Ever since I saw a tiny picture of Procida in my Italian magazine years ago, I have wanted to visit this less than 4 square kilometre island, and here I am. Dream come true!
Gino, the chef, also visited here and certainly would have encouraged others to come, but fortunately this sleepy little island has remained untouched by mass tourism. I guess tiny harbours may be the saving grace for both Ischia and Prochida, as massive cruise ships can't enter.
The first steps you take are along the Marina Grande, a surprisingly busy stretch of road with plenty of traffic considering the size of the island.
The narrow streets up into the old town are unbelievably colourful, and surprisingly busy. I guess the Vespas, mopeds, weaving in and out of the meandering tourists helps give the impression of a bustling town.
Guni had already had two days in Naples and was quite at home with the traffic situation! Meanwhile, I was treading very warily, pinned against walls to let them pass!
As in Matera, nothing much is flat! We ambled slowly uphill from the old town towards the fort at the top. If anyone had asked me at the start if I intended going up there, I would have laughed at them and told them not to be silly. But, here we were, in the midday sun trudging uphill to a spectacular lookout over the magnificent Marina Corricella, with its incredibly colourful houses. It is an awesome sight and worth every bit of sweat and weariness. Truly breathtaking!
At the top there were cannons, but I am afraid I couldn't find the history behind them.
Turning away from the gorgeous panoramas, we had a great picture of calmness and tranquillity. Two ladies sitting on a rug with cushions, whiling away the middle of the day. What a place to do this.
Poor little scrawny cats too enjoying the peace and quiet.
Of course, we still had a few steps and steep slopes to climb to get to the very top, but again well worth the effort. Homes here are just so attractive with their different colours and their flowers.
There is so much fine detail.
dazzling colours all around us.
As we wandered downwards, this beautiful mermaid caught our eye.
Down at last! It's really a paradise, this little island.
And the food was delicious. We started with a lemon salad made from lemons from Sorrento . It was so refreshing and so unique, just lemons cut up with olive oil and mint, yet super tasty.
My main was also a speciality of the area, like a fish cake rolled into a ball, with the most scrumptious orange sauce. Yum!)
A real fishing village/ town, very unspoilt and stunningly beautiful.
We could feel proud of ourselves having made it up to the fort. Unfortunately, we did have to go up again to get back to the Marina Grande, but not quite such a climb.
Back to those narrow streets with vespas whizzing past us like a swarm of angry bees, this time in both directions. Madness!
What a great day we had on Procida. We both said it would be well worth coming back and staying on the island.
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