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Ravino Gardens, tresures land

There are places where the beauty of the landscape and the grace of human ingenuity come together in a colorful and wonderful magic.
Places where the inestimable value of the natural qualities are intimately intertwined with man’s determination. A union that returns natural treasures of inestimable beauty. Landscapes that bear the imprint of our tenacious passions that hardly pass by unnoticed.

One such a place, rooted in a dimension of deep peace, quiet and beauty is located a few steps from the picturesque center of Forio of Ischia, born from the deep commitment of a caring and passionate man, intimately linked to the sea and the earth.
Giuseppe D'Ambra, long-time sea captain with an innate predisposition for the arts botanical, has dedicated his life to the sea and looking enthusiastic exotic treasures scattered across the world. The shock takes place in the 60s. The view of the lush vegetation of California affects the young sailor. Peppino brings seeds and cuttings collected across the ocean on the island of Ischia where the placid weather guarantees the engraftment. Over the years the collection of plants from all over the world has continued and the garden was enriched by unique plant species, increasing a vast collection which now counts at least 400 different species and thousands of specimens.
Walking in the garden, the beauty of the landscape catches the eye instantly. The green area covers about 6000 square meters, in a maze of paths and stone walls of lava stone, the famous “parracine”. From this ancient practice of terracing is derived the name of the gardens. Ravino, in fact, was the nickname for an ancestor of Giuseppe referring to the "ravine", the tool used by parracinai to build the features retaining walls that rise on the hills of Ischia.
The varied inlay of accents that echoes through the flourishing vegetation is the most effective witness to the success of international public attending this little corner of paradise. Ravino attracts tourists with the green thumb from each part of the world, to see close this small oasis of tranquility close to the sea, between species of flowers and trees from all over the diverse tropical ecosystem .
In sharp contrast with the bad island habit, which aims to focus their energies in more investments into the expansion of the facilities that the preservation of the natural heritage that enriches the island of Ischia, the undertaking of the Ravino Gardens marks a clear line border between tourism marked by the insane logic of profit and intelligent and modern tourism, that knows how to bring out the unique richness guarded by one of the most precious pearls of the Mediterranean Sea.
This rare example of eco-sustainability and keen business sense, has been recognized by the Commission of the Parliamentary European Tourism that in 2010 recognizes the company of D'Ambra the title of Best Tourist Southern Italy, as it is sensitive to environmental and social issues.
An honor well deserved. Feelings of wonder and enchantment, in fact, chasing each other in this piece of land that oozes from every stone the Giuseppe D'Ambra's commitment and dedication that the children Cristoph and Luca poured into a veritable botanical sanctuary. The garden runs along a path dotted with beautiful floral arrangements. Exotic vegetation and Mediterranean maquis cohabit thanks to the placid microclimate of the western side of Ischia, mild and extremely fertile. Few other places focus on a bit of space so collected beauty and harmony wisely devoted to biodiversity.
The original collection, improperly known as "cacti", alternate exotic specimens from colorful ecosystems overseas. Giant Saguaros, secular cacti of unparalleled height, essential extras in every western that respects, found in this piece of Mediterranean ideal residence.
Cycads, palms, musaceae alternate with gigantic grusoni, also known with the ironic name of "cushions of the mother-in-law" for the globular conformation and the constellation of sharp spines. Ferocactus, agaves, aloes and prickly pears are intertwined, in a scenario of wondrous charm, with the typical Mediterranean vegetation, in a stage devoted to the biocompatibility where it is easy to observe peacocks, rabbits and goats freely to paint a dazzling and fascinating scenario. In a corner of the garden stands what is considered the most important botanical discovery of the last century. The Wollemia Nobilis an extremely rare plant whose trace fossils date back 90 million years ago. A Jurassic conifer era thought to be extinct until 1994, when Australia was rediscovered in a forest in the Wollemi National Park.
The tuffaceous steeper slopes are dotted by small bridges and magnificent viewpoint from which, at the going down of the sun, the golden light of sunset spreads a lovely atmosphere of the garden. The corner dedicated to the refreshment appeals for calm: a cactus -lounge- cafe Mediterranean soul gives the visitor the taste of a refreshing drink made from plants of aloe and cactus growing in the garden . The ideal location for the organization of concerts of classical and jazz music, lectures and theatrical performances, the Ravino gardens, away from the nodal axis of the chaotic nightlife, represent a fundamental point of reference for the cultural universe that revolves around the Isle of Ischia. The nature of this bewitching place of the soul bathed in the colors of the Mediterranean Sea is a tribute to life.