This is the second of a back-to-back posts. To see our post about our volcano adventure, scroll down or click here.
Today we took another boat tour to check out the islands of Filicudi and Alicudi. These are two small islands with populations of 300 and 100, respectively. The islands are so small that in order to really see the "sights", its easier to visit by boat since there are no roads that traverse either of the islands.
We started early today (considering when we got back from Stromboli yesterday). The boat left from the smaller port on Lipari at 9:30 AM, and it was a much smaller group - only 20 of us, which meant it was also a much smaller boat. Even though it was somewhat early, it was already hot out, so everyone on board stripped down to bathing suits and hit the decks. Mike and I chose to be on the roof deck and picked out what would be our spot for the whole day.
The tour started by going around Lipari to the west, where we got some good views of Vulcano and the faraglioni (rocks sticking out of the water) that were just off the coast of Lipari. We continued north, sailing by the island of Salina, and then veered to the west towards Filicudi and Alicudi. All throughout the day, the crew on board (just the captain and an assistant), would point things out to us. Since I'm not sure exactly what he said, I don't know for certain where were were at any given point, so my recap of the day may not be totally accurate.
I believe we started by going around the southern coast of Filicudi and making our first stop at the Punta Stimpagnato. Here, the boat anchored and we had our first chance to jump off the boat and go for a swim. It was very clear that the water surrounding Filicudi was much more of an emerald color than the vibrant blues we've been seeing everywhere else on the trip (no idea why the difference in color). The then boat continued on its tour and we were able to see the Grotto del Bue Marino (the Cave of the Monk Seal). The concept here was similar to the Blue Grotto we saw in Capri - however this one was much bigger, both the entry (our boat went almost all the way in), and the inside of the cave itself. It was another cool experience, but since the sun wasn't shining into the cave, we didn't get a chance to see the emerald reflections as we had hoped. The boat traveled a little further around the coast until we saw a large rock arch, the Punta del Perciato. Just past the arch we had our second chance to take a dip. The jellyfish were more numerous at this spot and someone got stung right in the rear end. With everyone back on board, we went for a much longer sail to get to Alicudi, another 25km to the west. I think we sailed around this island counterclockwise, and the boat sailed all the way around the island until we arrived at "the" town located at the port. Here we had an hour to grab some lunch and then putter around (that is what our tourbook recommends to do...). Given that this island only got electricity and television in the 1990's, it's not hard to imagine how little there is to do here. After lunch, we sailed a bit further around Alicudi and had some time for another swim before heading back towards Filicudi.
Back at the larger island, we saw some more incredible faraglioni and stopped again for a swim. (Whenever the boat was moving, the wind made it very comfortable to sit on the roof of the boat, and the sun was shining the whole day. But when the boat anchored at a swimming spot, we got hot pretty quickly so it was easy to be convinced to jump in the water.) After our fourth and final swim, we all got on board again and the boat made way to the port town on Filicudi. Here we had a bit more time (90 min) to explore. This was useful since there was actually something to do.
We made our way to the end of the town where we found some steep steps that we climbed up the see a prehistoric village. There were ruins of several huts from before the 14th century BC. Its nuts that there is still evidence of people's lives from more than 3,000 years ago! We stayed up on the hill for a while to check out the great views of the bay, and then head down to get some granites before boarding. Finally, back on board for the last time, the boat made its way back to Lipari. The boat was moving much faster this time and was making huge splashes as it went through the water. We got soaked a couple of times, and it was a fun ride back. However, after crashing through the water for 90 minutes, we're both still feeling the motion of the boat even though we've been back on land for more than six hours...
Gelato Gusti per il Giorno:
Mike - Pistacchio e Stracciatella
Aviva - Caffe e Stracciatella
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