Roccalumera is a town in the province of Messina famous for being the birthplace of the poet Salvatore Quasimodo. In fact, the relationship between the town and its most illustrious son was always very close and his origins probably had an important influence on the author's poetics.
For its part, Roccalumera thanked such affection with the establishment of a literary park dedicated to Salvatore Quasimodo. For those who want to know more, here is a small but comprehensive guide.
The relationship between Salvatore Quasimodo and Roccalumera
The relationship between Salvatore Quasimodo and Roccalumera has always been very strong: it was not exclusively about the town that gave him birth but about a real fonte di ispirazione which guided much of its production.
To understand this close bond, just think that the poet's entire family is buried in the Roccalumera cemetery and among the relatives there is also his beloved grandmother, born Rosa Papandrea, who played a very important part in the education of the young Salvatore . Daughter of refugees from the Greek Patras, Rosa was a lover of the classics and the culture of her origin and she also passed this love for her land to her nephew, one of her favourites.
A very important reference figure for Salvatore was also his grandfather Vincenzo who not only had the large house built in which the whole family, including the poet, lived but who also served the population of Roccalumera from a social and political point of view given that he held the position of member of the City Council first and then deputy mayor.
Life of Salvatore Quasimodo
Salvatore Quasimodo was not born in Roccalumera, as his parents were far away due to work, but he was baptized here in the local parish, just 5 days after his first cry. He stayed in this location also throughout childhood and youth and the places of his growth were for him a source of great inspiration and affection: many years later having won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1959, said he wrote his first poem right on the beach overlooking the Ionian Sea where he spent his formative years.
The town has always been the source of inspiration for some of his most beautiful works such as “Fresh Marina”, "To the Father” and “Vicolo”. Once he became an adult and moved to the continent for his work, Salvatore still loved to return periodically to Roccalumera to see his childhood friends and hug his family again.
He came here, for example, a few days after winning the Nobel Prize to celebrate with his people and it was also here that he went a few months before his death, in order to see his father, now over ninety, for the last time .
What is the Salvatore Quasimodo Literary Park
After giving him honorary citizenship posthumously, the city of Roccalumera wanted to do even more, dedicating to the poet one of the few literary parks that they are present in Italy and Europe. The main headquarters of the museum is inside the old railway station, given that both his father Gaetano and grandfather Vincenzo worked for the railways.
The literary park it was created at the behest of Carlo and Sergio Mastroeni who also had the wider collaboration of Alessandro Quasimodo, Vincenzo's son. In reality, however, it is a literary park precisely because it does not only include a permanent museum but also a route that unravels within the town of Roccalumera and which includes various points of interest regarding the life and works of the poet.
What to see in the Salvatore Quasimodo Literary Park in Roccalumera
The entire visit to the Salvatore Quasimodo Literary Park in Roccalumera allows the user to get to know this great poet better and more closely. The Park, in fact, includes for example a museum locomotive which in its five carriages houses a permanent photographic exhibition which illustrates Salvatore's life and works.
Furthermore, the tour also includes a stop at the Saracen Tower, where the poet played with his brother and friends as a child, but also the poet's house with its beautiful gardens, very dear to Quasimodo.
How to get to Roccalumera
Those who wish to visit the Salvatore Quasimodo Literary Park in Roccalumera and are wondering how to reach the location will certainly find the following information useful. The locality can be reached by car from both Messina and Catania and from Palermo.
From Catania and Messina simply take the A18 motorway and take the Roccalumera exit directly; instead those coming from Palermo will have to choose the A19 motorway and always exit at the Roccalumera tollbooth.
The town is also connected to Catania and Palermo by a bus service offered by the Etna Trasporti company but it is necessary to change lines in Messina.
Finally, it is possible to reach the town by train from Messina, Palermo and Catania given that the town has its own railway station with regional lines.
What to see and do in Roccalumera
Those who want to go to Roccalumera to visit il Salvatore Quasimodo Literary Park, you can also take advantage of the opportunity to visit the town which contains many points of interest.
For example, a place of interest that is also distinctive of Roccalumera is certainly the Saracen Tower, also known by the name of Ficara, which translated into Sicilian dialect means important. In fact, the tower was built to protect the inhabitants of the city from Arab invasions, given that from its top it is possible to have an excellent view of the bay.
At the base of the tower, on a marble plaque, is a poem written by Quasimodo who associates the structure with the death of his beloved brother. Among the most important events that characterize the locality, then, there is the Sagra del Verdello which is a green lemon that grows mainly in this area and which can be used for both sweet and savory preparations.
Another event not to be missed is certainly the International Folklore Festival which once again demonstrates how Roccalumera has always been a place where cultures intersect and merge with each other.
© Unknown (Mondadori Publishers), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
