Sunday, August 7, 2011

A week at the beach - Una settimana al mare

I was afraid I would not get to set foot in the Adriatic sea this summer, when I was suddenly invited by a friend to share a small apartment she had rented for a week in the Hotel Residence Fontanelle in Villanova, Ostuni.
My first impression when I reached the beach was one of shock since I had never experienced those Italian beaches with crowds, umbrellas, blasting pop music and "animatori": young people hired to get things going and sometimes to entertain on beaches and at tourist resorts. When I was living here as a young girl I usually went to beaches that were a bit wilder and with fewer people. Or maybe back then I never even noticed crowds and noise.
In any case I soon got into the swing of things and I started to enjoy the beautiful views and the meals with waves crashing on the rocks below me, and most of all I never tired of looking at the view from our deck.
Temevo di non riuscire ad immergermi nell'Adriatico questa estate, quando sono stata improvvisamente invitata da un'amica a dividere con lei un appartamentino che aveva affittato per una settimana presso l'Hotel Residence Fontanelle in Villanova, marina di Ostuni. 
La mia prima impressione quando sono arrivata sulla spiaggia e` stata una di shock, perche` non avevo mai avuto l'esperienza di quelle spiagge italiane affollate, con tanti ombrelloni, musica pop a tutto volume e soprattutto "animatori". Da ragazza andavo in posti piu` selvaggi e meno frequentati. O forse allora neanche mi accorgevo delle folle e del chiasso. 
In ogni caso mi sono presto abituata a tutto ed ho incominciato a godermi le bellissime vedute e i pranzi e le cene con le onde che si infrangevano sugli scogli sotto di me e soprattutto non mi sono mai stancata di guardare la veduta dal nostro terrazzino. 
From the deck - Dal terrazzino
The port of Villanova - Il porto di Villanova
At the water's edge - Sulla riva del mare
The beach - La spiaggia
From the restaurant "Il Veliero" - Dal ristorante Il Veliero
Fire and water show by the pool - Show di acqua e fuoco intorno alla piscina
Two of our very young, talented and friendly "animatrici" trying to talk me out of the shade and into a salsa lesson - Due delle nostre giovanissime, brave e simpatiche animatrici che cercano di convincermi a lasciare l'ombra per una lezione di salsa. 
With all this natural beauty and vibrant life surrounding us, I guess I could have ignored the trash on the sand dunes and on the road between the port and the hotel....although I couldn't help wondering how hard could it be for the Comune to keep things clean and to go on a campaign to bombard people with the message that it is not ok to litter your world.
Con tutta questa bellezza e forza vitale che ci circondava, forse avrei potuto ignorare la spazzatura che abbruttiva le dune dietro la spiaggia e la strada tra il porto e l'hotel....ma non potevo evitare di chiedermi quanto sarebbe stato difficile per il comune mantenere tutto pulito e fare una campagna aggressiva per convincere le persone che non e` accettabile imbrattare il proprio mondo. 

4 comments:

cooksappe said...

belle le foto!

Christine said...

I am so happy for you that you got to spend time at the beach. I hope it did your heart and soul good!

Anonymous said...

the view from you window looks beautiful. the beach certainly looks crowded but everyone looks happy. great shots!

anna maria said...

cooksape - thank you!
Christine - it did me good, and yet it took me a couple of days to appreciate where I was.
Paz - what a wonderful insight you have had. It was packed, but everyone seemed so happy to be there. My favorite time of the day, besides lunch and dinner :-) was when I was falling asleep in my room after lunch and could hear children playing on the beach.