We will add in more of Florence which is ALL OMG but today we left there and arrived in shangrila, so to speak. After leaving Florence -- in a CAR -- yea (and Bruce fits in it! yeaaa) we went to San Gimigano which is a preserved medieval city on a hill top and worthy of its rep ! A MUST for future visits. From there we had a rather mad dash about(65K up and down and all around) trying to find a COOP super to buy food and then to get it to ----------heaven. We are on top of the world in a medieval hill top "town" if you will, where we can see the sun rise and/or set -- that's how high. We are in a place with full kitchen, bed and full bath (and cable we don't touch) in a structure probably built before Columbus sailed boat! There is a full park near the pool and much more --- all for less than a common room. (How happy is skinflint Bruce!) We are thrilled, having done the helter skelter of Siena and Florence. With our own kitchen we were able to cook porcini mushrooms, pasta with spinach, etc and have it with a nice Brunello. Now we will sleep and hope the weather forecast for tomorrow is wrong. (rain)
Then, the wandering around the Tuscan hills begins.
CIAO !
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
Duomo in Siena
The Duomo is one of the most popular tourist spots in Siena and it is easy to see why. Unfortunately our camera failed to capture the magnificance of the building, but we tried. The outside is covered with black and white stripes made of marble. There are touches of pink marble as well. The walls are covered with many different animal and people statues. 
Inside the Duoma, one doesn't know whether to look up or down. The floors are covered with beautiful marble "tiles". Each of the animals below is made up of mosaic patterns. Having done a fair amount of tiling in the past few days, it is incomprehensible as to how difficult and time consuming these must have been.
There is a whole room devoted to illuminated sheets of music. It often took a year to complete just one page they are so intricate. The walls were covered with religous paintings. The ceilings were beautiful blue vaults with stars. Around the whole cathedral were sculptures of all the popes; below are just a few of them!
Inside the Duoma, one doesn't know whether to look up or down. The floors are covered with beautiful marble "tiles". Each of the animals below is made up of mosaic patterns. Having done a fair amount of tiling in the past few days, it is incomprehensible as to how difficult and time consuming these must have been.
There is a whole room devoted to illuminated sheets of music. It often took a year to complete just one page they are so intricate. The walls were covered with religous paintings. The ceilings were beautiful blue vaults with stars. Around the whole cathedral were sculptures of all the popes; below are just a few of them!
Siena Day 2
We woke, had breakfast and worked on the blog -- then set out about town. Without a map even a seasoned Sienese would get lost in this place! The streets wind all over, change names, go up and down (think San Francisco on a smaller scale) and are NEVER wider than 16 feet. The stones ("pavement") are many hundreds of years old and are worn in ways that make one amazed by the number of high heels being worn by the young women.
We will devote a complete posting to the Duomo, our main stop of the day -- a magnificent cathedral made entirely of local rare marbles.
Before going to the Duomo we worked or way through the streets to the once a month Antique Market where we found a magnificent collection of stalls devoted to -- white elephants. It was a total bust but fun to see anyway.
Feeling a bit hungry we went back to a tratorria that had posted a handwritten note "Soupe de Porcini Oggi" on the door. It sounded so good to us that we waited and waited, only to be told it was all gone. We managed a couple of substitutions and thne went back out to the Duomo and other destinations.
We walked way across town to Piazza Lizza to check on the logistics of taking a bus to Florence tomorrow and gained so much confidence that we went ahead and bought due billeretti per Fierenza per la Rapid 231R !! All we have to do tomoorow is get to La Lizza withour suitcases!
At one point on the way back to the hotel, we came across a group of musicians enjoying a couple of beers and entertaining the crowds. They were clearly good and clearly having a good time.
We took in the sunset on the hotel rooftop before going to a near by locals dive for a fantastic dinner -- one of the best so far. Up on the roof, we met a couple from British Columbia, two sisters from Cape Town, South Africa and a photographer who works the Lonely Planet publications. Dinner included Porcini soup (at last), fried green tomatoes, and a couple of other excellent recommendations from our waiter. We forgot our little dictionary and so are still unsure as to what it all was, but it was great!
We will devote a complete posting to the Duomo, our main stop of the day -- a magnificent cathedral made entirely of local rare marbles.
