L'Italo-Americano

www.italoamericano.org 8 THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2020 L'Italo-Americano T o non-Italians, t h e n a m e S t r o m b o l i probably means very little. The 12-sq-km island is part of the Aeolian archipelago a n d i s h o m e t o n o t m o r e than 300 people, divided into two small villages. Most notably, though, Stromboli is home to the most active volcano in Italy. The last period of non- activity recorded dates back to the early 20th century, which means the Stromboli has been constantly active for more than a century: we are not talking about massi- ve eruptions, but rather con- tinuous, fountain-like fiery emissions of molten rock, so characteristic that a term, "strombolian," has been coined to define all volcanic eruptions of the same type. As fiery and dangerous as it m a y b e , t h e S t r o m b o l i also strikes for how beauti- ful it is, so perfectly conic, i t s p e a k o f t e n c o v e r e d i n snow. So much so, one may wonder whether islanders d o n ' t l e a v e q u i t e s i m p l y because they can't give up its beauty. This small Aeolian Island w a s , o n c e u p o n a t i m e , much more populous: in the e a r l y 1 9 0 0 s , a b o u t 4 0 0 0 people called it home, up until the devastating erup- tion and tsunami of 1930, when the vast majority of the community left for the US and Australia, in search of fortune and of a brighter, safer future. Things didn't get better in the following y e a r s : t h e v o l c a n o j u s t wouldn't stop spewing fire and people grew weary of its presence. It was beautiful, majestic, even part of their own identity, but how could one live in peace with the menace of destruction loo- m i n g u p o n o n e ' s a b o d e , every day and every night, week after week, year after year? And so, by the end of the 1940s, only 15% of the island's residents remained, attached to their land and past, perhaps, or just unable to take the plunge and try for a new life somewhere else. T h e c o m m u n i t y o n S t r o m b o l i m a y b e s m a l l nowadays, but this doesn't mean that the interest in the island dwindled: quite the contrary. When, in 1950, Roberto Rossellini filmed h i s m o v i e S t r o m b o l i o n location, merging on screen the beauty of its landscapes and its volcano with that of Ingrid Bergman, he set the ideal first stone for the crea- tion of the island's florid tourist industry. Known as the Aeolians' black pearl, the island is perfect for peo- ple in search of peace, quiet CHIARA D'ALESSIO and natural beauty: its coa- s t l i n e i s a s u c c e s s i o n o f cliffs, black sand beaches, grottos and coves, punctua- Continued to page 10 Fishing boats in Stromboli (Photo: Alexsalcedo/Dreamstime) ALL AROUND ITALY TRAVEL TIPS DESTINATIONS ACTIVITIES A n i s l a n d o f b e a u t y a n d danger: Stromboli

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