Back in the flow a bit with what appeared at daybreak to be another beautiful, sunny day! We saw this coming......both in the weather forecast on our phones, and the clear skies of Monday evening. Today we start with the view that we have taken 10,000 photos of. We then headed down for breakfast. Today was Karela's last day and she was heading off to Milan for an overnight and a morning flight tomorrow from Malpensa. Arriving today would be Grace Schulman, a renowned poet and former fellow (94 years old) who will be presenting at the poetry festival tomorrow night at the Villa (more on that later, probably in tomorrow's blog).
We had a plan to be fairly organized and leave the Villa by 10:00.........which almost worked. I had a couple of painful problems emerge in the office that soured things a bit, but I recovered quickly and we were in the car by 10:15.
SESTRI LEVANTE
Sestri Levante (Latin: Segesta Tigullorum/Segesta Tigulliorum) is a town and comune in the Metropolitan City of Genoa, Liguria, Italy. Lying on the Mediterranean Sea, it is approximately 40 km (25 miles) south-east of Genoa and is set on a promontory. While nearby Portofino and the Cinque Terre are probably the best-known tourist destinations on the Italian Riviera, Sestri Levante has become popular among Italians. This once quiet fishing village has slowly turned into a tourist hotspot, developing an old and a new town. The people of Sestri Levante often use the expression: "Sestri รจ scialla". This expression symbolizes the quiet nature of the city of Sestri Levante, known for its stunning views.
Sestri Levante is found approximately halfway between Genoa and La Spezia. The town has two bays: Baia delle Favole, (Bay of the Fables), and Baia del Silenzio, the (Bay of Silence). The original part of Sestri Levante is actually on a peninsula, with the Baia del Silenzio (also known as "Portobello") on one side and Baia delle Favole on the other. Baia delle Favole or “Bay of Fairy Tales” was named in honor of Danish writer, Hans Christian Andersen, who lived in Sestri Levante for a short time in 1833.
We made the drive in about 45 minutes and found a great parking space on the main street. I have to admit that I could not find out how to work the parking 'pay' machine and decided to skip it.......after all, it was a Tuesday and not a good day for tourist parking tickets? ( the strategy worked......there for 4 hours and no ticket!)
We spent the next couple of hours wandering around town. Our first stop was at a cafe actually on the beach. It was a fantastic location and a great place for a cappuccino! with real sand and no rocks!
We meandered after that and saw a variety of stores that we had visited in previous visits......and ended up finding a couple of items for the 'grandchildren.'
We also stumbled into a wonderful church, the Basilica di Santa Maria di Nazareth, just in time to hear an incredible organ recital (maybe Sunday practice?)......short video clip attached.
We had planned all along to hopefully have lunch at a restaurant on the beach where we had stopped on our last trip in 2019. It was still there, and actually even better than we remembered. It is an actual beach 'club' with full beach amenities, lockers, showers, etc., with a wonderful outdoor bar and restaurant.
We arrived early and were the only ones having lunch for over an hour. The food was amazing and the ambiance nearly put us to sleep. It is truly a special place. We agreed to try local fish......so we split a first course of tomatoes, burrata and anchovies, and for our second courses Andrea had amazing fried sardines and I had grilled polpo (octopus) that was delicious.
CHECK OUT THE SIGN AT THE BATHOUSE KEY BOARD
Our car under the palm trees!
