Four years ago, on an April morning, I received a call from Captain Antonio asking me to meet up. I was curious and so I went to the appointment. I received an interesting collaboration offer on board of the Motor ship Freccia whose indisputable and legendary Captain is him. I accepted, after all I knew him and the boat, the type of activity he runs, I love the sea and all its aspects, I enjoy getting to know new people and so on and so forth. So this was how I started my adventures on board of the Motor ship Freccia with Antonio.
It doesn’t need an advert campaign, the Motor ship Freccia, owned by Antonio from 1997 circa, runs activities like daily excursions with lunch on board and many (so many) swims, jumps into the water and snorkelling. In the afternoon, returning from the trip, another hour and a half excursions takes place to go and spot dolphins and do some more swims, but this is another story.
I still remember one of the first excursions, I did not know the boat well, but I could already feel it as a part of me, and so it was from the very beginning, I felt it a little bit mine and I grew fond of it right away. We arrived in one of the usual small beaches, once we dropped the anchor, we started the swims and the daily routine of the trip. Chatting with Antonio, we didn’t know each other very well back then, he told me a story about a creature named Elena. She is an eel and she lives in a water puddle, I would never reveal its exact location (I swore solemnly). He told me that every day, from a couple of year on, he goes there during summer to feed her small fillets of sea bream, he cuddles her and talks to her. I, as a diver, was unbelieving, confused and I told him that I couldn’t believe it and that he was teasing me. He, almost offended, promised me that he would have taken me there at the first useful occasion. I accepted, as an act of defiance. So one day he took me there. We went there with fish to clean, utensils and his camera to furnish proof of everything. I don’t remember being so amazed in other occasions, in effect after a few minutes of patience (I was ready to give up already and go back scuba diving) this little creature got out from her nest in a blink of an eye, took the fish fillet and went back. I told him “Anto! It is true!”
The most beautiful and romantic part of this is that he doesn’t live this situation as a solitary one, like in winter-time, he loves to share this microcosm with tourists during his trips. Reactions are different, of course, some people are scared to see this animal opening its mouth, showing its jaws. That same summer we came back to visit Elena, but she wasn’t alone, she was sharing her little nest between the rocks with other small sea animals. Among them, appeared a very small squill, a little prawn that lied on my foot and a tiny crab that stayed still on the hands of the Captain. All this was video-recorded and photographed.
The funny thing is that he clearly has an attractive strength on everyone who steps into his world. Because, even when we are on the boat, we do not have the time to drop the anchor, that a seagull comes over right away. Now, I don’t think it’s the same seagull every day, but who knows! This seagull lies on the water a few meters away from the boat and waits for someone to throw at him something to eat. He doesn’t expect too much, as he only receives fish or appetizer left-overs. The boor one day lied on one of the poop bollard. I called Antonio, telling him to come and see. In this way he received a piece of cheese from the hand of Antonio too. And it is at this point that the “marine family” grows.
The afternoon, of that same year, one day during the dolphins excursion, once we spotted a small group of dolphins, I realised that one in particular loved swimming under the prow of the boat. Then a puppy dolphin joined him. This time too, I called Antonio and we both were thrilled to watch the adult dolphin coming and going, and he was always the same one with the puppy on its side, having fun on our wake, and occasionally he would hit the puppy with its tail as a warning to be careful under the prow. Things like this one happen every year, and believe me when I tell you that I have never seen anyone as passionate as Antonio in watching the marvel of nature as he does. He can impart in you all his passion for the sea and the work he does with great talent and knowledge, and that is very important for the job that we do!!
Last year, we were at our usual bar (Caffè Costantino) having a coffee, when Antonio says to me: “Laura, at the end of the month Osvaldo Bevilacqua will come over in Alghero to shoot some videos of me and the eel for Sereno Variabile Estate.”
As usual I don’t believe him, not that he is a liar, but because sometimes we tease each other, most of the time I would say (luckily).
A few days before the set date, the director arrives (so this time too he wasn’t mocking me!) to settle everything up for the shooting.
On the shooting day there were people coming and going, tv cameras, cables, clients, boats, diving rubber boats, all involved in the project. In that occasion too the commander managed to charm Osvaldo Bevilacqua (who luckily saw beautiful things here and there during his life) with all his creatures and his sure congeniality.
Lastly I mention this year.
One morning, out of the blue, as usual he told me: “Lauré, Osvaldo Bevilacqua wrote a book and I am mentioned among the different stories!”. Well, I said nothing this time, I went straight to the bookshop to ask for information. The book existed, I first leafed through it to verify and then bought it. Bevilacqua described Antonio in his true essence without missing a little bit of the comic timing he’s got.
All this, to illustrate a person that taught me a lot, really, about the sea-life and life as well, to whom I’ll be grateful for reasons I won’t mention, for that empathy relationship, being forced to share an experience, the two of us, on a boat.
You can find Captain Antonio everyday at the port on the boats, go find him and ask him to show you his videos and his beautiful underwater photos (I forgot to mention that he became passionate about underwater photography and he is very good at it), he wont hesitate, on the contrary he will show you with pride his marine repertoire and perhaps he will offer you a boat trip if you find him in good spirit, but he is generous so I don’t doubt it!
Videogallery Blu Mare
Laura Pes di San Vittorio
English version: Francesca Sanna
