from the top | | | | fishing lines until our skipper shouted that we had |
| of Vulcano, all of the seven Eolian Islands can be | | | | made a catch. Sure enough, we saw him reeling in |
| seen. This was my first exposure to a volcanic | | | | the line and a beautiful silver fish about 15 inches |
| crater. Although over the last 6 months I had | | | | long was pulled on board. Francesco explained it |
| visited two other volcanoes: Mount Teide on the | | | | was a tuna, cut the line and placed it on the floor |
| Spanish island of Tenerife, and Mount Etna, during | | | | at the rear of our boat. I was fascinated by this, |
| my current trip to Sicily, I had not seen the | | | | until the fish started flopping around in a panic and |
| crater of either one of these volcanic mountains. | | | | blood started spraying from its gills. That's when |
| Vulcano's Gran Cratere is indeed an interesting | | | | my tender vegetarian soul said it had enough and |
| sight: a perfectly round indentation with a higher | | | | I retreated to the front of the boat. I just |
| wall on the south side, surrounding the crater like | | | | couldn't watch this fish flop around, spraying the |
| a natural amphitheatre. Sulphur fumes emanate | | | | whole back of the boat with its blood, trying to |
| from fissures in the yellow-orange rock. Warnings | | | | fight for its life. Our captain put it out of its |
| advise you to stay away from the noxious | | | | misery, cut off its head and gutted it right there. I |
| fumes. I just caught a whiff of a sulphur cloud | | | | just caught a quick glimpse, but the dripping red |
| and it was so strong it almost took my breath | | | | innards of this poor tuna had me completely |
| away. One of our travel mates, our shirtless | | | | grossed out. You might think that the excitement |
| Catholic priest Lorenzo, trekked up all the way to | | | | might be over now, what with the dolphins and |
| the back wall of the crater and waved to us | | | | the tuna capture, but no - the ritual repeated |
| from a couple of hundred meters away. Tourists | | | | itself two more times: we caught two more tunas |
| of all shapes and sizes were starting to | | | | and I wisely stayed away from the decapitation |
| congregate at the top of Vulcano and we | | | | and evisceration scene. At any rate, Francesco |
| enjoyed the view from the top for about 20 | | | | had caught three nice-size fish and said that he |
| minutes. Of course the descent was much faster | | | | was going to bring them home as a special treat |
| than the ascent, it only took us about 20 minutes | | | | for his two year old son Davide. A short while |
| to get back down into the village of Porto di | | | | later at about 7:30 pm we arrived at the harbour |
| Levante. We arranged to meet for an Italian | | | | of Portorosa, and Francesca and Davide, our |
| lesson just shortly after noon and had about half | | | | skipper's wife and son, were already waiting to |
| an hour to explore the waterfront around Porto di | | | | welcome us. Davide's excited two-year old calls |
| Levante. The main feature in the area is a big | | | | "papa - papa" indicated that he had definitely |
| volcanic rock right next to some sulphurous mud | | | | missed his daddy. Francesca herself said that |
| baths that are supposed to have healing | | | | "papa" was indeed the first word that her son |
| properties, particularly for ailments such as | | | | ever spoke. Our usually quiet captain himself was |
| rheumatism and arthritis. For about 2.50 Euro you | | | | visibly elated to see his family almost after a |
| can get access to the mud baths, and for about 1 | | | | week at sea. Now it was time to get organized |
| Euro more you'll even get a chance to use the | | | | and unload. Francesco gave us a choice: we could |
| shower in this fenced off area. We saw various | | | | either spend one more night on the boat, or we |
| tourists frolicking in the rather foul-smelling mud | | | | could unload the boat, drive back to the |
| while for me personally the smell was a bit too | | | | apartment which is located conveniently right |
| much. While our colleagues Lorenzo and Herbert | | | | above the Laboratorio Linguistico School, and go |
| were going to have their lesson on the sailboat in | | | | for dinner in Milazzo. Well, this was a no-brainer. |
| another location, us three ladies were going to | | | | After almost a week on a nice, but rather |
| study Italian with our teacher Franco on the | | | | crammed sailboat with a tiny cabinet that served |
| outdoor terrace of a bar overlooking another bay | | | | as a toilet / shower facility, there was no |
| on the island of Vulcano. I have really started to | | | | question that all of us preferred going on land. Our |
| get into this outdoor language learning experience | | | | first priority as a matter of fact, was to take a |
| provided by Laboratorio Linguistico. It's relaxed, | | | | land-based shower, and Claudia, Herbert and I |
