Aeolus was the ancient Greek God of the Winds, who famously gave Odysseus the bags of favorable and unfavorable winds in Homer’s Odyssey. Today we journeyed through the Aeolian Islands, which is where Aeolus was said to have lived. There are seven volcanic islands in total, located on the north coast of Sicily. Remarkably, there was not a breath of wind to speak of for sailing, so we decided to take a scenic route through all of the islands through the course of the day.
Sunrise found us marveling at the eastern slope of the perfect pyramidal island of Alicudi, which is the westernmost of the Aeolian Islands and home to only 75 year-round inhabitants. With no roads on the island, donkey trails are the only way to get around the steep slopes of the extinct volcanic island. We all wondered what people did to pass the time in such a remote place. Nearby Filicudi has 250 inhabitants, and is known for its rocky shoreline and offshore stacks and arches.
We then passed around the north side of beautiful Salina, with the lovely village of Pollara nestled into a collapsed volcanic crater on the northwest point. This is where Massimo Troisi made his final film Il Postino: The Postman in 1994, and it remains a green and unspoiled agricultural island. Rounding the east side of Salina we passed by Lipari, and then the active fumaroles and perpetual steam vents of rugged Vulcano.
After lunch we went ashore at the main island of Lipari and drove around the perimeter. During the ride our guides explained to us about the different personalities, histories, origins and intrigues of each of the seven Aeolian Islands. We finished in the main town with its astonishing archaeological museum and collection of salvaged shipwreck antiquities.
During dinner on deck we passed the luxurious resort island of Panarea, before finally arriving after sunset at the active volcano of Stromboli. With cautious anticipation we gathered on the starboard side of Sea Cloud, and after a few sacrificial jokes and prayers Stromboli erupted! We lingered through the night as Stromboli’s eruptions continued every ten minutes or so, the grand finale to a fantastic visit to the home of the God Aeolus.
