Italian Riviera Adventure Guide articles from January 1 2006

Italian Riviera Adventure Guide archives from January 1 2006

Introduction.
January 1, 2006... The scent of herbs and pines, the startling blue of the sea. The brilliant white of cliffs tumbling into the depths, the bronze of suntanned skin. The sound of pounding surf, the chiming of church bells. The sight of mountain peaks that break...

Practicalities of travel.
January 1, 2006... * When to Go, Where to Go Once you've fallen in love with the idea of vacationing on the Italian Riviera, it's time to do your homework and nail down all the practicalities. When to go, where to go, and settling the issue of...

History.(Genoa)
January 1, 2006... Two marble-carved lions crouch flanking the stairs leading to the entrance of Genoa's monumental cathedral of San Lorenzo. Their proud features are marred by graffiti--cartoonish scribbles rendering their expression more pathetic than fierce....

Getting there.(Genoa)
January 1, 2006... By Plane: Genoa is home to the Aeroporto Internazionale Cristoforo Colombo, conveniently located on a man-made peninsula four miles from the city center (see www.airport.genova.it). There are no direct flights to Genoa from the United States,...

Being there.(Genoa)
January 1, 2006... So crammed with palaces, cathedrals, and other medieval dwellings that the buildings sport trompe l'oeil frescoes rather than stucco embellishments, Genoa at first seems to have too much of everything--people, traffic, trash, noise--crammed...

Museum pass.(Genoa: Being There)
January 1, 2006... If you're planning on visiting many museums in Genoa--and you should, both for the collections themselves and for the magnificent buildings that house them--invest in a Museum Card. It shaves a few euros off the admission to 20 of the city's...

Porto Antico.(Genoa: Being There)
January 1, 2006... The mid-1980s found Genoa at a pivotal moment. Changes in technology, demand, and common practices threatened to render shipbuilding and the other heavy industrial activities of the port obsolete. Meanwhile, at the same time as tourism was...

Centro Storico.(Genoa: Being There)
January 1, 2006... Bordered by the streets Via Balbi, Via Cairoli, Via Garibaldi, Via XXV Aprile, and Via San Lorenzo, and fronted by the colonnaded waterfront of the Ripa, the Centro Storico encapsulates medieval Genoa. Moving through the narrow, twisting...

Modern Genoa.(Genoa: Being There)
January 1, 2006... Crossing over the boundaries of the Centro Storico you enter modern Genoa. The streets broaden and straighten, displaying that 19th-century penchant for the thoroughfare that was part of a new social development, urban planning. Genoa had a...

Only in Genoa.(Genoa: Being There)
January 1, 2006... Via di Pre The Via di Pre, a porticoed street running just below and parallel to Via Balbi, is a study in contrasts to the prosperity of the palace districts. Women in traditional costume sit holding babies and selling cigarettes and...

For active travelers.(Genoa: Being There)
January 1, 2006... Swimming On the waterfront adjacent to the Magazzini del Cotone (former cotton warehouses), the Piscina Porto Antico is a public pool with sunbathing areas and a cafe. On summer evenings the location hosts musical activities. Open June...

Portofino Promontory.(Riviera di Levante)
January 1, 2006... East of Genoa lies the Portofino Promontory, an outcrop of land separating the Golfo Paradiso and the Golfo del Tigullio. On the otherwise smooth arc of eastern Liguria it is an anomaly jutting out into the blue sea, capped by the heights of...

Zoagli--Levanto.(Riviera di Levante)
January 1, 2006... Between the Portofino Promontory and the Cinque Terre is a straight stretch of coastline spotted with fishing and resort towns of varying sizes. Settlement in the area depended on the vagaries of available terrain. Zoagli, a small fishing...

The Cinque Terre.(Riviera di Levante)
January 1, 2006... The Cinque Terre is arguably the most famous region of Liguria, and the crowds of (mostly American) tourists hiking the trails and sunning themselves on rocky jetties come summer seems testimony that the formerly secret spot is now...

The Bay of La Spezia.(Riviera di Levante)
January 1, 2006... The area around the Bay of La Spezia was immortalized in the 19th century by Byron and Shelley, the two poets of the Romantic era who lived, worked, loved, and--in the case of Shelley--died on the bay. It was under their influence that the...

Parks of the Portofino Promontory.(Riviera di Levante)
January 1, 2006... Lush with Mediterranean maquis, groves of citrus, and woods of chestnut and olives, and dotted with ancient coastal villages maintaining traditional crafts and activities, the Portofino Promontory is one of Liguria's natural and cultural...

Parks of the Cinque Terre.(Riviera di Levante)
January 1, 2006... In a region of so much beauty, the Cinque Terre stands apart as uniquely scenic and memorable. It's a comprehensive loveliness, born of the harmonious relationship between people and nature. Thousands of miles of dry-stone walls enclose...

Ventimiglia--Bussana Vecchia.(Riviera di Ponente)
January 1, 2006... Liguria's westernmost region bears an international stamp, which is hardly surprising as it's just a stone's throw from France. Traveling on the A10 autostrada, the signs near Ventimiglia are in French and in English, and the seaside towns...

Val Nervia.(Riviera di Ponente)
January 1, 2006... Leaving the sea behind at Ventimiglia you enter the Val Nervia, which stretches for 20 km/12 miles up toward the Maritime Alps. The River Nervia winds through the bottom with many of the valley's towns dotted along its banks. The first is...

Valle Argentina--Imperia.(Riviera di Ponente)
January 1, 2006... Though the coast of this stretch of the western Riviera is dotted with resort towns, some of the most interesting places to visit and explore lie inland. During the period of burgeoning international commerce that began in the Middle Ages,...

Diano Marina--Pietre Ligure.(Riviera di Ponente)
January 1, 2006... Heading east around a villa-dotted promontory from Imperia is a stretch of coast that enjoyed the height of fame in the mid-19th century when its resorts became popular with post-WWII travelers to the Riviera. Diano Marino was once an...

Il Finalese: Finale Ligure--Bergeggi.(Riviera di Ponente)
January 1, 2006... The region known as Il Finalese--a long stretch of rugged coastline backed by the Manie plateau and the high inland region of the Val Bormida--has for centuries represented a kind of border. In its earliest history it was the dividing line...

Savona-Varazze.(Riviera di Ponente)
January 1, 2006... As you approach Savona from the west there's an almost palpable tug exerted by Genoa, which is now just a short distance away. Akin to the suburbs of Genoa, the outskirts of Savona (the largest town on the western Riviera) are framed in...

Where to stay.
January 1, 2006... The following list of places to stay includes hotels (alberghi or pensione), bed & breakfasts, and a few agriturismo location--working farms or vineyards that provide comfortable rooms in a rural setting. For booking purposes, I recommend...

Where to eat.
January 1, 2006... Liguria is the place to realize your fantasy of eating your way across Italy. It's on a smaller scale--which promises to go lightly on your waistline--and presents great variety of cuisine. (For more on regional dishes, see page 21, Cuisine...