If a swallow does not make spring, surely a flower does. For information, ask the Municipality of Procida, who announces the beginning of the summer each year by spreading colorful signs in the well-known seaside village of Campania containing an appeal to the inhabitants:
«The mayor invites the citizens to pay attention to the vegetation facing the public road, to take care of the external facades, to maintain and embellish gates, balconies and windows also with ornamental plants – reads the release – We safeguard decorum, the environment and image of our Island, let’s take care of our history together».
The first citizen Dino Ambrosino remembers how the unforgettable writer Elsa Morante, who from the flower gardens of Procida took inspiration for her novel The Island of Arturo, would be proud of this initiative, which has become a pleasant customary practice among the Procidans, and yes relies on their aesthetic taste. Even if decorating, in reality, would be an obligation: for those who neglect private green areas, plants and hedges, sanctions of up to 674 euros are envisaged.
«We have a moral duty – the mayor declared – to preserve beauty, offering tourists an island capable of making their eyes open up».
But Spring Operation certainly does not begin on the day of the solstice. During the winter, in fact, groups of volunteers have committed themselves to maintaining order and cleanliness of the entire Procida, removing weeds here and there, from the historic (and colorful) neighborhood of Marina Corricella to the port of Chiaiolella, passing through the panoramic Via De Gasperi and the island of Vivara, destination of flocks of migratory birds. In short, if a swallow does not make spring, in Procida it is spring all year round.
