(Not So) Sunny Italy

For our trip to Ischia we flew from Lyon, France to Naples, Italy on EasyJet, one of Europe's low cost carriers. Lyon has a beautiful and quite modern airport, but you wouldn't know it by the terminal and the gate to which our flight was assigned.  I guess that the price you pay for getting a great airfare is to have to deal with the "Walmart" of airport terminals.

The sterile, industrial appearance of the EasyJet gate

reminded us of every Walmart we've ever seen

We arrived in Naples on Thursday, May 2, to spend the night and leisurely make our way to Ischia via ferry on May 3. It's culture shock coming from quiet, rural France to big-city Italy, but Naples is always entertaining. We were booked into a clean and very modern B&B on the 7th floor of a residential building that fronted the Bay of Naples and the Molo Beverello ferry terminal. From our room we could see cruise ships and Mount Vesuvius, and the island of Capri on the horizon.

HUGE cruise ship just departing; Mount Vesuvius

in the distance--but no danger of a repeat of the eruption
that destroyed Pompeii in AD 79

Entertainment from our balcony--watching the

"ballet" that is Naples traffic. The motorbike

drivers are especially crazy, weaving in and

around the cars.

The island of Ischia is located about 20 miles from Naples.  It is the largest of the volcanic islands in the Bay of Naples and can be reached in about an hour by fast ferry. It is particularly known for its thermal spas that are fed by natural hot springs.

A depiction of ferry routes from Naples, showing

the approximate location of Ischia (not to scale)

The Ischia Chamber Music Festival has been held annually since 2003. It's a small-scale festival, with perhaps 30-35 participants, which makes for a casual and congenial atmosphere. I first attended the festival in May 2017, at which time it was held at the small resort of covo dei Borboni just up the hill from the seaside town of Lacco Ameno. The resort had beautiful views over the Mediterranean Sea. Unfortunately, in August of that year, an earthquake centered near Lacco Ameno caused substantial damage to the resort and the surrounding area. As a result, the festival moved to the Residence Aegidius near Ischia's capitol of Ischia Porto.

It was not exactly "sunny Italy" the first couple of days we were here. It was unseasonably rainy, windy and cold. Hallelujah! The sun returned yesterday and we're all feeling a lot better now.

View from our apartment toward Ischia's central "spine"

We've now completed 4 days of the festival. As a full participant I was assigned to 6 different chamber groups of variable size and instrumental composition, as well as to the orchestra. My days require 5-6 hours of group rehearsal as well as orchestra practice.  Lon requested partial participation, so was assigned 3 chamber music pieces and orchestra. By the time dinner is finished in the evenings we are exhausted, but it is a lot of fun and a great musical experience.

Lon at orchestra practice

Pat and half of her double wind quintet group playing

Emile Bernard's Divertissement, Op. 36, 3rd movement

Thank goodness tomorrow (Wednesday, May 8) is a rest day. In past years we've gone sightseeing around Ischia. This year we're planning to take it easy and keep our outing to a stroll to and through Ischia Porto.