Our Last Full Day in Ischia

Thursday, 27 June, 2019

We started another hot day in Ischia with the promise of a day lounging about at the sea shore again doing little more than baking in the southern Italian Sun.

It was already warm when

we awakened

After a good breakfast at the Don Pedro Hotel, we started our trek down the hill to the beach.

A Piaggio dreaming BIG!

Our designated baking spot

is just to the left

After about two hours of alternately lounging in the Sun and then dipping into the Tyrrhenian Sea's cool, refreshing waters, I got restless.

With the promise of returning in a couple of hours with a pair of Ischia's signature Zingara panini for lunch, I left Laurie at the beach to explore Ischia a bit more.

SHERLOCK!

I was heading East more or less along the shoreline in search of Ischia's Castello Aragonese, a fortress complex first built in 474 B.C. by the Greek-Siracusan Hiero, who came to the aid of the Cumaeans in their war against the Tyrrhenians.

The Castello would be used over the millenniums defensive blockhouse building temples, churches and fortifications on this tall rock of an islet about 150 meters off of Ischia's northeastern shoreline.

Along the way as I strolled, I discovered several Ischian treasures.

Tile Art

Ischians love their limoncello

A beautiful entryway

to a random home

Yes, the Sun was DEFINITELY

up and beating down on my

now sweat soaked body

Looking back towards Ischia

from the foot of the Castello's island

The two islands are connected by a long cement bridge just a few feet above sea level.

Locals sunbathing on the rocks

next to the bridge

The Castello Aragonese is imposing,

no doubt about it!

I paid the ten Euros entry fee and gladly took the elevator to the top of the Castello's imposing rock island.

Great views from the Castello

to be sure, it would take a long

siege to defeat people up here

After Hiero's times the Castello was used alternately by the Romans, the Normans, the Suebi and the Angevins. Each group added their own flares to the Castello.

In 1441 A.D., King Alphone of Aragon rebuilt the fortress and the name Castello Aragonese d'Ischia has stuck ever since.

I did mention the views, didn't I

The Castello's jail

The Castello's most splendid period came in the late 16th-century when the islet was home to 1892 families plus a convent of the order of Poor Clare nuns, the abbey of Basilian monks from Greece and a whopping 13 churches all sharing this somewhat small islet.

At least there was a good view

out of the jails window

A mural from one of the larger of

the 13 churches

A safe harbor to the South of

the Castello's entry bridge

It was a fascinating site but those views were amazing!

Love on the rocks

One last look back at the

Castello Aragonese

I still had to get those two Zingara panini for lunch for the two of us so as to be able to dine al fresco.

I still had an eye out for more interesting things about life on Ischia.

The love tile art mosaics

A much desired water fountain

as the day was becoming a scorcher!

Felling my Summer Vibe

A small convent on Ischia

I posted a picture of this work of

art in a previous post, I just like it

After spending a few more hours soaking up the Sun and wading into the sea, we headed to a harbor side bar for some adult beverages and then took a taxi up the hill to our Don Pedro Hotel.

I had booked a 30 minute massage before dinner and was really looking forward to it as my back and neck were indeed sore.

I met my masseuse Gianfranco in the hotel's lobby where we quickly journeyed to a vacant hotel room where had set up shop.

Gianfranco has 20 years of experience at his craft and wasted no time working on me in a blend of what I took for Thai massage and a Russian Mafia hit squad techniques!

But it worked, I felt much better.

Why the soreness . . .

Walking this much in the HEAT today

may have had something to do with it

Meanwhile, even more new Venom Camp photos arrived yesterday . . .

Sharing a moment with Chicago Bears

RB Coach Charles London,

QB Coach Dave Ragone,

Special Teams Coach Chris Tabor

and OL Coach Shane Toub before our

first practice

Making Bears LB Coach Ted Monachino

smile before the start of the Venom Camp,

probably at Laurie's expense it appears

We have really enjoyed our three days on Ischia. Just what the doctor ordered.

On Friday we will take the hydrofoil boat back to Napoli, pick up a car we rented and start the drive towards Catanzaro in Calabria, the toe of the Italian boot-like peninsula.

Our #3 seeded Varese Skorpions Women's Flag Football team will be playing in the Italian National Championship Tournament in Catanzaro on Saturday and Sunday and we want to be there to support them to the max.

It's GREAT to be a Skorpion on vacation in Southern Italy!

Ischia: Day Two of Our Island Vacation

Wednesday, 26 June, 2019

We opted for a day at the beach doing nothing at all.