| yet intense and effective. We spent a couple of | | | | headed to the comfort station at the Portorosa |
| hours forming conditional sentences and abstract | | | | Harbour to take a well-deserved, long awaited |
| nouns from common verbs and adjectives. | | | | shower on terra firma. Strange, but after a week |
| Overall I mused that two weeks ago I spoke no | | | | on a sailboat you start appreciating the little things |
| Italian, I had only been reading an Italian grammar | | | | in life, and a real shower and a toilet separate |
| book for the two months prior to coming to Sicily. | | | | from the shower rank pretty high on the list ... |
| Now I was speaking Italian semi-competently at | | | | Francesco and the rest of the gang had already |
| intermediate level. I have become a huge fan of | | | | started to unload the boat, and we quickly packed |
| language study travel and of immersing myself in | | | | our stuff and help load all our luggage and the |
| a foreign culture and language. And learning Italian | | | | remaining food into Francesco's car. By the time |
| on a sailboat so far ranks at the very top of my | | | | we had everything organized back at the |
| language learning adventures. During our studies | | | | apartment it was already about 10:30 pm, but |
| Claudia and I grabbed some fast food from the | | | | that did not deter us from having one last joint |
| bar, some type of calzone and other quick Sicilian | | | | dinner together. Francesco and Franco packed us |
| snacks and I could not resist the temptation of | | | | into their respective vehicles and drove us out to |
| buying a cone of delicious ice cream. Along the | | | | a restaurant at the tip of Capo Milazzo, the |
| way I admired the colourful works of art made | | | | peninsula that protrudes about 6 km into the |
| of marzipan that were appetizingly displayed in | | | | Tyrrhenian Sea from Milazzo. We had this entire |
| their glass cases. Now there's a another great | | | | establishment to ourselves, and another Sicilian |
| concept: studying Italian with a delicious cone of | | | | feast was unfolding. Fish, wine and pasta arrived in |
| nocciola e limone (hazelnut and lemon) gelato in | | | | large quantities while I enjoyed a vegetarian Sicilian |
| your hand. Just make sure you don't splatter the | | | | pasta with pistachios. In addition, it was |
| gelato all over the dictionary... Well, all good things | | | | Agnieszka's 23rd birthday today, so all of us got |
| must come to an end, and by about 3:30 pm we | | | | to celebrate, and a big hazelnut ice cream cake |
| met at the beach to get whisked back on the | | | | capped off the feast. We all said goodbye at the |
| boat by our trusted skipper Francesco. Before we | | | | end of the evening. Since Herbert was going to |
| hopped into the dingy, our entire group performed | | | | fly out tomorrow in the wee hours of the |
| a final rendition of "umm dari dari", a song that | | | | morning we would not have a chance to say our |
| music student Agnieszka had taught us a few | | | | goodbyes in the morning any more. Seven days |
| days earlier. The men of our group provided the | | | | of adventures in the Eolian Islands had come to |
| percussive background, producing sounds such as | | | | an end, and I think all of us experienced just a |
| "ummm pffff psshh, ummm pfffff pssshh", while | | | | tinge of melancholy. The seven of us had made a |
| Claudia and I provided a chorus of "umm dari dari | | | | great team on board: Claudia, the Lufthansa flight |
| dari, umm dari dari" that sounded like it would be | | | | attendant from Germany & my wonderful cabin |
| appropriate somewhere in Saudi Arabia, in the | | | | mate; Herbert, the knowledgeable TV travel |
| company of a herd of camels. Agnieszka provided | | | | journalist, also from Germany; Lorenzo from the |
| the leading melody with her brilliant soprano voice. | | | | US of Italian background and the coolest Catholic |
| What a fun and humorous ending to seven days | | | | priest that I have ever met; our talented singer |
| at sea in the Eolian Islands. Our travel group | | | | Agnieszka; and our two experts and teachers |
| certainly had come together very nicely... Our last | | | | from Laboratorio Linguistico: Franco and |
| few hours on the boat had begun, we embarked | | | | Francesco, our skipper. My first sailing trip had |
| on our voyage from Vulcano to the town of | | | | come to an end, but I still four days of |
| Milazzo located at the northeastern tip of Sicily, | | | | discoveries left in Sicily. Tomorrow's agenda will |
| about 30 kilometers from the Straight of Messina. | | | | include Milazzo. |
| I thought our week long adventure would just | | | | Susanne Pacher is the publisher of a web portal |
| peter out and come to an anti-climactic ending, | | | | for unconventional travel & cross-cultural |
| but no, the goddess of travel had more | | | | connections. |
| adventures in store for us. We were all in the | | | | |