Space and time, the two dimensions that shape all our life experiences, take on an extraordinary significance on Isola del Garda.
The perspective views created by the hanging gardens that wind around the villa, together with the elegant alternation of trees and buildings reflected in the crystal clear waters of the lake, mould the perception of space in a surprising way. As a result, visitors feel as though they are entering another world, different to terra firma, which however near seems to be extremely remote.
The lives of those who have loved and cherished this paradise have left their mark, penetrating into the very heart of this land. A deep air of magic fills every corner and whispers among the branches of the trees lulled by the wind. Time is perceived as an elusive veil, barely separating us from our predecessors.
Even as a young girl, one of those seven children who, free as elves, embarked on their fantastic adventures in the woods on the Island, I realised that I could stay here and preserve the joy of playing hide-and-seek with space and time, discovering new faces of the island I have always called home.
This place is part of me; it has led me down a different path of life and represents much of who I am today. Though I know it as well as my own soul, just like a spell, it never ceases to amaze and enchant me. I love the scent that inebriates me when I open the window every morning. I love its inhabitants, above all the magnificent cypress trees which appear to greet me when the wind shakes their treetops. I love the moon that at night is mirrored in the motionless lake, and I love the fog that sometimes hides the distant shores giving me the illusion of being in the midst of an immeasurable ocean.
I often try to wake myself from this dream and joyfully discover that it is a reality.
Alberta Cavazza