As it turned out, we were really good at it!

 Laurie on a Don Pedro Hotel

balcony as we headed to the sand

Our hotel's breakfast was substantial for our nutritional needs. We were ready for an intense day of nothingness.

As we walked to the beach,

we noted this high-tech

roundabout in downtown Ischia

As good as the breakfast was at

the Don Pedro Hotel, I still needed

my morning fix of cappuccino at an

Italian bar

 Instead of my usual brioche, I tried

a Sfogliatella Napoletana

It was crazy good!

And so good for me too.

I absolutely LOVE

Mozzarella di Bufala!

That is pretty much all that this store sells.

Across the street from this store is the taxi queue. There are usually about ten or so taxis in line waiting for customers. 

People seeking transportation are always herded to the taxi in the front of the queue thus giving the drivers lots of down time between fares.

So what do many of the drivers do while waiting for fares?

Mostly gather in small groups

to argue about something, anything

No, wait, that is not a cab driver thing, it is at the core of most Italians come to think of it.

Busy street scene on Ischia's

Corso Vittorio Colonna

In another block or so, we made a left turn and headed straight for the shores of the Tyrrhenian Sea.

 The Aenaria Beach Club

would be our home for the

next eight hours

Two lounges, an umbrella and

a small table were ours for

the day for a mere 15 Euros

There were over 20 of these private beach clubs as well as a public area along the waterfront.

Each club has its own colorful umbrellas to add to the ambience on a day where the temperatures was a balmy 89°F/32°C.

The view West along the

waterline from the

Aenaria Beach Club . . .

. . . and the view East towards

the rising Sun

At lunchtime, Laurie opted to grab a bite at the small bar about 30 meters from our lounges while I watched our belongings. She said her caprese salad and cold beer were wonderful.

When it came for my midday meal a little later, I decided to walk a bit for some much needed exercise.

It was about 2:30 p.m., the first thing that I noted was that the streets were virtually empty and that many shops and restaurants were now closed for siesta.

Wavy sidewalk patterns

intrique me

 They specialize in Zingara

What the heck is Zingara?

As it turns out, Zingara is a relatively new but quickly becoming traditional sandwich on Ischia.

I've got to try one tomorrow for lunch.

 A red artichoke perhaps

 This must have been the place

Marilyn had her hair styled

when she vacationed in Ischia

The mural above my table in the

small bar where I enjoyed a great

salsiccia and melanzana panino

that had a Sloppy Joe consistency

At the end of our long day in the Sun and

the Tyrrhenian Sea's refreshing waters,

a gelato was richly deserved

Once back in the Don Pedro Hotel and after a wild Mr. Toad-like taxi sprint up the hill from the waterfront, I opened up the internet to find hundreds of new pictures from the Venom Camp.

Our battery of Skorpion team photographers had had a field day of a weekend as it turns out.

Here are some of my favorites.

Laurie and Nency on Friday

night at the BellaVita Café

Someone, not me, had made our local Friday night flower vendor happy.

Lauri, Nency and the Chicago Bears

coaches' wives at Sacro Monte

on Sunday

Nency and Enzo

Laurie and Nency discussing how

best to get rose thorns out of your tongue

Nency, Laurie and Santa Barbara

With Robert Bloomhuff,

the Desio Hammers WR Coach and

Bears OL Assistant Coach Shane Toub

It was extremely wet on Saturday morning.

  

Niko Moruzzi

Star Skorpions Right Tackle

and back up Punter

He worked on his punting Saturday morning.

So Niko and Capo, when I play

the harp I really like to lean

back more than most

 Joey Fuentes OL of Spain's

L'Hospitalet Pioners

I first worked with a young Joey in Mexico City working with the Europe Warriors program in August of 2017. Joey was our go to guy if we needed anything done and he was good at his job.

In December of 2017, Joey was now a player for our Europe Warriors U19 team that played against Mexico's National U19 squad in a game played outside of Mexico City at the University of Chapingo.

It is obvious that Joey has worked his rear end off in the last two years and is maturing into a fine Offensive Lineman.

In our Inside Run drills, Joey got the first Dying Cockroach block in Venom Campo history.

Helping young Skorpion

Andrea Cicciomascolo with his stance

Capo, your Parole Officer

would like a word with you

All joking aside, Capo had a GREAT camp!

Where are we going for lunch, QB Jack?

It must have been a slow

news day in Italy

Laurie and I are both looking forward to more beach time on Thursday and a couple of Zingara panini too!