Before going to the Duomo we worked or way through the streets to the once a month Antique Market where we found a magnificent collection of stalls devoted to -- white elephants. It was a total bust but fun to see anyway.
Feeling a bit hungry we went back to a tratorria that had posted a handwritten note "Soupe de Porcini Oggi" on the door. It sounded so good to us that we waited and waited, only to be told it was all gone. We managed a couple of substitutions and thne went back out to the Duomo and other destinations.
We walked way across town to Piazza Lizza to check on the logistics of taking a bus to Florence tomorrow and gained so much confidence that we went ahead and bought due billeretti per Fierenza per la Rapid 231R !! All we have to do tomoorow is get to La Lizza withour suitcases!
At one point on the way back to the hotel, we came across a group of musicians enjoying a couple of beers and entertaining the crowds. They were clearly good and clearly having a good time.
We took in the sunset on the hotel rooftop before going to a near by locals dive for a fantastic dinner -- one of the best so far. Up on the roof, we met a couple from British Columbia, two sisters from Cape Town, South Africa and a photographer who works the Lonely Planet publications. Dinner included Porcini soup (at last), fried green tomatoes, and a couple of other excellent recommendations from our waiter. We forgot our little dictionary and so are still unsure as to what it all was, but it was great!
Sunday, September 19, 2010
First Day in Siena
In the morning we got up, finished packing, were served a final breakfast by our wonderful family of B&B hosts (Papa , 75 and son and daughter) as they showed us today's press coverage of the wedding! It thrilled them to have such wedding guests in their 1 star lodging! They even packed a bag of food for us to have on the train to Siena -- I now think, because they knew what a journey it would be!
We left the Statzione at 10:20 for 9 stops on the way to Pisa. There we changed trains -- having arrived early, and did not have to wait the hour we thought we would. Of course that meant a mad dash up and down stairs to get to the correct binari (track) dragging our ridiculously heavy bags. Off to Empoli and there we had another lucky 3 minute rush to next train to Siena (8 more stops but lovely Italian countryside) and made it to Siena only 4 hours after leaving Santa Marguerita, Liguria. On the trip we passed through Carrera, FAMOUS for marble and saw acres of countertops destined to high end kitchens in America and everywhere else.
Arriving in Siena we knew we had another $10 ; 1 mile cab ride to our hotel as the Statzione is way out of town and even with nothing to carry we would never have found our lovely hotel. Siena is an untouched midievel warren of narrow streets and alleys and we traveled down many of them before arriving at our destination.
After checking in, we took off about the town -- up and down and all over, through the main square, the Piazza del Campo, where twicea year there is a wild and very competitive bareback horserace between the 17 'Contrada' the fiercly loyal neighborhoods of this virtually unchanged 14th century city.
We left the Statzione at 10:20 for 9 stops on the way to Pisa. There we changed trains -- having arrived early, and did not have to wait the hour we thought we would. Of course that meant a mad dash up and down stairs to get to the correct binari (track) dragging our ridiculously heavy bags. Off to Empoli and there we had another lucky 3 minute rush to next train to Siena (8 more stops but lovely Italian countryside) and made it to Siena only 4 hours after leaving Santa Marguerita, Liguria. On the trip we passed through Carrera, FAMOUS for marble and saw acres of countertops destined to high end kitchens in America and everywhere else.
Arriving in Siena we knew we had another $10 ; 1 mile cab ride to our hotel as the Statzione is way out of town and even with nothing to carry we would never have found our lovely hotel. Siena is an untouched midievel warren of narrow streets and alleys and we traveled down many of them before arriving at our destination.
After checking in, we took off about the town -- up and down and all over, through the main square, the Piazza del Campo, where twicea year there is a wild and very competitive bareback horserace between the 17 'Contrada' the fiercly loyal neighborhoods of this virtually unchanged 14th century city.
In each contrada, the city lights are different, "reflecting" the contrada. This is the dolphin contrada.
Bruce in front of Il Campo site of a twice yearly horse race. We went by a photography shop which had amazing pictures of the races. They bring in dirt for the "track" which must be quite a feat as the dump trucks can not be very big and so it must take many, many loads. The horses race madly around the track and judging from the pictures, there are no holds barred and many falls. The center of the track is a mass of humanity
Walking through one of the only empty streets in Siena!
