Blog Two – Lipari, Aeolian Islands

Published by Alastair Reid on September 19, 2019September 19, 2019

[10th – 17th September 2019]

Lipari has made us feel like island hoppers again – albeit 60+ island hoppers! The largest of the Aeolian Islands has a wonderfully chilled and laid-back feel, especially in the evening, reminiscent of Greek Islands we visited 30 odd years ago.

No package tours, certainly no UK package tours, seem to come to Lipari, and the folk visiting the island generally seem to be people who like to travel the same way we do, with a wide spread of age ranges represented. Lots of Italian holiday makers, some Germans and British and, for some reason, quite a few Australians.

The Hotel Borgo Eolie is a wonderful small hotel, beautifully designed and kept, with an idyllic kidney shaped pool – idyllic apart from the wide range of biting insects which have taken a particular liking to me, presumably because I am so fragrant. The hotel runs the best (free) shuttle bus service ever, and they are happy to take you wherever you want to go, at practically all times of the day and night, and pick you up again at the end of an evening. Pity I managed to take the large wood and metal room key with me to Stromboli, which now has to be returned by a complicated route!

Walking around Lipari town feels like entering the set of a 1950s Italian movie. Vespas and Lambrettas are everywhere. Balconies, often festooned with flowers, almost touch across claustrophobically narrow alleyways. Tickets are still slips of paper, and almost everyone is relaxed, friendly and helpful. Time doesn’t really seem to be of much consequence – one boat trip returned well over an hour late, but nobody seemed to mind, as we sipped Malvasia, a sweetish sherry-like local wine, from an unlabelled bottle stowed in the aged cool box under the wheel.

We took a couple of all-day boat excursions, the first to the island of Vulcano, which last erupted in 1890. Whilst boats beside us in Lipari harbour were crammed with people taking trips to other islands, we were the sole passengers on ours, which was nice. The scenery on Vulcano is beautiful, with a number of large volcanic mounds speaking to its geological past. The main attraction is the volcanic mud pools, which you are encouraged to sample for their alleged health benefits. As the mud is (unsurprisingly) radioactive, and the strong sulphur content apparently ruins your swimwear, we watched others cake themselves in it, in the boiling midday sun, from the shade at the side of the mud springs.

The second trip was to Salina, the second largest of the island group. A very small boat this time, with a great pilot/guide and only 9 passengers – because everyone was so friendly, we got on really well and most had lunch together – cunzatu: massive toasted breads piled with tomatoes, cheese, olives, capers, anchovies etc. One girl on board had recently graduated in Architecture from the University of Milan – she shared with everyone her pleasure at revisiting the islands on which she had enjoyed family holidays as a small child.

At one point the boat drew into a small bay, with steeply rising rocky sides, into which had been cut tiny cave-like entrances, which are now used as boat houses. This was the location of the 1994 film “Il Postino (The Postman)” which tells the story of the exiled Cuban poet, Pablo Neruda, coming to live on Salina, his effect on the life of its young postman, and the story of the latter’s working class struggles and his wooing of the local barmaid.

Our week on Lipari was pretty much perfect, other than the insect bites. It’s harder to eat frugally in the islands, compared to the likes of Spain and Portugal, but the food is very good, and wines from Sicily’s volcanic soil are also excellent.

As I write this, we are lounging by the pool in our, slightly strange, hotel on our next Aeolian Island destination, Stromboli. The very live volcano towers above us, and erupts with the sound of distant thunder, spewing steam and smoke, at regular intervals, covering everything with a thin layer of black volcanic ash. Hopefully there will be a Blog Three in due course!

My dozen favourite images from our week on Lipari are included in the gallery below. Click on a thumbnail to see a bigger image.

Image Gallery