From Napoli to Capri, Part 10: Forio post-Festa

When finally we made it down to the port town of Forio, having ventured through the extensive succulents and prickles of the Giardini Ravino cacti collection, we found a town in the swathes of a calm but subdued hangover.

In the days before our visit, Forio had been celebrating the Festa di San Vito, a rather spectacular annual festival comprising parades, market stalls, musical celebrations, street parties and culminating in a massive firework display which we could enjoy from our hotel. But today’s visit was a far calmer affair. The only signs of the celebration were in the multitude of street lights spanning across roads like the set from a Bollywood movie, those plentiful arches, formed from lattice designs and multiple light bulbs, adding a feeling of fiesta to what is otherwise a sleepy town on the far West coast of Ischia.

Walking through a town in the midst of its post-festival siesta, we encountered a Forio which was characterised by gently sloping streets, soft pastel houses, simple fishermen-style cottages and a very understated elegance. The streets were full of colour, which, when offset by the dazzling blue sky, gave Forio an enticing sense of happiness.

It was in that reflected positivity that we strolled contented through Forio, stopping by the town’s main fountain to eat bowls of spaghetti and prawns with a glass of limoncello and another of white wine, sad that this would be our last day in Ischia, but excited about the Capri adventure to come… only one day away.

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