We tested the local cuisine at a locals' place -- wild boar, porcini "funghi" and grilled eggplant -- and turned in wishing we had hit this area during a better turn of weather. Tomorrow, we will view all the beautiful buildings, churches and paintings.
The Wedding Reception
After the service we walked back to the vans and were returned to Santa Margherita to the huge Villa Durazzo for the wedding reception. The locals of Camogli greatly enjoyed watching the parade of the wedding party and guests as they made their way through town.
The villa is a 17th century palazzo richly decorated with stutues and rare marbles, wonderful Venitian chandeliers , and as everywhere, lots of Trompe d'Oiel. We learned the reason for so much of the elaborate decoration was to avoid the taxes that would come with the real thing! At the villa, Spumanti (NOT Champaigne or Cava) flowed like the proverbial water. A forty foot table was covered with truely fantastci "antipasti" including various tartars, mini "pitzettas", tempuras, etc. Then the dinner and toasts -- the cake appeared at midnight preceding a late night dancing to live music.
As the battery in the camera had died, we made a quick detour to our hotel to get the charger in order to be able to take more pictures. As a result, we had to walk up the hilly driveway through the grounds to the reception. The driveway was lined with statues and beautiful trees.
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The main reception room was on the second floor overlooking the grounds and the sea. Every room had a different but beautifully intricate glass chandelier. The ceilings were covered with paintings.
Looking out ove the piazza at the entrances. The design is made of white and black rocks.
Ivor stood patiently waiting for pictures with his father and his new father-in-law.
The villa is a 17th century palazzo richly decorated with stutues and rare marbles, wonderful Venitian chandeliers , and as everywhere, lots of Trompe d'Oiel. We learned the reason for so much of the elaborate decoration was to avoid the taxes that would come with the real thing! At the villa, Spumanti (NOT Champaigne or Cava) flowed like the proverbial water. A forty foot table was covered with truely fantastci "antipasti" including various tartars, mini "pitzettas", tempuras, etc. Then the dinner and toasts -- the cake appeared at midnight preceding a late night dancing to live music.
As the battery in the camera had died, we made a quick detour to our hotel to get the charger in order to be able to take more pictures. As a result, we had to walk up the hilly driveway through the grounds to the reception. The driveway was lined with statues and beautiful trees.
.JPG)
The main reception room was on the second floor overlooking the grounds and the sea. Every room had a different but beautifully intricate glass chandelier. The ceilings were covered with paintings.
Looking out ove the piazza at the entrances. The design is made of white and black rocks.
Ivor stood patiently waiting for pictures with his father and his new father-in-law.
Wedding at Church
The wedding was WONDERFUL. We took a cab through a downpour one kilomiter to a hotel where a van would pick us up (BTW - taxis are NUTS! That mile cost 15 dollars -- but there was no choice) and then took the van to Camogli, over a mountain pass winding all over where we were delivered to the shorefront prominade -- only in a drizzle -- where we then walked about 1500 yards to the beautiful church, built in the 12th century (think 300 BC --Before Columbus!) The service was in two languages - back and forth and was attended by friends from 26 countries and every continent except Antarctica!
The cathedral was beautiful and filled with great detail.
Two of our favorite guests were Edith and Myles who hail from the Turks and Caicos Islands. We have had the pleasure of their company in Colorado as both of them have learned to conquer the slopes. Bruce is trying to persuade Myles to become the first member of the TCI Winter Olympic Team as he has become quite the racer!
The cathedral was beautiful and filled with great detail.
Claudia and her father walked down the aisle together at the start of the ceremony.
Two of our favorite guests were Edith and Myles who hail from the Turks and Caicos Islands. We have had the pleasure of their company in Colorado as both of them have learned to conquer the slopes. Bruce is trying to persuade Myles to become the first member of the TCI Winter Olympic Team as he has become quite the racer!
Friday, September 17, 2010
Rehearsal Dinner at "The Stanbrook Villa"
?The rehearsal dinner at the villa was an awesome affair. There were people from all over the world in town to celebrate the wedding. Julia and Clive invited many of them to a wonderful evening at their home for the week.
There was a long table filled with delightful Ligurian specialities all of which we sampled extensively under the tutilage of Manuel.
One of the "decorations" on the table were edible flowers made of filled mini-croissants.
