August 24
On August 23 we were in Civitavecchia, a port near Rome. It was the end and beginning of a new cruise for most people on board. But, we stayed on board since we were continuing on for the next leg. It was a bit like a sea day for us. We didn’t do much at all. We caught up on the BLOG. It was a much needed day of relaxing.
The next day we were in Portofino, Italy. We woke up to the sunrise lighting up a ship anchored near where we anchored.
Portofino is a small town (450 permanent residents) that is famous for its beauty. Many of the rich and famous have stayed here and extolled its virtues. We didn’t see anyone the we recognized.
Portofino has a small natural bay. Because of the bay and its seclusion, pirates used it as a hiding place going out to ambush ships that were sailing by.
Here is a picture of Portofino and a bit of the bay.
We had an excursion which was a boat ride along the coast with short visits to two coastal towns. As sailed we up the coast there were a number of gorgeous and unusual homes (mansions). According to our guide they were private residences. Here are picture of a few of them.
This one was right on the water. Can you imagine the prep work on this site?
I could see a reading room in the top structure. Some are built to mimic castles (at least in part).
The house on the left has a funicular for access to the water.
The first town we visited was Rapollo, a town of about 40,000 residents. In the early 1900s, Brits and Scandinavians came here to escape their winters. Eventually they wanted a space by the sea (the local residents tended to live inland to be safe from the pirates). The seaside town was mostly built after the influx of snow birds.
We learned some investing history about the town and had 40 minutes to wander around before reboarding our boat.
Our final stop was in Sestri Levante. The population is about 20,000 and while it is not as famous as Portofino, it is becoming a favorite for Italian tourists. We had a short walking tour with our guide and them about 30 minutes of free time. We enjoyed a gelato (our favorite indulgence in Italy) and visits a few of the shops in the very busy shopping district. It was a beach day as you can see from the pictures below.
Lots and lots of people on the beach. I could’t resist taking this photo.
We boarded the boat and headed back to Portofino where we had a nice lunch on floating dock. Carol had a nice portion of pasta and tomato sauce and I had a salad Nicoise. Both were very good. Judging by the price of our lunch (8 Euros for a Coke Zero and 10 Euros for the equivalent of Italian Budweiser), Portofino is an expensive town. BTW, if Chuck looks hot in that picture, he was.
After lunch we wandered around town before heading back to our ship.
One of the few streets in town. A fruit market.
Chuck took the picture on the left as we walked up the street. It was a picturesque windows. Later, as we were walking back, Caroline took the picture on the right. No wasted space.
Caroline stated that she had found her yacht. I told her that when she makes her fist $2M we will buy it.
Another very nice day in a beautiful spot.