That aside, I was up super early on Saturday morning to catch the cab at 4 am. Yuck. BUT I scored big time when my three friends also had to be at the airport at the crack of dawn. Way to save £35 on a cab ride! It was awesome. From London to Pisa, on a train to Pisa Centrale, then to La Spezia, my mother and I texted each other. I think we were both pretty excited.
I arrived at the La Spezia station and expected my mother to be standing on the platform, waiving a white scarf (yup, I'm serious) and tearing up a little. Too bad the train schedules are so fickle in Italy: she was totally thinking of doing just that, minus the white scarf for some odd reason, but was at the wrong track. At long last, I met the two of them as they rounded a corner, fresh-faced and eager to see me. Here were the smiling faces I later captured on the train ride to Riomaggiore:
On the way to the villa, we chatted and I snapped some images of the local sites. It was a beautiful fishing village that many people have recommended visiting. I will admit I'd probably never find myself there, but had a wonderful time with my family. :)
This collection of wine bottles ebbed and flowed with the days of the weeks my folks were at the villa. They weren't sure to whom they belonged, but they did find counting them day by day rather amusing.
Since we were hungry and I was a little travel-lagged, we stopped into the local restaurant-with-a-view-of-the-sea for some panini, wine, and olives. So begins the good life.
I think this guy has seen a few good lives ;)
I think this guy has seen a few good lives ;)
Night One: the casual self-timed shot.
After checking out this radical fisherman...
we took a tour of the town's "main drag".
Saw how some things are made...
and marveled at Main Street Riomaggiore: a thriving metropolis
(wink wink).
(wink wink).
Dinner was at our favourite local restaurante on notte uno. Talking with the hands...we're so Italian now.
Check out that fresh lobster!
Fresh off the boat from Jolly Olde, I was quite happy to be with the Mother Hen. Equally enjoyable was the time spent with Doug. This was the longest time I'd ever spent with him in life (gasp!) and not only is he a lovely man, but he has the funniest stories to tell about life here in England. Told me that they'd have to come over and "show me around". I'll take it!
A little serenade for the walk home ;)
Day two train trip out to Rapallo and adjacent towns started with a failed self-timed group shot...
Thanks for this one, Mum!
We whipped through Moneglia...
whipped past the seaside by train...
and finally rested in the cozy Rapallo.
(some of us resting more than others! Don't you just love her?!)
One of my mum's favourite expressions from Eat Pray Love is, "Dolce far niente", which roughly translates into "the sweetness of doing nothing". No one does it as well as some of the people we saw here. Swoon.
Le Petit Prince!
This began the climb up the 6 kilometres to Zoaglia. I took a more scenic route than my folks, dipping into alley ways and up random staircases. In the end, we dodged traffic, got really annoyed, sweat excessively, then wound up in a great town. Well worth the adventure, but isn't that always the case?
The Riviera stretched on and on alongside the windy road.
The Thinker
At last! Civilization!
The wild calla lilies were just breathtaking.
And this is it, folks: Zoaglia.
What a great place for some bread, prosciutto, cheese, gelato, and lattes.
What a great place for some bread, prosciutto, cheese, gelato, and lattes.
This was more of a beach than I'd seen anywhere else. The Italians are awesome: they'll turn any rock or semi-flat surface into a tanning spot. Love the attitude.
We boarded a train at Zoaglia and rode it as far as the next town.
We sat near this couple who told us in the snobbiest way possible that they were grad students, living in Florence. Well, well, well, hoity toity...wait to see what happens to US next.
We were asked to move twice because other riders had those assigned seats (first sign that something might be wrong), then were asked to show our tickets. Since we didn't have them, we asked politely to just buy them on board (not usually a problem: Jamie and I did it all the time on board). The train operator lady (her official title) didn't speak English well, but her handy dandy electronic ticket dispenser sure did: the ride back to La Spezia would cost us €183 EACH. The cost of the comfortable Eurostar train was certainly not worth that much, so we told her we'd get off.
"When should we get off?" we asked, as the train was stopping.
"Now."
"Now?"
"NOW!"
Righto.
Feeling VERY embarrassed and jolted, we shook it off after a peek at the schedule. We had a bit of time to wait.
We sat near this couple who told us in the snobbiest way possible that they were grad students, living in Florence. Well, well, well, hoity toity...wait to see what happens to US next.
We were asked to move twice because other riders had those assigned seats (first sign that something might be wrong), then were asked to show our tickets. Since we didn't have them, we asked politely to just buy them on board (not usually a problem: Jamie and I did it all the time on board). The train operator lady (her official title) didn't speak English well, but her handy dandy electronic ticket dispenser sure did: the ride back to La Spezia would cost us €183 EACH. The cost of the comfortable Eurostar train was certainly not worth that much, so we told her we'd get off.
"When should we get off?" we asked, as the train was stopping.
"Now."
"Now?"
"NOW!"
Righto.
Feeling VERY embarrassed and jolted, we shook it off after a peek at the schedule. We had a bit of time to wait.
We were held over for a half hour in the small town of Chiavali, which turned out to be just adorable. Good things happen for a reason ;)
LOVE this picture:
J'adore red pants
I swooned pretty hard for this little town and it's collection of bicycles.
Night two's sunset.
Mum and I in the villa's kitchen before a great meal out at the top of the village's main drag in Riomaggiore. There we heard Americans in all their glory talking about California and the great food...blah blah blah. We were much more interesting.
We ate stuffed gnocchi and salad that night. This is what Italy is all about.
The blurry, darkened walk from the villa to the restaurant...
I thought the boats looked so majestic at night. Shame I wasn't able to capture them better.
I inadvertantly snapped this photo of this Italian man getting ready for something on a rock. I just wanted the scenery, but it acted as a better backdrop to his story instead...
because he later whipped out this foam "bed", disrobed, and sunned himself in his shorts-Speedo. La Dolce Vita, friends.
The fishing boats of Riomaggiore...
On day three, after a homemade egg and heirloom tomato breakfast, we took a walk along the footpath to the adjacent city, Manarola. Yours Truly was pretty happy about the amount of sunshine she was getting on this face...
The view along the path...
Locks of Love.
Lovers buy a lock, attach it to this wall, then throw the key into the sea. Quote of the day:
"I can't believe you don't want to be a part of this."
The Three Amigos
Teeny Manarola, in all her glory:
Awesome cafe and machinery...
After our long walk, I made a big pasta and salad dinner for everyone. It was amazing to eat the food of the land, to enjoy each other's company, and revel in the fact that our time just flew by.
When I woke up on my last day in Italy, I was sick as a dog. I had a flu or food poisoning. Not that it matters: I was freezing, sweaty, just really poorly. My poor mother was beside herself. I consumed one flaky cookie, some Sprite, and a few bites of pancetta-covered bruschetta. Not exactly enough to sustain me for the whole day that included
an intensely hot ride into La Spezia,
followed by an hour-long ride into Pisa,
a dash from one train platform to another in very few moments,
a plane ride to Malaga,
and a 45-minute wait at the arrivals gate waiting for my friend.
followed by an hour-long ride into Pisa,
a dash from one train platform to another in very few moments,
a plane ride to Malaga,
and a 45-minute wait at the arrivals gate waiting for my friend.
I was just about on death's door. Here is a pic of the Mother Hen and I mere moments before we departed company...
So not thrilled but hey, this is my real life. And it's a pretty good one.
No comments:
Post a Comment