The pizza oven was put to good use. Two different types of pizzas were served; both of which were delicious and flavored with a tinge of smoke.
There was a long table filled with delightful Ligurian specialities all of which we sampled extensively under the tutilage of Manuel.
One of the "decorations" on the table were edible flowers made of filled mini-croissants.
The pizza oven was put to good use. Two different types of pizzas were served; both of which were delicious and flavored with a tinge of smoke.
Another Day on the Italian Riviera
Sept 16
An amazing thing to see in all the local towns is the Trompe l'Oile on the sides of many of the buildings. One has to look very closely to note that the walls of the building are actually smooth stucco material. Some of the buildings are very elaborately painted and most are kept in excellent condition.
This moring we decided to train to Camogli where the actual wedding service will be tomorrow. It is a pleasant town on the other side of the peninsula where we are. From Camogli, we had an excellent view of Genoa. It was a little gray and windy there so there were not a lot of brave souls swimming, but it made for nice walking weather. We are going to try and update our blog this afternoon so will end now and will continue later...
Below are some examples of the Trompe l'Oeil we mentioned. Itis everywhere and often hard to tell that it is not the real thing.
An amazing thing to see in all the local towns is the Trompe l'Oile on the sides of many of the buildings. One has to look very closely to note that the walls of the building are actually smooth stucco material. Some of the buildings are very elaborately painted and most are kept in excellent condition.
This moring we decided to train to Camogli where the actual wedding service will be tomorrow. It is a pleasant town on the other side of the peninsula where we are. From Camogli, we had an excellent view of Genoa. It was a little gray and windy there so there were not a lot of brave souls swimming, but it made for nice walking weather. We are going to try and update our blog this afternoon so will end now and will continue later...
Below are some examples of the Trompe l'Oeil we mentioned. Itis everywhere and often hard to tell that it is not the real thing.
Portofino
Lunch today in Portofino included a special homemade pasta with a fresh porcini topping. The waiter finished off the hot mix inside a huge wheel of Parmesan cheese, scraping off pieces of cheese which melted into the pasta. Fabulous!
Portofino Harbor and Fishing boats...
Sept 15
Woke up to a delightful continental breakfast with a softboiled egg in the hotel breakfast room before setting out for Portofino by bus. This is quite the resort town, but before heading into town, we did a hike up a very steep hill to get a great view of the town. The stores are all very high end but the restaurants were not as pricey as we had expected. There a couple of huge yachts moored in the harbor. We heard that P Diddy had been in town on a yacht three times the size of the ones we saw. It must have been more like small ocean liner. The highlight of today was having the chance to eat Porcini mushrooms three different ways between lunch and dinner. All three were fabulous and filled us with dreams of figuring out a way to grow them back home. Wishful thinking?
First Day in Santa Margherita
View of Santa Margerhita from the Stanbrook Villa
Sept 14
Here we are in Santa Margherita, waiting for Julia and Clive to pick us up for dinner on their way back from the airport. The trudge to the train was really not all that bad. We lightened our suitcases by adding to our backpacks. Some of the biggest weight offenders are all the books we brought with us. I had tried to rip out only the pertinent, but it still is a load. We changed trains in Sestri Levanti and arrived in SM just about noon. We hauled our suitcases through town to our new digs which are delightful. It is an old house that was converted to be a B & B. The room is light and airy and perfect for us. A quick unpacking and we were on our way to grab something to eat and see a little of the town. Delicious mussels and seafood spagetti with a side of absolutely scrumptious eggplant. We headed off towards Portofino for an after lunch bout of exercise. We have been blessed with lovely weather but I guess it has only been recently nice. As a result, the beaches are quite full with late season sun worshippers. I wish I had brought my scuba documentation so I could have taken my open water test here on the Italian Riviera, oh well, next time!
We did not get all the way to Portofino today as we ran out of sidewalk/boardwalk and the way people drive on the road between the two towns, one would think they were practicing for the Grand Prix! There are some amazing villas overlooking the water and the wedding we are going to is in one of them so that will be fun. We hope to do some of the hikes in the Parc di Portofino tomorrow and the next day to help work off all the delicious treats we are experiencing. As a matter of fact, off to the Stanbrook’s rental villa for dinner...
