A Short Holiday on Elba

A SHORT HOLIDAY ON ELBA

Despite the years, the urge to travel remains, to see new places, to return to places that have captivated me; above all I would love to be able to do it riding my motorbike freely, or holding the helm of the boat I no longer have, even if, deep down, what matters is exploring the world, whatever the means. You don't have to cross the seas or go far away; even a short distance from your own base there are new places to discover, or beloved places to return to, even while adapting to my status as a grandfather on permanent active duty, with a retinue of grandchildren. This year I chose the closest of the great islands of the Mediterranean: Elba. Joining me in the group are Resi, my wife, and a delightful ten-year-old granddaughter. With the old banger, about 250 km, and you're in Piombino; a few miles and you disembark from the ferry onto the island.

Elba in August, we imagined it would be packed, so, having planned two weeks of holiday, we are here at the end of June. Through the internet we had discovered a place that had immediately convinced us, a couple of km before Cavo, coming from Rio Marina, in the locality of Rio Albano halfway up the hillside, high above the sea: a tourist residence created by renovating an old building once intended for the prisoners who worked the iron-ore mines. A residence for us, very pleasant, far less so for the old forced tenants, better, all the same, aside from the hardship of quarry work, than some squalid prison. In the building, partly two and partly three storeys, a series of small, independent apartments has been created.

We are lodged in a fairly spacious studio apartment, equipped with a hob and bathroom, located in the south end, with two windows looking out over the sea, one towards the mainland, the other grazing the coast of the island. The first week we spend lazily going to the pebbly beach of Cavo, alternating swims with restful breaks; the second week we are joined by two more grandchildren with their mother Lucia and her Marco. They have arrived on Elba with their Range Rover and they wake us up, involving us in the daily race to a new beach, a much more appropriate way to enjoy the many offerings of Elba. The weather was mostly good; there was no shortage of a few outbursts in the second week, but by changing side you escape the storms.

The beaches are all beautiful, but mostly pebbly, so proper footwear is very useful to allow you to enter the sea without suffering and at the same time to swim without hindrance. Despite choosing to escape the crowds, finding deserted shores is an illusion.