Tuesday, May 28, 2013

For the Love of Italy


I got married in February, but we didn’t go on our honeymoon until this past week. Traveling around Europe by plane is fairly cheap, and we had started to plan this trip in January. We wanted something romantic and different … and that’s exactly what we got in the Italian Riviera. Since we had a wonderful time, and the places we visited brought inspiration to artists, I thought I’d share a tiny bit of our experience with you.

Most people know of Portofino and the Cinque Terre, but I found a gem of a place called Porto Venere. It had so much character with plenty of things to see and do. Porto Venere was built in 1160 A.D. It’s part of the Golfo dei Poeti (Gulf of Poets), a place where poets such as Lord Byron, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Dickens and others found inspiration. Below are a few pictures of Porto Venere’s seaport. 



We also took a few night pictures. Here's one of them.

This is considered the inside of the old entrance gateway. Above the gateway is a fresco of the “Madonna Bianca” from the 15th century. To the left, are one of the many sets of stairs that lead up to the Castle Doria.



Here’s a night picture of the gateway.


Carugio O Via G. Capellini is the main street. It’s the leftover of the past, and admired for its integrity. These pictures are a few things we saw on the street.





A night picture of Capellini street.

At the tip of Porto Venere stands the Church of S. Pietro. It’s presumed that it was a pagan temple for Venus Erycina, in which the name Porto Veneris is derived, and then the site was transformed into a Christian temple. The current church was built in 1256 A.D. by the Genoese.



These are a few pictures of the door and the inside of S. Pietro.





Here is a picture taken from a boat.


Right by S. Pietro is Byron’s Grotto. It’s the place where Lord Byron swam and found inspiration for his poetry.
  


On our first day, we ventured all around Porto Venere. Climbing up one of the many staircases that lead to the Church of Lorenzo and Castle Doria, we snapped a few shots of things we saw along the way. Below are pictures taken to and from the Church of Lorenzo.


 

From here, we continued our ascent to Castle Doria, built in 1161. Parts of the castle are from a reconstruction in 1458.



 
These pictures are views from the Castle Doria. 




My husband and I are not ones to sit around and relax when we go on vacation. We love to explore and see different things. Across from Porto Venere are three islands; Island Palmaria being the largest of the other two, Tino and Tinetto. I suggested to my husband that we take a walk around the island. Crazy me didn’t realize that walking the island meant rock climbing. We were in for a rude awakening. Below are views of Porto Venere and S. Pietro taken from Island Palmaria and the island itself.





While we explored the Gulf of Poets and onward, we drove through the mountains, at one point reaching 1,900 feet. Here are a few pictures. 



We took a train one day, and a boat the next to explore the Cinque Terre. The Cinque Terre is a portion of coast in the Liguria region of the Italian Riviera. It’s comprised of “The Five Lands”’: Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore. In October 2011, the villages of the Cinque Terre were affected by floods and mudslides, Monterosso and Vernazza having the most damage. Below are a few pictures of each place.

Monterosso



Vernazza




Corniglia


 


  
Manarola  


 

 Riomaggiore






Portofino was our last excursion and I'm glad we didn't spend much time there. It’s one of the well-known places in the Italian Riviera, but in my opinion, it doesn’t have Italian charm. The buildings are fake with paintings of windows and other designs. It didn’t have the flare of other Italian villages, and the streets were lined with high-end shopping; Gucci, Pucci, and any other Ucci. Here are a few pictures.




We filled our days with adventure, focaccia, seafood and wine, and I wouldn’t want to have experienced it with any one else.

I hope you enjoyed my little trip down memory lane … even though it was 5 days ago.:D

Italy and Old Worlds,
Bea

16 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness, Congrats, Denise, on your marriage! So happy for you!! Italy is absolutely beautiful, your pictures are so awesome. Wow, stunning. That's interesting about Portofino and so funny about "Gucci, Pucci and any other Ucci," haha.
    I was actually just looking at pictures of Italy couple weeks ago and I have a pic of Italy from the interwebs as my work desktop screen. It's nice to read and see pics of your recent trip. What a romantic trip that's for sure! :)

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    1. Thanks much, Natalie! I'm glad you enjoyed the pictures, and the warning about Ucci's. :)

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  2. What a stunning locale for a honeymoon! I can't wait until I can get back to Europe again someday. One of my favorite things about visiting the Greek Isles were all of the narrow, winding roads.

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    1. Don't forget. If you ever make it out here, I'd love to meet up. And I agree about the narrow, winding roads. It's like you're on a secret adventure.

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  3. I have never been to Europe. It is one I would still like to spend time exploring. My wife has always wanted to go to Venice. The architecture and food are huge grabs for me.

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    1. Seafood is one of my favorite things to eat, so I was in my glory here. My husband is more of a meat man, but he agreed that when you're staying by the sea, you gotta take the opportunity to eat seafood.

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  4. Wow! Amazing photos from a fabulousness and well deserved honeymoon . I'm glad you finally got to go on your honeymoon . My husband and I both had work obligations so we agreed to put ours off as well, I'm still waiting, lol. We've taken many trips over the years but we never had an official honeymoon and I swear I feel like something is missing . The photos are magnificent. What a fantastic trip.

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    1. Hello Melissa, Thanks much. Sorry to hear you haven't had an official honeymoon, but that probably means you'll have one spectacular one on a special anniversary. :)

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  5. Ahhh. Just beautiful! It's funny you mention the narrow streets in the comments. I was just thinking about Europe yesterday afternoon as I sat in the car with my daughter who's learning to drive (with her permit). I was quite nervous until we got to a neighborhood with nice, wide streets where there was lots of room for traffic flow. And for whatever the reason, I thought about how crazy-narrow the streets of Europe are—and how treacherous that would be for driving lessons! LOL

    But back to your honeymoon... Those are great pictures; it looks like you packed a lot in and were privy to some stunning scenery. Do you ever get tired of hearing me say how 1.) I'm jealous, and, 2.) I love to live vicariously through your expatriate adventures?! ;-)

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    1. I can't believe you have a daughter with a driving permit. You're the same age as I am and I couldn't imagine having a child getting ready to drive. Driving in the U.S. is much easier and it's easier getting a license than it is in Germany. You wind up spending lots of money in Germany to get a license.

      I do enjoy all the things we see and experience, but there are some things I miss from the States...like beef sandwiches and a kick ass cheeseburger. LOL!

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    2. Oh I hear ya! It all comes down to the food when you're from Chicago, don'tcha know! We can't help it! ;-)

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  6. Thanks so much for sharing the pictures and descriptions. I thoroughly enjoyed them! I'll be sharing your praise of Porto Venere with my brother-in-law who leaves for Italy on June 10th for a three month stay. He does this every couple of years to be with family he has over there.
    Take care,

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    1. Hey Veejay! Nice to see you here. Sorry I'm responding so late. I was on another weekend excursion.

      Definitely tell your brother-in-law about Porto Venere. It's a great place.

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  7. Wow, that is just simply amazing. Also, congratulations! The wife and I just celebrated our two year anniversary and haven't yet gone on our honeymoon (money constraints), so I'm very envious!

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    1. Thanks BFTS. Congratulations to you on your two year anniversary. I hear you about money constraints. If it wasn't so cheap to fly to places within Europe, we wouldn't have been able to make this trip. I'm sure when the time comes, you'll have a wonderful and well-deserved honeymoon. You have that movie going for you and I'll certainly let people know about it. Take care.

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  8. Hi, thanks for your support. I have nominated you for a Sunshine Award. You have such great photography skills as evident in this post. I love your poetry too.

    http://mary-anderingcreatively.blogspot.com/

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