\n I am an artist and one who, not surprisingly, is drawn (no
\n pun intended) to the sun, the sea and a beautiful landscape.
\n Now, obviously, you don't need to be an artist to
\n appreciate those sorts of things. I, on the other hand, do
\n like to make paintings of them and it is because of that I
\n would like to speak of a group of islands that lie off the
\n north coast of Sicily. They are called the Aeolian islands
\n and there are seven of them, steeped in history and wound
\n into the fabric of myth. That, as they say, is another story,
\n for now I would like to explore briefly only two of the seven
\n islands and the first of those is called Stomboli.\n <\/p>\n
\n Arriving at a small jetty, a long beach of black volcanic
\n sand stretches away to your right and the tangle of tiny
\n streets of Stromboli village lie ahead. Jasmine and
\n bougainvillaea ramble over the garden walls, the narrow lanes
\n are lively with scooters and “ape” a type of tiny
\n three wheeled truck. Walkers are there, kited out for the
\n rocky paths to the volcano summit. Behind you the spiky
\n outline of islets break the blue water.\n <\/p>\n
\n It takes about an hour, walking along a pleasant road through
\n fields, from the square in front of a pretty church, at the
\n top of the village, to the lower slopes of the mountain.
\n Another couple of hours on a steep but well-marked path
\n brings you to the peak, 918 meters up and as you arrive the
\n craters explode dramatically, shooting stones and hot ash
\n high into the air. This happens every twenty minuets or so
\n and it's quite safe as long as you stay on the paths,
\n strong shoes are a good idea, the ground is hot. These
\n regular explosions give rise to the term ” strombolic
\n action ” which prevents pressure building up to a major
\n eruption.\n <\/p>\n
\n By day the view of the other islands is stunning.
\n Particularly from the high ridge on the southern side. Night
\n hikes with a guide, or a night boat trip to the north-eastern
\n side of the island offer spectacular views of the red hot
\n lava flows and fiery explosions.\n <\/p>\n
\n From there you board the ferry and eventually arrive at
\n Alicudi. On the map, if you've got one to hand, it is on
\n the other end of the group, the most isolated and the next
\n island that I would like to speak of. Uniquely car free,
\n Alicudi is a near perfect cone, over six hundred meters high
\n and only 2.5 kilometres across. The rugged slopes are covered
\n with huge prickly pear cactus, gorse, carob, olive and wild
\n apricot trees. Surprisingly, in times not long past, over a
\n thousand people lived on this tiny island supporting
\n themselves by growing their crops on narrow terraced fields.\n <\/p>\n
\n Over the years that number has dwindled and the population is
\n now only about one hundred and life is quiet. Mains
\n electricity arrived no more than a decade ago and the major
\n water supply is still rainfall, caught off roofs and
\n collected in wells on the terrace of each house. It is
\n charming and quaint.\n <\/p>\n
\n Hawks and ravens wheel high above and bright green lizards
\n dash away as you explore. The sea is very clean and rich with
\n fish, shrimp and shellfish, and, so the locals tell me, ideal
\n for snorkelling although I've never done it but, from the
\n look of it, I could well imagine.\n <\/p>\n
\n At night you can see the lights off Sicily's north coast,
\n 20 kilometres away and on days when the haze has evaporated,
\n about this time of year, the snow covered slopes of Mount
\n Etna are visible, the black summit streaked with red lava.
\n Colour seems to be the theme of these islands, it really is a
\n painters paradise, so much so that you don't need to be a
\n painter or an artist at all to appreciate it. The imagery
\n around you is just so strong and peaceful at the same time,
\n the countryside so unspoiled. It is just one of those places.
\n I have painted in country that is beautiful to the eye but
\n putting it down on paper can be very difficult. One finds
\n ones self inventing, a bit of red here, a bit of yellow
\n there, not because it's in front of your eyes but because
\n the painting needs it and so you make it up. Alicudi and the
\n other islands are not like that in the least, the place is
\n there to paint. The hand runs riot along with the eye. To my
\n mind, not only an easy place to paint but a pleasure and pure
\n joy, if for nothing else but to just sit and look. A tiny
\n little haven almost at the end of Europe.\n <\/p>\n
\n Murray Hubick is Canadian, now living in Kent in the U.K. As
\n an artist his time is divided between work in the studio,
\n teaching art and as much travelling as possible. He is
\n currently in the process of organising an art excursion to
\n the islands for the coming Christmas\/New year and would
\n welcome anyone interested to join him in having an espresso
\n overlooking the sea in the sun on New Years morning.\n <\/p>\n