THE WONDERFUL POWER OF MEMORY

Every year, my iPhone (and I suppose many others') — without my/our knowledge and with the best of intentions (we hope) — automatically creates a “memory.” These often span long timeframes, from weeks to months, even full anniversaries.

That little cult object we can no longer live without — the smartphone — assembles, all by itself, a montage (more or less accurate), selecting photos from our gallery and, through a preset playlist, adds what it considers to be the most fitting soundtrack.

Most of these iPhone-generated memories are linked to trips or experiences, probably because, like most people, we have geolocation enabled — consciously or not.

This morning, for example, from the “Memories” section of my phone, I received an unexpected gift: a short film titled “VIENNA on the road, October 2023”. A video edited with music, photos, and even video clips (yes, it selects those too). A temporal rewind that reminds us of where we were exactly a year ago. Whether the final product is compelling or not, the result always creates an emotion — or at least a nostalgic feeling for something past.

Caught up in the chaos of daily life and racing against time, there are moments we forget, or subconsciously push aside. Yet as Spanish author Carlos Ruiz Zafón wrote, “sooner or later, the ocean of time brings back the memories we buried in it.” And every now and then, our faithful iPhone retrieves them (for better or worse) from its — or our? — archives.

In many ways, the cloud is replacing our memory. We pay for unlimited storage space and place our memories in a virtual server — capable, like our own minds, of recalling moments (aka photos) on demand.

But often, we don’t even need to look at the photos. Sometimes, just a small detail can bring back a memory — a thought, a feeling, a taste, a sound, or a scent. A whiff of something in the air can trigger a forgotten place or a moment from years ago.

A few years ago, I had a conversation with Laura Bosetti Tonatto, a renowned Italian perfumer — one of the great “noses” of her craft, creator of extraordinary fragrances (including one for Queen Elizabeth II), and curator of exhibitions blending art and scent. She shared a secret with me: that the search for the “perfect perfume” isn’t really about the perfect scent — it’s about the one that awakens your memories.
The Marseille soap from a grandmother’s laundry, wood bark or polished furniture, roasted coffee, sweet pipe tobacco from a grandfather, citrus from an uncle’s backyard, or wildflowers that trigger springtime instincts…

Hotel BonSol, deeply believing in this idea, has worked with pioneers of natural cosmetics in selecting its amenities. For example, Tot Herba, which uses locally sourced ingredients such as almond, lavender, and rosemary — each infused with the characteristic scents of the island. Or D’Essència LaB, which, after a thorough study of the hotel, its history, and warm atmosphere, proposed a wonderful woody fragrance that now feels like it has always belonged in the space.

This harmony between place and atmosphere is what I would call olfactory loyalty — because scent, in this case, takes us back to beautiful moments spent in a specific place, and awakens the desire to return.

Our five senses hold the incredible power to evoke memories. In Japanese culture, the word natsukashii expresses the idea of a “pleasant nostalgia” — the joyful melancholy of recalling a cherished experience.

In 1987, Japanese scientist Susumu Tonegawa received the Nobel Prize in Medicine after showing — through experiments with mice suffering from stress-induced depression — that these animals could be “healed” by stimulating the brain cells where positive memories were stored.

This speaks volumes about the power of memory.

Which is why my wife, Natalia Xamena, an incurable nostalgic, along with her co-founder Mónica Matanza, decided to create a personal merchandise space — a collection that would bear the name and soul of Hotel BonSol:
The BonSoul.

A line of thoughtfully designed items inspired by the hotel’s soul — by Mallorca, its sun, its sea — crafted to transport you back to those moments lived in this magical place. A way to evoke positive memories during the cold winter months or in the midst of everyday life, with the hope that the BonSol sun will continue to warm your heart…

At least until your next visit.
— Federico Giannini

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