Eric Rinaldi, last fisherman of Monaco, perpetuates the legacy of his ancestors
A passion that Eric Rinaldi shared with the BBC, which published an article about him on Thursday, December 8.
Surrounded by yachts each larger than the next, Eric’s fishing boat calls out to the port of Monaco. Chrissie McClatchie looks back on the unique life of Eric Rinaldi, the only fisherman still working in Monaco, in her article entitled ” The last fisherman of Monaco (The last fisherman of Monaco).
It is in the dark night, illuminated by the lights of Monaco, that Eric Rinaldi most often begins his work. The journalist explains that it is sporty to embark on the boat of Dédé, nickname of the famous Monegasque fisherman, since there is no quay for fishing embarkations, unlike yachts.
However, fishing was once a considerable source of income for the Monegasques who resold their catches directly on the quays or on the market of the Place d’Armes. However, since the 1960s, the pointed ones have gradually disappeared to give way to gleaming yachts.
The fishermen experienced the same decline, their descendants preferring to turn to less difficult trades. But the Rinaldi family and in particular Dédé, have perpetuated this profession from generation to generation since great-grandfather Adolphe started fishing in Monaco waters around 1900.
The fourth generation of fishermen
Eric is thus the fourth generation of the family to preserve the family heritage. A passion that won her very early on, as her mother testifies: ” Already a baby, he already offers fishing, almost before he can even speak. »
Everything he knows, Eric Rinaldi has from his father, André, who bequeathed him all the fishing techniques but also learned to read the Mediterranean, a capricious sea where conditions can change in half an hour.
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The journalist explains that Rinaldi’s greatest luxury is an old Nespresso machine, ” one of the rare comforts among the jumble of nets, hooks, buoys and other tools. »
This is how on his new boat “Diego”, named after his son, Eric Rinaldi continues to feed the inhabitants of the Principality with fresh and local fishing. Nice catches that he resells to the Pêcherie U Luvassu at 8 quai de l’Hirondelle. Moreover, last June, Eric had the pleasure of fish the biggest bluefin tuna in Monaco, it weighed 180 kilos.