Between Capri and Positano there is an archipelago of three islands known as Li Galli, but also as La Sireneuse, because in the past the idea that it was inhabited by mermaids was more than a guess.
The largest of the islands has an elongated shape that suggests the profile of a dolphin, is called Gallo Lungo and has been inhabited since Roman times. Among the most distinguished guests of this Mediterranean paradise have been Greta Garbo, Ingrid Bergman, Sofia Loren and Jacqueline Kennedy. At the dawn of the 1920s Russian dancer and choreographer Leonide Massine discovered a beautiful island covered with Roman ruins and completely uninhabited and bought it. The Roman watchtower standing for more than 200 years he transformed it into a studio complete with an open-air theater When the dancer Li Galli died, it was bought by another Russian dancer, even better known to the general public. Rudolf Nureyev had fallen in love with Gallo Lungo and planned to open a dance school on the island.
His untimely death from AIDS prevented him from realizing his dream, and in 1988 Li Galli again remained uninhabited. In 1996 another Neapolitan entrepreneur bought Li Galli along with the stunning Villa Treville (overlooking Li Galli) in Positano and spent the next 15 years and 28 million euros restoring it. Today the villa is open to the public and it is possible to swim along the island's shores. Available to the very wealthy clientele are three villas (one of which was built by Le Corbusier), the watchtower with 13 rooms, a heliport, and three swimming pools.
