A very Italian summer: interview with @italysegreta

The first week of September is the most melancholy time of the year: the sunlight fades towards autumn, the swimsuits give way to clothes and the smell of salt is replaced by the one of the city.

Summer 2020 was the most Italian season of the last twenty years, where due to the pandemic and lockdowns, the magic of Italy was rediscovered, in all its most hidden gems.
The IG page @italysegreta was the unofficial visual microphone to tell the Italian summer through a palette of aperitifs on the terraces of Panarea up to a spaghetti with seafood on the Amalfi Coast, for a breakfast overlooking Lake Como. Italy Segreta has captured the aesthetic that lingers on a familiar and delicate taste, a particular type of escapism aimed at simple pleasures and pure sensations, which today many brands - from Jacquemus to Dior - are rediscovering, aligning and helping to change the very meaning of luxury.

To celebrate the end of the most Italian summer ever, we had a chat with the team that manages the Italy Segreta page.

1. It’s the first week of September and that bittersweet feeling of the end of summer is roaring in our hearts and brain. How was Italy Segreta’s summer?

ITALIAN. Very Italian. We don’t only talk about the Italian lifestyle but we also live it; we like our lunch coffee breaks and dolce vita summers, always shared with family and friends.

This year more than ever we appreciated and enjoyed all the beauty summer in Italy has to offer. We made a vow to never take it for granted. Everything you imagine Italy to feel like in summer, we lived it. By land and by sea. We enjoyed doing nothing, woke up to the sound and view of the sea and seagulls, ate one too many tomatoes, figs and spaghetti alle vongole, had aperitivi as if they were a sacred ritual, drinks which would carry us into the late starry nights, always accompanied by some of our favorite italians singers (Battiato, Dalla, Gaetano) playing in the background. We had no plans and “why not” was our motto, we lived in linen and never wore closed shoes or jeans. We drove many many miles, with our windows rolled down and our hair still salty from the night swim, we soaked the sun as if there was no tomorrow (we know it’s not healthy...working on it) and shared it all with the ones we love around large colorful tables and all the beauty that surrounded us as beauty is fully enjoyed only when shared. From the bright fervent colors of the Amalfi coast to the rougher, more wild, Tuscan scenery, to some gluttonous lunches made of pesto and Tuccu Genovese on the Ligurian coast we made sure to fully capture a summer that as always went by way too fast.

Our hearts were full and our mind serendipitous. Our Italian summer gave us permission to lay back, relax without feeling guilty and go back to feeling like a child: carefree. It was a summer that once again reminded us how lucky we are to be Italian, to have this beauty all to ourselves and have grown up with summers just like this, where between card game, “un ghiacciolo” (a popsicle), “una pennichella” (a nap), and a glass of wine the day goes by with a swim at every possible occasion.

2. What is Italy Segreta’s backstory? When, why and how did you start?

Italy Segreta, started a little over a year ago, for fun and for the simple love we have for our country. Marina Cacciapuoti, our founder, opened the Instagram account without thinking too much or much about it on a random day when she was drained by NYC hustle and bustle (she was working for Hearst Media at the time) and terribly missed home. We simply started to share what we love the most and know the best, Italy. Having lived abroad for several years we appreciated our country more than ever and wanted everyone to see and live it as we did, as a local.

3. A list of your top 5 destinations in Italy and the reasons to visit them

Sicily (Aeolian Islands) - All of Sicily, is just mind blowing from the intensely flavored food, to the diverse landscape to the baroque cities but we must admit that the Aeolian Islands stole our heart at a very young age.

Harsh and wild, sometimes a bit snobbish and yet authentic and simple, we sailed them in and out, numerous times (we highly recommend to experience them by boat) and we always craved more. More of Da Alfredo’s in Salina pane cunzato, more grantia di gelso, more caponata, more hikes to the top of Stromboli and midnight swim right under the sparks of the active volcano, more drinks on Raya’s terrace in Panarea, more of the secluded and wild Filicudi and Alicudi and the crystalline blue seas of Lipari. I mean you get it...we simply can’t get enough and we are sure you wouldn’t either.

Ponza - “L’isola dei romani” (the islands of Romans) so easy to reach from Rome that we made it a yearly tradition to visit. It’s magic made of pastel colors and deep blue grottoes.

Arcipelago Toscano - Although it is now well known and loved by many, it still feels untouched. From it’s islands Giglio, Giannutri and Elba, to the Argentario coast it’s a place that feels free and authentic.

Rome - I colori, il cibo di Roma, it’s a city with a soul that will lift you up on your darkest days.

Napoli - “Io che ho girato tutto il mondo…’o sole ‘e Napule nun l’aggia maje truvate a nisciuna parte!” It’s true, the sun of Naples is one of a kind and impossible to find anywhere else..It’s si

4.The “Mediterranean Aesthetic” has dominated the 2020 summers on Instagram and many fashion brands - from Dior to Jacquemus - are riding the trend. What makes it so catchy?

What doesn’t make it catchy? It’s timeless, elegant and with SO much personality.

5. In your opinion in which way the rise of this aesthetic trend is linked to the global complicated current situation? Is it just a dreamy nostalgic escape?

The current world situation has definitely shined a light on Italy, but we believe it’s more than a dreamy nostalgic escape. The world has slowed down, it has taken a pause that we think it was very much needed. Where everyone had time to reflect, appreciate, focus on what they love and miss things we usually take for granted. Just like the yearly trip to Italy, which now feels like a golden lottery ticket. Italy is like a complicated relationship, the partner you can’t live with or without. Try spending a summer anywhere else, and tell us if you don’t miss Italy. The Italian aesthetic definitely had a comeback but I do think it’s something people will never get enough of, as long as we treat our country right.

6.What can we expect from Italy Segreta’s future

A lot. We are working on many projects… and we hope we can preserve, discover, elevate and share all the best it has to offer especially things that can’t be bought. Our goal is to find as many ways as possible to share the exact love and appreciation of the small pleasures of life we have and grew up with. All we can say for now is...STAY TUNED!