 From
a touristic point of view, Marina di Campo is the most important
settlement and from here you can get to some of Elbas' most
beautiful beaches. It is the ideal resort for lovers of worldly
pleasures and night-life that preserves very little of the ancient
aspect of a fisher-man village, almost as if a piece of the
Adriatic Riviera had been brought to the Tuscan Archipelago,.
The low and spread vegetation has left much space for cultivation
and it is actually here that you find most of Elba's vineyards
that render quite good wines, especially white ones. The village'
most ancient core has remained almost untouched in the area
behind the harbor and where the round Pisan tower raises, now
the property of the navy, and where some typical fishermen houses
are kept. |
|
|
While visiting the commune Campo nell'Elba one should at least
stop along the road for Procchio at the San Mamiliano church,
where you find relic of the Saint that died at Montecristo in
460. As you reach the residence at Caboli, a narrow and winding
road takes you to a rather particular place called "La
Nave" (The ship) by the locals. What they mean is an about
4 meters long granite block with a very characteristic shape
that makes you perceive a stem and stern profile. At Segagnana,
the discothèque at Hotel Marina 2000 has been transformed
into the Acquarium of Elba and hosts flora and fauna typical
for the island as well as the Faunal Museum. Both Sant'Ilario
and San Piero in Campo, near Campo nell'Elba, are worth visiting.
You get to the first from the fork La Pila, just outside Marina
di Campo and it is one of the most charming and fascinating
villages on the island, where a panoramic walk culminates in
the small square that is dominated by the church built by the
Appianies in the 16:th century. San Piero in Campo instead,
is located on the slopes of Mount Perone. Its origins date back
to the Roman era when the settlement was brought up on a large
granitic base. Today, ruins of fortifications and bastions from
the ancient Pisan fortress that defended the granite caves,
remains and the Belvedere Bastion, built by the Appianies, is
well preserved. Continuing from Sant'Ilario along the slopes
of the mountain you find a solemn Pisan tower where the river
Volterraio and the channel Piombino run, while in its vicinity
the Roman parish church San Giovanni is hidden, nowadays reduced
to a ruin that though emits a magnetic charm as it is surrounded
by bush, and the Hermitage di San Francesco, just as charming
and full of atmosphere.
Photos from APT Tuscan Archipelago and Mediaweb srl.
|
|