Had such a nice with some of the Stanbrook clan in their wonderful villa the rented for the week to house much of the family who are here for the wedding festivities.The villa overlooks the town of Santa Margherita and is set on a beautiful property. Our favorite part of the house was the outdoor kitchen and sitting area as it would be so much fun to have such a spot in one’s house. Dinner started with a delicious bowl of melon laced with a touch of porto. I was surprised to like it as porto usually has too strong an alcohol taste for my liking. The second course was a delicious mixed seafood risotto filled with all sorts of clams, mussels, and other fish. This course was followed by a fish plate. Each person had a tin foil wrapped fish that had been stuffed with herbs as well as a plate of salad. Dessert was cheese and/or a warm fig dish that was scrumptious. It was great fun seeing everyone and having time to talk as I am sure the bridal dinner and wedding will not offer such an opportunity.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Last day In "5T"
September 13 Our last full day in Cinque terre
We had great plans to rise early and hike over to Monterosso today, early, before the crowds hit...Once again great plans gone awry. The festival lasted well into the night last night, and although we were not present, we could hear every note, song, cheer, etc until very late last night. As a result, we were not up as early as we had hoped. We sleep with the windows open to catch the fresh air which also means being able to hear just about every conversation/song/etc within 200 meters!
Quick cup of coffee, a banana on the road, and we were on our way. After having read many accounts of the hike from Vernazza to Monterosso we thought we were about to climb Mt Everest if not Mt Washington. Basically, it was not any more difficult than the hike from Vernazza to Corniglia, a little shorter, a few more stairs, and narrower trail at times, but not too bad. We both carried hiking sticks today which we would recommend to anyone. They helped the climbing down and the balance on the narrow parts. Many people utilize them so we did not feel like wimps.
Once again, it was amazing to see the variety of hikers we came across. One young woman was dressed in a lovely skirt and top with matching purple ballerina flats to match. I am sure by the end of her hike, they might have been candidates for the trash bin! We wonder if hiking all the trails of the Cinque Terre is some sort of rite of passage or pilgramage for the native Italians. We have defintely encountered many from all age groups. There was one runner today who basically bulled his way by everyone. As there are certain spots where only one person can pass, everyone tends to be quite curteous about letting others go. He, however, just blew on by all of us waiting for our turn...oh well.
Monterosso was a bigger town than the other towns of Cinque Terre. There is the longest beach for swimming with all sorts of umbrellas, bathing huts, and lounge chairs to be had for a few Euro. We checked out a recommended restaurant but decided against it as we were feeling very healthy from our hike and didn't want to overindulge. A half carafe of wine, an incredibly light seafood tempura, homemade pasta with seafood was the perfect meal.
At this point, Bruce and I parted ways...I to hike back to Vernazza and he to take the train back. There is only so much stress we want to put on this new hip. My return was uneventful but Bruce had a few interesting encounters. (Bruce here) Having left Gusta for her hike back, I headed back to the other side of town and the Statione, which would deliver a train back to Vernazza. On the walk back (maybe 400 meters) I came across an elderly couple - the woman in her late 70s I would guess and dressed as my mother would -- creased white pants, ironed shirt and not a hair out of place3! Her husband was gasping "how much more to the train station?" Hearing that I jumped in and pointed out the pinkish building about 200 meters away. At that point he collapsed. I caught him as his wife tried to not be embarassed (PROBABLY CALLING LAWYER FOR READING OF THE WILL) and checked for pulse -- YES -- and got water from a passing stranger to throw on him. The WIFE did not want that as his shirt had just been pressed. I waited for emergency to come and as he came to he said "I hope your aren't a Democrat" With delight I told him that was the LAST thing he should be thinking about AND JK had been my best man.
Bruce and I decided we could not leave the area without at least one swim, so we went down to the town beach and had a lovely dip. Not used to salt water so it was a bit of a shock to my eyes as I forgot to close them when I dove in. The water temp was cooler than I had expected by defintely enjoyable. On our last night we had a glass of the local wine at our favorite little spot. I managed to slip and fall on the stairs, and twisted my knee. This was a terrible blow to my ego having survived all these other hikes to end up with a sore knee from one of the many steps in town...as Dad always said, ice the first 24 hours (hope to find some)...
