The Light in the Piazza

Two interesting things happened on the same day, a couple of weeks ago. There was a clue in the Sunday NY Times crossword which was a seven-letter word for “bioluminescence.” That clue brought back a flood of memories about my encounter with that phenomenon and, oddly, that very same evening I was at a gathering of family and friends, one of whom had just returned from Rome and was telling tales of her adventures there. Since quite a few of us had also visited Italy at some time or other this triggered a festival of reminiscence. Although some of my details are hazy, this was my contribution:

I was in my mid-20’s, touring around Italy and staying at a hotel in Sorrento. Sorrento is a gorgeous town built high up on the cliffs across the Bay of Naples from, well, Naples. From the end of the hallway on my floor I could look out the window and see Naples in one direction and a wisp of steam from the peak of Pompeii in the other. At least that’s how I remember it…the details are more than slightly murky. On the hotel grounds there was an entrance to a tunnel that had been carved, corkscrew fashion, down the inside of the cliff and it was all one ramp…that is, there were no stairs. There was no source of light except at the entrance and exit at the bottom so you needed a flashlight or the stupidity of youth to give it a try. I’m sure that by now it’s either closed to the public or you have to fork over a few Euro to take the elevator. I have no explanation for this tunnel except a hazy recollection of stories of smuggling or pirates or whatever…I’m sure it was all speculation and I’m sure I believed every word at the time.

After a healthy afternoon snack gleaned from the streets of Sorrento (usually, all of my meals in Italy consisted of cheese, bread and wine)…I put on my bathing suit and sneakers and groped my way down that 100 feet of darkness emerging finally, and thankfully, onto a little cove. It wasn’t really a beach but consisted of rocks of various sizes and shapes with plenty of sitting room on the larger, flatter ones. There were about 12 to 15 other people there, all around my age…that is, all infatuated with their own youth and sense of adventure. Many countries were represented with me being the only American, but I was welcomed into the klatch of youth like a long lost brother and most of them spoke English (of a sort) and we got along famously. Mainly, I guess, because they had several bottles of wine that were being shared indiscriminately. As it got dark the light on the water started to sparkle and we didn’t think anything of it until another hour went by and we realized that although the sun was long gone the sparkle remained. Then suddenly, for about 20 minutes, the water blazed into bright white light. Like everybody else I was stunned into silence and we all had to get into the water to see if you could feel the light. Sadly, it only felt like water but actually being in it was blinding and fairly disorienting…like staring too long into any source of light. It was truly astounding and you can understand why it’s burned into my memory; never to flicker out.

For the record and so you don’t have to look it up; bioluminescence is the production and emission of light by a living organism as the result of a chemical reaction during which chemical energy is converted to light energy. That’s right, the beach and our bodies were covered with microscopic living organisms. I have often wondered if this experience prolonged our lives any; I sure remember how energizing it was. Heaven knows (maybe literally) where all of those kids are now.

This story has two parts; and that’s one of them. This is the second part:

After our stunning gift from nature, with none of us really knowing what we had witnessed, the serious business of drinking continued, with supplies running low fairly quickly. Some wise guy decided we should draw straws (seaweed?) to see who would go buy some more, and guess-who got the short end. We pooled all the money we had and I wrapped it in somebody’s towel and felt my way back up the incredible never-ending tunnel to the top. Try to imagine what the bartender (and one other customer) thought when the elevator doors opened to the little bar on the penthouse floor. Here came a wet, sweaty, young man in a bathing suit and sneakers holding a wet towel-bag in front of him. He drips across the room, puts the towel on the bar, opens it up and spreads out the dollars, francs, kroner, lira and goodness knows what else…a lot of it in coins…and asks (very politely I might add), “how much wine can I buy for that?”

His first reaction was to recoil in horror but then his sense of humor got the best of him (and the other customer). He said in Italian, I think, that the bar was closed but what the hell…and he loaded me down with about seven bottles of wine; some almost full, some half-full, or less. Obviously the remnants of the day’s servings. He had nothing for me to carry them in so we made sort of a sling out of the towel and I clinked off, our laughter mixing nicely. Somehow, this time with no fingertips free to guide my way down the ramp, I made it back to my companions, now international brothers all, to be greeted like a hero. The rest of the night has disappeared into my memory…

The 7-letter word for bioluminescence was “seafire.”