Hello everyone and welcome back to my mermaid blog. I’m really excited to introduce you to Sirena Francesca from Italy. Francesca is a diving instructor and professional mermaid. Today she answered my questions about her mermaid life.
1. Please introduce yourself, including where you’re from and where you’re based.
My name is Francesca Magnone, I’m a marine biologist with a specialization in marine mammals and marine wildlife recovery. I’m from Milan (Italy), but when I started to study dolphins for my last University Project about Socioechology of bottlenose dolphin I moved definitely to Sardinia Island where I live with my family.
In 2006 I opened a no profit association for the conservation of marine mammals (C.Ri.M.M. onlus) and in 2012 I opened “Alpha Diving Center” in Golfo Aranci where I completed my training to become a Scuba Diver Instructor and now I carry on diving courses (recreational and professional), snorkeling and dolphin watching activities.
2. When did you become a mermaid?”
I got in touch with mermaiding activities in 2013, when in Golfo Aranci the “Mermaid” became a symbol of the city: the statue of a mermaid emerges twice a day from the water with traditional Sardinian music as a tribute to the Sardinian women.
In addition to this a mermaid and a merman made a show in the sea around the “MUMART” an underwater Modern Art Museum. All that was a great inspiration for me and my dream came true when I bought my first beautiful lycra tail from the “Mermaid Kat Shop” and I started to be a mermaid swimming with my tail all year long (in the sea during summer and in the swimming pool in the coldest months).
3. How did you become a mermaid?”
I became a mermaid asking and talking about it with other mermaids, reading all what I could find on mermaiding activities, watching videos of the most popular performers in the world and trying to repeat all their tricks and training hard swimming with my tail.
I made courses about respiration and free diving. With other instructors, I have compared the mermaiding programs with programs of scuba, snorkeling and free diver courses. I found out the best way to create a license named “mermaid diver” which is a course for beginners in safety and following worldwide rules and methods.
4. What means mermaiding to you?”
Actually, mermaiding is a big part of my life. I can’t stop learning about this interesting activity and I’m planning to dedicate more and more of my time to it because it is now my primary activity. I believe in mermaiding so much that I cut my time for biology and diving creating my Italian project “La Casa delle Sirene”.
Besides, it’s a healthy activity for me and helps me to live better also out of water.
5. Which part of mermaiding is your favorite? (freediving, modeling, performing, etc.)”
My favorite part of mermaiding is freediving. I love the activity in the sea and not in the aquarium. I also like performing and the mermaids’ campaign for conservation of sea animals. “The Mermaid” is also a good charismatic example that can show people and especially children what happens in the sea and what we can do to preserve marine animals and their habitat (pollution, bycatch, overfishing, finning, etc.)
6. What is your favorite mermaid tail?”
Sincerely I love “mine”. I looked a lot for tails from all the producers in the world but at the end I designed my “perfect” tail by myself and “Mermaid Kat Shop” helped me to create it. It’s green and yellow with glitters, dorsal fin, long pectoral fins, hip fins and a “original” shape on caudal fin…I love it!
7. Do you have any tips for others who would like to turn into mermaids or mermen?”
Start to swim with professional mermaid instructors into mermaiding schools where you can learn swimming with tails, hold breath in safety and meet other people who share your passion.
Make or buy a good quality tail with good monofin inside and practice a lot with it in the sea and in the swimming pool always with a buddy.
Stay healthy, eat well, drink a lot of water and make a doctor visit once a year because mermaiding requires high cardiorespiratory effort.
When you swim be yourself, have fun, be creative and try to transmit your passion to others!
Thank you very much Sirena Francesca for answering all my questions. Keep up the good work and all the best for the future.
If you are a mermaid or merman and would like to be interviewed for my mermaid blog please send me an email at info@mermaidkat.com
