He welcomes me into his living room in Belvedere with the song “Ciao ciao” in the background, presented by La Rappresentante di Lista at the last Sanremo Festival. More than anything, it is the lyrics that strike, lending themselves to being interpreted as a sort of premonition of the current drama that Ukraine is experiencing. Our chat, focused on the release of his interactive Guide “Fiume” (Morellini Editore di Milano) and which should have taken place in a slightly more serene climate, begins right here, from the winds of yet another war that risks compromising the entire world.

“I am very worried, as I think everyone is right now,” begins Florinda Klevisser, author of the aforementioned volume, whose official release is scheduled for today, March 3, even though it has already been on sale in Rijeka for a few days, at the EDIT stationery shop in Corso. We have been friends all our lives, so this interview cannot help but be “biased.” I ask her how she feels about the presentation of her new work – the appointment is for tomorrow, at 18 p.m., in the Salone delle Feste of Palazzo Modello, thanks to the joint initiative of the Consulate General of Italy in Rijeka and the local Italian Community –, with such a tense atmosphere. “It is truly incredible what is happening and certainly the tension we feel is in a certain sense overshadowing even something as beautiful as the release of a volume. It almost feels like postponing it, but there is no turning back now, also because the planned publication year was 2020, when Rijeka honored the title of European Capital of Culture. The pandemic that broke out in the first months of the year, however, played a nasty trick and the publisher had to block the release of the Guide. Then there were moments when it seemed that the health crisis could subside, but every time we promptly fell back into darkness and so we waited until now to publish it. Now it has gone to press, I have it in my hand, so the launch is inevitable, despite the dramatic situation in Ukraine”. How does our interlocutor experience it? “I am worried because this war will inevitably have consequences. The world has already changed because of the pandemic, it has changed us, our priorities, there is a lot of talk about psychological after-effects that in some ways are even more serious than the disease itself. Now the war has been added, which has overshadowed everything else, even the virus. We almost don't talk about it anymore, we are so shocked by the latest events, but we have to think about the future and let's say that my book is something that makes me happy and that cheers me up. I'm grateful that it came out and so I try to think about the good things too. I invite everyone to do it, because otherwise we risk going crazy".

Let's focus, then, on this new work of yours, which has waited so long to see the light of day. As Guida, however, it is not the first one you have written, always for Morellini. It was anticipated, in 2017, by the one on Trieste, the city where you lived for several years.

“It’s true, but I want to point out that my first book, Viaggia con me spendendo poco, published in 2011 by the publishing house EDIT, remains the one dearest to me ever. Like the first love, which you never forget, also because it tells of a very beautiful trip I took around the world and which changed me profoundly, in a positive way. It was followed by a fictional story, which I published for Morellini, after meeting the owner Mauro in Munich, and for which I then wrote, in fact, the Guida al femminile di Trieste. It is a publication aimed primarily at the fairer sex, even if many have pointed out to me that it is suitable for everyone”.

My next question may seem obvious to you. At a certain point in your journey as an author, but also because you are a geographer by profession, was it natural for you to decide one day to write about the city where you were born and where you grew up?

“Actually, I had already written about Fiume in my doctoral thesis, where I made a comparison with Trieste in the geopolitical context. So, I had always had this strong desire to write a book about my city, which would highlight how beautiful it was and in which I could pour all the love I feel for it. But also a book that could be useful to others, so as to understand its troubled history, who the people of Fiume are, and not just the places. And therefore its culture, its past, its tradition. In short, our true Fiume. I am happy, therefore, that I, as a true Fiume citizen, have had this wonderful opportunity”.

How much did the emotional part influence the writing? Or rather, do you think you managed to remain objective?

“Being a geographer, I start from an analysis and a way of doing research that is part of the academic world. Therefore, I study things, I analyze them and then I try to summarize them and write everything with a style, let's say, more suited to the type of volume I am about to tackle. A Guide must be concise, it must be suitable for everyone, so I have always tried to maintain objectivity. Each piece of data is checked and rechecked several times, even if in this case it was inevitable to stifle the emotional impulse. Everything can be written in many ways and I believe that those who read this book will understand how much I love my city”.

As a true Fiumana, how difficult (or easy) was it for you to complete the work? Personally, I would be afraid of having left something out…

“It's true. Also because the number of pages was limited, the spaces were what they were and therefore not everything I would have liked to write entered the Guide. There was, therefore, a very complex work of synthesis, I tried to select the most important things and that I would like the reader to notice about the city. After all, you can't write everything, it would make an encyclopedia”.

In your life, you have lived and visited various parts of the world. This detachment from Rijeka perhaps gives you the opportunity to see it in other aspects. What is your opinion today, as a citizen?

“I see it increasingly beautiful, increasingly better. There are obviously problems, often talked about in the media, but I have noticed that the buildings are being renovated, creating new content. I believe that the city is going in a positive direction, also thanks to the arrival of tourists, a sector that in the past no one would have bet on and that works very well, together with the university sector. I would like Rijeka to become a silicon valley of Croatia, because we have many abandoned and unused spaces, which could easily accommodate start-ups in the IT and hi-tech sectors. Obviously, we cannot ignore the port, but I would focus first and foremost on the development of new industries, which would give space to the young people who are abandoning the city”.

Back to your Guide, give us a taste. Is there a chapter you prefer?

“Loving the sea so much, perhaps the one dedicated to the beaches, but also to the typical dishes. The most difficult, for me, was undoubtedly the one linked to the city's history, highly complex, which I had to render clearly, synthesizing it”.

Let's not reveal further the contents of the volume, which is interactive and almost pocket-sized. Let's leave the surprise to the readers. Therefore, I ask you the last question, which is the usual one: to whom did you dedicate your Fiume Guide?

“To my husband (Renato Cianfarani, former Consul General of Italy in Rijeka from 2011 to 2015, ed.), who has already become half a Rijeka native. In fact, he has become a Rijeka native on his own and we are trying to further humanize him. He has remained very attached to Rijeka and considers it a bit like his city. A city in which, in a not too distant future, we will return to live”.

Lots of QR codes

“One thing I like about this Morellini series is that the Guides are all interactive, which gave me the opportunity to add QR codes that bring videos related to the city, such as Fiume seen from a drone, or that tell about certain corners of the city, and so on. You can also find a playlist, which I filled with songs by artists from Fiume: there's our Francesco Squarcia, there's Let 3, Urban, there's the whole rock and pop scene. Just to give an idea, to those who don't know the city, of the music we create in our parts”. 

Interview by Ivana Precetti a Florinda Klevisser
Source: The Voice of the People – 03/03/2022