We have been in sporadic communication with Julia Stanbrook. Will have dinner with much of their gang tomorrow night when we move on to Santa Margherita for the wedding festivities. Meanwhile, we dread the dragging of the suitcases back down all the stairs to the train in the morning, but know we will do just fine.
Birthday in Vernazza
Sunday, Sept 12
Well, Gusta broke into a new decade today, and a wonderful birthday it was. We decided to give our feet, and all muscles a break and take a train to Manarola for a birthday lunch. Bruce’s hip has been doing incredibly well. There is no way he could have done all the walking he has done in the last few days without his new hip. We are trying to take pix to send to Tony Webber, his orthopaedic surgeon, to prove how well he has healed and is doing. However, tomorrow is the big test when we will do the hardest section of the Cinque Terre hike, going from here to Monarosso. All we have read says this is the most difficult of the hikes. We plan to make it a leisurely day so Bruce does no damage...
We had the best meal yet in Manarolla. The troffie with a pesto sauce, specialite of the region, was without a doubt the best we have ever had...makes our homemade pesto taste so plain..and the pasta was al dente and tender at thse same time. We also had a couple of delicious seafood dishes wanting to take advantage of being so close to the sea. All was good, so we decided we better walk back to Corniglia to be sure to try and work off some of the good food. We got to Corniglia and had to wait an hour and half in the very hot sun for a train as a couple of them were canceled. The big question was...”Was this a strike?”. We were not too excited about having to hike back home as we did not have hiking shoes and it would have been more than we had energy to do. Thankfully a train finally arrived and we only had a relatively short ride as the train was packed to the gills.
Well, Gusta broke into a new decade today, and a wonderful birthday it was. We decided to give our feet, and all muscles a break and take a train to Manarola for a birthday lunch. Bruce’s hip has been doing incredibly well. There is no way he could have done all the walking he has done in the last few days without his new hip. We are trying to take pix to send to Tony Webber, his orthopaedic surgeon, to prove how well he has healed and is doing. However, tomorrow is the big test when we will do the hardest section of the Cinque Terre hike, going from here to Monarosso. All we have read says this is the most difficult of the hikes. We plan to make it a leisurely day so Bruce does no damage...
We had the best meal yet in Manarolla. The troffie with a pesto sauce, specialite of the region, was without a doubt the best we have ever had...makes our homemade pesto taste so plain..and the pasta was al dente and tender at thse same time. We also had a couple of delicious seafood dishes wanting to take advantage of being so close to the sea. All was good, so we decided we better walk back to Corniglia to be sure to try and work off some of the good food. We got to Corniglia and had to wait an hour and half in the very hot sun for a train as a couple of them were canceled. The big question was...”Was this a strike?”. We were not too excited about having to hike back home as we did not have hiking shoes and it would have been more than we had energy to do. Thankfully a train finally arrived and we only had a relatively short ride as the train was packed to the gills.
Tonight there was a festival in Vernazza with some very interesting entertainments especially a group of men in orange jumpsuits,, each with a different kind of saxaphone. The music was rather jumpy but it was fun to feel part of a town party. All in all, a wonderful way to spend such a big birthday even though we could not be with everyone we love. Buena sera!
Hiking etc in the Cinque Terre
Above Vernazza at the beginning of our first big hike.
Our little evening sitting spot is on the cliff next to the white boat wake to the left of the tower.
The hike was very strenuous! Up and down hundreds of "steps" some 10" and others 16"
Bruce on the trail. The walking sticks were terrific to have along.
Our little evening sitting spot is on the cliff next to the white boat wake to the left of the tower.
The hike was very strenuous! Up and down hundreds of "steps" some 10" and others 16"
Bruce on the trail. The walking sticks were terrific to have along.
Genoa to Vernazza in the Cinque Terre
We woke early and got a cab to take us to the Statione Principe (Our #7 bus experience had made it clear that with big, heavy suitcases we never would have make it that way) At the station we confirmed ticket and fibaized second ticket on a local train: We would shoot right through our destination station of the verynice express, get off in La Spezia and wait for an hour to go back twenty minutes to Vernazza. We also confirmed that one should try and use the WC somewhere other than train stations or public places. You must pay about .30-.50 Euro to enter and receive a tiny piece of very rough paper. Not always the cleanest of places either!
