Sunday, August 24, 2014

Lighthouse of the Week, August 24-30, 2014: Strombolicchio (amazing)


I started this figuring that Sicily probably has a lot of lighthouses because it has a lot of coast, and some of the lighthouses probably date way, way back into antiquity.  But it didn't take me long to settle on the amazing lighthouse Strombolicchio.

The nearby island of Stromboli is called the "Lighthouse of the Mediterranean" because of its nearly-continuously active volcano.  It looks to me like Strombolicchio lighthouse sits on a shard of ancient volcanic island.  The location is astonishing.  So are the steps that go from the sea to the top of the islet where the lighthouse is located.

All in all, this is one of the world's most remarkably situated lighthouses.  Right up there with Split Rock on Lake Superior and a previously featured Lighthouse of the Week, Ireland's Fastnet.  I'm sure there are more, and part of the fun of doing this weekly feature, which is probably read by very few people (but a lot more should be), is finding them.

As for Strombolicchio, I guess that tourists get to see it when ferries from Naples go by.




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