Megisti-Castellorizo
The way back starts on a ferry, leaving Castellorizzo, once called Megisti.
An other beauty of the Mediterranean sea, a Greek island, but closer to Turkey, where houses have an Italian facade and people are often from much further places.
I can’t hide that we went there thanks the beautiful movie “Mediterraneo”, directed by Gabriele Salvatores. The movie tells the events of a funny and scruffy troop of Italian soldiers that intends occupy the island, thankfully with very poor results.
Islands, however isolated, are always been the passage of new cultures and costumes, but also war and abuses. In fact Castellorizzo has often changed flag, as it used to be Italian, for a while French and also British. Although the island experienced different dominations and a terrific fire, has never changed its colours, the blue of its sea and the green of its flora.
Between jasmine tree and buganville the life is simple, nothing closer to our times, actually it seems to travel back in time. There you realise that we don’t need much to live.
Kids play by the edge of the port, probably as fifty years ago, simple games bonded with nature and the landscape.
While the ferry heads north, i am still surrounded by the big blue.
I will miss it here.
AS©2014.
Finally Africa
Yes, I say finally because I always wanted to travel and experience Africa personally, not as I conventionally seen it.
I went for one week in Akosombo, a village not very far from Accra, the capital of Ghana, with Alessandro, a close friend who actually made this trip possible.
Let’s face that when we talk about Africa, we mention something bigger than a continent, as someone (R. Kapuschinski) used to say “Africa is a universe”.
It’s very CLEAR that those six days in Ghana did not give me enough time and knowledge to understand or criticize the issues of a country. My personal idea is that Ghana can be much more beautiful then it is already.
Gibellina
Here I am again.
During my Christmas holidays at home, Benny very intensely asked me to go and visit Gibellina, a small city in the province of Trapani(Sicily), as you might know my home town.
It’s known that Gibellina doesn’t exist anymore; it was completely destroyed during a tremendous earthquake on 15th January 1968, where circa 400 people lost their lives and many more were injured.
Nowadays Gibellina Nuova is a new town reborn at 20km away from the old town and has become a real open air museum, as many famous Italian artists have installed their artworks across the streets.
The old town, also called “Il Grande Cretto”, is now one of the biggest artwork in the world, as the famous Italian artist Alberto Burri in 1984 covered completely the ruins with concrete, preserving the city streetscape.
AS©2014.