Vernazza is a charming seaside city on a cliff. Guess what, the rest of the world has also figured out its charm and decided to join us here for this second week in September. We dragged our suitcases down the main and only street to our hotel. After checking in, we heaved them up about 97 steps to our room. The hotel is comprised of 7 houses, many of which are attached to each other. The village sits between the sea and some very steep hills
Vernazza is a charming seaside city on a cliff. Guess what, the rest of the world has also figured out its charm and decided to join us here for this second week in September. We dragged our suitcases down the main and only street to our hotel. After checking in, we heaved them up about 97 steps to our room. The hotel is comprised of 7 houses, many of which are attached to each other. The village sits between the sea and some very steep hills
After dropping off our stuff, we set off to discover the town and get our bearings for the next few days. We had noticed as we came in along the main street that there were numerous boats resting along the road. As we went back, we could see some of the boats being moved down to the small harbor. These boats were on small carts to make movement easier. The harbor is a small one with a massive breakwater to protect the boats. There were people swimming along the small beach and doing laps on the far side. Huge cliffs line half the harbor and looking up we could see people starting off on the hike to Manarosso. Some men in tiny bathing suits were moving more boats so that they could take a set of water polo nets out into the harbor for a very competitive game.
The back side of our hotel is a huge cliff that drops into the sea. The view is stunning and if we were many years younger, would want to jump from there into the water which is a beautiful deep blue. I'm pretty sure it would not be allowed, not safe, but still fun to think about considering such a feat. There is a small sitting area with a not so strong rail which is a very popular place to sit and drink wine in the evenings. Tomorrow we will do our first hike and see how far we get.
The back side of our hotel is a huge cliff that drops into the sea. The view is stunning and if we were many years younger, would want to jump from there into the water which is a beautiful deep blue. I'm pretty sure it would not be allowed, not safe, but still fun to think about considering such a feat. There is a small sitting area with a not so strong rail which is a very popular place to sit and drink wine in the evenings. Tomorrow we will do our first hike and see how far we get.
Evening in Vernazza
Every evening in Vernazza we would climb down a set of treacherous stairs to a lovely spot overlooking the Mediterranean Sea and enjoy a peaceful glass of wine, pleasant conversation with other travelers, and the sound of waves hitting the rocks.
While we loved our long hikes on the Cinque Terre, we found we were ready to sit quietly in the early evenings and enjoy a little rest and relaxation.
A few pictures from Genoa
Genoa from the air after a long night of travel.
The streets of many of the cities of Italy, or Europe for that matter are extremely narrow, definitely not designed for wide American cars!
The Mercarto Orientale is where much of Genoa shops for their food. The porcinin mushrooms are just coming in and can be seen everywhere!
The streets of many of the cities of Italy, or Europe for that matter are extremely narrow, definitely not designed for wide American cars!
The Mercarto Orientale is where much of Genoa shops for their food. The porcinin mushrooms are just coming in and can be seen everywhere!
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Genova
Ciao! Just back from a long day in Genova (Italian Spelling of Genoa), supposed birthplace of Christopher Columbus. There is apparently some dispute on that claim, but who are we to judge. It is a city that is not as popular as many other Italian cities yet it sits in a beautiful spot on the Mediterrean Sea with beautiful hills all over. It is a very large port city with many of the pluses and negatives often associated with ports. Parts of it reminded of us of the narrow alleyways of Barcelona. We keep reading that they should be avoided at night, but were fine during the day! Some of the "streets" are only 6' wide! We had great fun wending our way around the city in the hunt for various shops, and sights we had read about in our numerous books. It has not been easy to find much information about Genova, especially compared to other cities in the country, so we did not have a terribly long list of "must sees" which is just as well considering it was only our first day.
We had found a wonderful book about eating in Italy (Italy for the Gourmet Traveler) which told of some wonderful places to visit, but we were only able to find one! The book was first written in 1996, and although updated since then, it would seem that Genoa was not high on the priority list. We did manage to find an excellent though quite expensive restaurant down by the sea. Bruce had fish tartare and a cooked tuna dish, while I had a fabulous proscetto and buffalo mozzarella (from the milk of buffalo - who knows where they get the milk,but oh so yummy) and a grilled calamari with basil and tomato dish. Bread and water for dinner tonight!
