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Sehnsucht for Ischia - The Poseidon Gardens, the island, the shapes, the colors, the charm and the desire of desire closed in a jar

My first encounter with the island dates back more than 30 years ago: with my father to buy the Poseidon Gardens, shortly after the purchase. It was love at first sight, the first impression from the boat was that of a large rock, covered with a soft green cloak. The road that led from the port of Ischia to Forio was a succession of twists and surprises: I was kidnapped and enchanted by the place and returned to me insistently to mind some lines of Goethe:
Know’st thou the land where lemon-trees do bloom,
And oranges like gold in leafy gloom;
A gentle wind from deep blue heaven blow, (...)
The crag leaps down and over it the flood:
Know’st thou it, then?
’Tis there! ’tis there
Our way runs; O my father, wilt thou go?
In this short Mignon song, the girl of Italian origins protagonist of a novel by Goethe, recalls with nostalgia her country and for generations of Germans become the personification of the south desire. In this vision of the landscape and classicist architecture is the Sehnsucht, or the misery, the longing for Southern Italy which lasts from ‘700 to date.

We were thus landed in “the land where lemon-trees do bloom”.
The thing that won me over from the start is the “light”, that light which for millennia has inspired great artists and writers, fascinated travelers and conquerors from all over the world.
In the early years of Ischia, just finished school, I looked forward to return to Ischia each summer with friends. What fascinated us was the life of the South, its pace so far from those of the city where we lived. We breathed at the time a healthy village atmosphere. It was the age of the carefree and fun, with the years and with the maturity I began to appreciate other aspects of the island and to deepen its knowledge.
I can invite my German friends around the island and the Gulf to know the magic of the Campi Flegrei. Recently I was with them at the Museum of the Campi Flegrei housed in the Castle of Baia, rich in finds of Greek colonization, with terraces where you can enjoy one of the finest views of the Phlegrean islands and the gulf of Naples.
Every time I return to Ischia, after short periods away from my island, the excitement is still the same, now we have established a strong relationship with this island, despite some bitterness suffered in recent years.
I like to wander through the narrow streets of the center of Forio or between the buildings of the village of Ischia Ponte. Here I can appreciate the local architecture, the variety of colors, shapes and volumes, the alternation of styles. This system, so different from the conception of the big cities, full of small squares and winding alleys, fosters relations between people who meet in small shaded squares, as “living room” of the country, with a pervasive sense of freedom and protection.
In spring I like to go to Falanga and Epomeo, smell the scents of wild oregano and see the first flowers bloom. Then before the sun goes down, I go back into my house Citara, from where it can enjoy sunsets ever seen in any other part of the world, always different and fantastic.
In the time I have known and visited people who have made me better appreciate the island: very talented artists, people of high culture and sensitivity with which I spend pleasant evenings. But also simple and honest people, like good and reliable craftsmen.
The blacksmith, Giacinto, for example, taught me the art of growing as I understand it without using chemicals. Now I have my own garden, which I personally take care. Seeing these wonderful products, I am also passionate about the local cuisine, experiencing old recipes and leveraging the friends gourmet enthusiasts tips. I pick up from the garden all I need for my kitchen but also to produce jams and preserves various: from oranges, capers, tomatoes.
The Sensucht closed in a jar and exported is the best gift and more appreciated to do to our German friends. Among the dishes that remind me of the island, definitely I choose the “puttanesca” with capers and tomatoes made by me, friarielli that I find adorable, also because they grow only here, eggplant parmigiana, flat summer symbol south in the approach of ingredients and scents.
Living almost inside the Giardini Poseidon, every day I have the opportunity to talk to guests who return to the island for over 50 years, elected in place of delight and care for one’s body that confirm the extraordinary effects of our thermal waters, both in prevention and in the treatment of various diseases. For the combination of nature and spas, Ischia has no rival in the world. The concept of Ischia as thermal park is based on two fundamental and revolutionary ideas: water with unique properties and the possibility of treatment in a non-medical environment.