It’s a travel day! It’s always fun to be off to someplace you’ve never been to before. In this case, we’re on the road to Alba, in northwestern Italy. To get to Alba, we’ll drive up the beautiful Italian coastline from Santa Margherita Ligure to Genoa – you know, where Christopher Columbus was born. At Genoa, we’ll turn inland and head northwest toward Asti, (as in “Asti Spumante”), and then into Alba. Let’s go! Continue reading “The Road to Alba”
Category: Northern Italy
Last Night in Santa Margherita Ligure
It’s our last night in Santa Margherita Ligure. Tomorrow morning we’ll hit the road and drive to our next home base – Alba. Alba isn’t a major tourist destination. It’s not Florence or Rome, but it is in one of the best wine-growing regions in Italy, and it’s the home of the world’s most famous truffle festival. Continue reading “Last Night in Santa Margherita Ligure”
A Slice of Life in Santa Margherita Ligure
If you’ve been following along, you probably think there’s an error in the title of this post. It should be a slice of CAKE in Santa Margherita Ligure, no? We did see a lot of great-looking cakes this morning, that’s for sure. And they did make us hungry. But now it’s time for lunch. So instead of cake, we’re going to have a nice Italian lunch while we’re treated to a slice of life in Santa Margherita Ligure. Continue reading “A Slice of Life in Santa Margherita Ligure”
Santa Margherita Ligure – Bakery Row
The Italian Riviera is dotted with small coastal towns, each with their own character. We had planned to take a drive along the coast today and visit one or two. Maybe Chiavare or Sestri Levante. But after yesterday’s excitement, we decided to just take it easy and take a walk around town. I’m glad we did, too, because we stumbled upon what one might call Santa Margherita Ligure’s “Bakery Row.” Continue reading “Santa Margherita Ligure – Bakery Row”
Robbed at Cinque Terre Part 2 – Getting-Robbed Hangover
We’ve spent the last few days in Santa Margherita Ligure, using it as our home base for exploring this part of the Italian coast. Yesterday was our “Cinque Terre” day. It went off-course when someone picked my pocket at the train station in Vernazza. No real harm was done, other than losing some cash, but today I have what one might call a “getting-robbed hangover.” Continue reading “Robbed at Cinque Terre Part 2 – Getting-Robbed Hangover”
Robbed at Cinque Terre!
Today we were in Vernazza, one of the five Cinque Terre towns on the Italian coast. We had a great lunch at a restaurant overlooking the marina – a gorgeous setting. We were enjoying life. Little did we know that we were about to be robbed while at Cinque Terre. Continue reading “Robbed at Cinque Terre!”
Lunch in Vernazza
Cinque Terre – Five Lands – is a string of five picturesque fishing villages on the Italian Riviera. This morning we took the train from Santa Margherita Ligure to the southern-most Cinque Terre village, Riomaggiore. Now we’re ready to have lunch in Vernazza. Continue reading “Lunch in Vernazza”
Cinque Terre, Starting with Riomaggiore
It’s finally our “Cinque Terre” day. We’ve seen photographs of these picturesque little fishing villages in travel magazines and on calendars for years. I guess curiosity got the best of us, because we just had to come and see them for ourselves. So today we’ll take a train ride to Cinque Terre, starting with Riomaggiore. Continue reading “Cinque Terre, Starting with Riomaggiore”
Dinner at Nonna’s House
We’re settling in for dinner at a quaint little restaurant in Santa Margherita Ligure. If you’re lucky enough to have a little Italian grandmother – a “nonna” – the feeling in this restaurant might be similar to that of your nonna’s house. And so far, the only person we’ve seen working here is a lady who looks like she must certainly be somebody’s little Italian grandmother. It’s like we’re having dinner at Nonna’s house. Continue reading “Dinner at Nonna’s House”
Portofino, Santa Margherita Ligure, and Mr. T
Portofino is a beautiful little town on the Italian Riviera. We’ve just had the grand tour, provided by a most-engaging Portofino taxi driver. Now we’re back in Santa Margherita Ligure, making dinner plans. I read about a restaurant here that’s supposed to be like eating at your Italian nonna’s house. I don’t have an Italian nonna, but it sounds molto buono, eh? Continue reading “Portofino, Santa Margherita Ligure, and Mr. T”
