Written by Lilibet Snellings
From its caves with crystal blue water to its rolling hills dotted with spearmint, salmon and canary colored houses – the bougainvillea, olive groves and lemon trees creating the canvas in between – to its local people – women in skinny black slacks or relaxed linen dresses, their bronzed skin bejeweled in turquoise, coral and gold strolling through the Piazzetta alongside tall, tan men in crisp white pants, with bold, solid colored sweaters draped over their shoulders to get an after dinner limoncello – every aspect of Capri is a vibrant, colorful affair. Yet there is nothing flashy, or flaunting, about it. It is, on the contrary, the epitome of understated elegance. Like its effortlessly glamorous denizens, it doesn’t have to try to be anything, it already is.
In Pamela Fiori’s new book In The Spirit of Capri, she shares her cherished memories of the Mediterranean island (longingly reminiscing about the linguine alle vongole) while telling the history of the island itself – from the first days Roman emperors romped ashore, more than 2,000 years ago, to the glitzy, glamorous and lusty nightlife of the 40s, 50s and 60s – when Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly and Rita Hayworth – among many others, were dancing, drinking, tanning and romancing on the storied island’s shores. In the book, which has 150 illustrations (old paparazzi pictures, snapshots of locals, photographs of The Blue Grotto, the most famous of Capri’s many caves) Fiori, who is the editor-in-chief of Town & Country, speaks of the destination she so adores in a language which, like the island itself, is understated and graceful – there’s nothing too frilly about it: “If I could create the island of my dreams,” the opening line reads, “I could not improve on one that already exists. I mean, of course, Capri.”