The one store we did manage to find was a treasure trove of pasta cookware, cutting utensils (a different kind for every type of pasta it seems), and Christmas creche ornaments. The two women were delightful and we had fun trying to communicate with them. Another plus was a visit to the Marketo Orientale which is the Genoa version of a farmer's/fisherman's/cheesemaker's, etc market. It was filled with afabulous bounty that made us wish we had access to a kitchen of our own
Despite the friendly ladies' directions we were totally lost upon leaving the store and trying to find our way to the Metro. Returning to the hotel which is outside of town about 10 kilometres was an adventureall in of itself. I felt a little like "Charlie on the MTA" . We had taken the number 7 bus into town and figured we should just get on the number 7 at the same stop where we got off which we had thought was the end of the line. Little did we realize that this would take us on the rest of the route before we actually circled back to "our" stop and saw that for the return we should have walked down the street about ten yards to the outward bound stop.
Tomorrow, we get on a train to La Spezia, where we board a local train heading to the Cinque Terre. Not sure when we will be able to post again as connectivity may be an issue. Till then, buena sera.
We had found a wonderful book about eating in Italy (Italy for the Gourmet Traveler) which told of some wonderful places to visit, but we were only able to find one! The book was first written in 1996, and although updated since then, it would seem that Genoa was not high on the priority list. We did manage to find an excellent though quite expensive restaurant down by the sea. Bruce had fish tartare and a cooked tuna dish, while I had a fabulous proscetto and buffalo mozzarella (from the milk of buffalo - who knows where they get the milk,but oh so yummy) and a grilled calamari with basil and tomato dish. Bread and water for dinner tonight!
The one store we did manage to find was a treasure trove of pasta cookware, cutting utensils (a different kind for every type of pasta it seems), and Christmas creche ornaments. The two women were delightful and we had fun trying to communicate with them. Another plus was a visit to the Marketo Orientale which is the Genoa version of a farmer's/fisherman's/cheesemaker's, etc market. It was filled with afabulous bounty that made us wish we had access to a kitchen of our own
Despite the friendly ladies' directions we were totally lost upon leaving the store and trying to find our way to the Metro. Returning to the hotel which is outside of town about 10 kilometres was an adventureall in of itself. I felt a little like "Charlie on the MTA" . We had taken the number 7 bus into town and figured we should just get on the number 7 at the same stop where we got off which we had thought was the end of the line. Little did we realize that this would take us on the rest of the route before we actually circled back to "our" stop and saw that for the return we should have walked down the street about ten yards to the outward bound stop.
Tomorrow, we get on a train to La Spezia, where we board a local train heading to the Cinque Terre. Not sure when we will be able to post again as connectivity may be an issue. Till then, buena sera.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Bonjour! Nous sommes en Paris. We had a long flight over and are waiting for our flight to Genoa. I am trying to type on a French keyboard which proves to challenging if I do not keep both eyes on it. For instance I can not seem to find the apostrophe key, hence no abbreviations! Lots of accent keys and figuring out the @ key was a challenge. Off to gate..au revoir, Paris; buongiorno, Genoa!
Monday, September 6, 2010
Packin' and cleanin'
We leave tomorrow morning! Most everything is packed and we are trying to get the house ready for departure. Check back for updates as we begin our new adventure. Ciao!
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Getting Ready!
In less than three weeks we will be heading to Italy to attend the wedding of a close and dear couple we have known for a number of years. Claudia is of Italian descent with family in the area which is why they have chosen Santa Margherita in Liguria as the site of their big day. Ivor is the son of a Milton classmate who knows how to ski us silly, Ivor, not Clive! We are honored to have been invited and looking forward to the happy event as well as catching up with Clive's wife, Julia, and the rest of the family.
To celebrate our own sixtieth birthdays, we are staying on and traveling about Liguria and Tuscany where we hope to have a great adventure in traveling, eating and meeting new friends. We have been trying to learn a little of the Italian language, but have only advanced through the first level. Arrivederci per il momento...
To celebrate our own sixtieth birthdays, we are staying on and traveling about Liguria and Tuscany where we hope to have a great adventure in traveling, eating and meeting new friends. We have been trying to learn a little of the Italian language, but have only advanced through the first level. Arrivederci per il momento...
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