We took the train up the coast a bit to a town we had checked out called Dieva Marina.
After leaving the crowds of the Cinque Terre it was almost unbelievable that we would find a little place this close in the same area, one that was quiet and still on the ocean too!
We checked into our new home called the Kriss Hotel or as locals call it Residence Kriss. I highly recommend this place and the owners will treat you very well at a decent price. Add to that Maria who served us our breakfast every morning was so nice we would have liked to sneak her home with us!
Most of the people in this town are locals. At the time of our arrival there were very few tourists and hardly any from North America at all! Most were from Europe.
Our lil boutique hotel was well located a block from the beach and everything in town is within walking distance. Food prices were much more reasonable and one could tell there was less and less English spoken in this area. Heck there was even a camp ground near by where people were camped with their Motorhomes and trailers. That always gets my attention and we have seen quite a lot of the RV culture over here.
Our days would start off with breakfast downstairs in the hotel with a nice Cappacino or two. If that isn't your fancy ask for an Americano or tea. Orange juice is right off the local tree and you can hear them make it in the back once you order. Mmmmm!
PORTOFINO, ITALY
our favorite local Italian Restaurant back home happens to be in Cochrane and goes by this very same name; "Portofino." So we knew we had to venture over to this famous little spot. Off we went on the trains again and once we landed in San Margharita we took a ferry over to Portofino. Wow!
Trains in Europe are what moves most of the people and they are very efficient.
Now if you didn't know as one lady put it (standing beside us) this is where the rich men bring the ones they want to marry and then later on their their mistresses that they want to impress. I don't know that this is true, but I do know this place will impress most anyone. What an unbelievable place, the views are indescribable. It's all located in a tight little cove with those beautiful blue green waters another very cool old Italian town.
Boats are constantly coming in and out of the lil harbour and the locals boats are all tied up to buoys in the most orderly fashion you have ever seen! The beauty of some of these boats. Mahogany wood and dark blue, clean and pristine! Places like this really make me want to own a boat and bring it here to relax the days away under the Italian sun.
Later in the day one of the yachts came in that I saw earlier anchored outside Portofino. One would swear it was the US Navy! I have seen larger but she was a beauty. This thing was huge with four decks, gizmos and gadgets like you wouldn't believe. I counted 6 or so Crew working on the decks outside, I don't know how many were on the inside. It was very cool to see it come in and dock in the tight little Marina here. On the transom was her name " i Boat 2."
I know who was having a yacht built with the name "i Boat 1" so I'm not sure who now owns this one? But it was very impressive indeed. Photos do not do it justice.
These pictures do not do this yacht justice.
When we first arrived here Barb decided we should go on a little hike up to a castle. About 10lbs weight loss and a gallon of perspiration later (humid) we arrived near the top. We never did go in the so- called castle but the views were extrodinary to say the least. As well there were a number of homes along small brick lanes (no cars up here) with perfect Italian gardens and so much more beauty and views. It always makes me wonder how and who brings up their groceries and new found furniture pieces etc when they purchase same?
Off we went on our trip down which except for stopping for more pictures took but a few quick minutes. After that we went back to the harbour is search for a good restaurant to re fill our energy, rest and enjoy the sights which there were plenty of.
The restaurants are mostly along the harbours edge which is shaped around the cove like a horseshoe. We found the spot that looked the best, it was a floating section tied to the edge and containes about 10 or 12 tables, enough to sit 35 people. We lucked out there was still room on this busy sunny day.
It was plain to see that this place probably made it on to " Robin Leeches" TV Show "Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous" at least once or twice. There was a lot of money in the water (boats) and walking around the Marina too. We ordered our meals and relaxed in the comfy chairs as the floating decked swayed up and down and back and forth, the perfect place for one of Jim's naps I thought! But alas not today, too many things to see haha.
As we sat there Barb decided to have a "Bellini" as I ordered up some well deserved desert. A while later Barb was off touring the lil shops and I waited and relaxed. In Italy rarely does the bill come until you ask for it. It is rude in their culture to rush you out the door, they want your meals to be a restful experience and today that was so welcomed. I finally called for the bill.
Now in my day of a lot of business luncheons and travel over the years I have had a lot of expensive lunches. I don't know that any of them would top this one though. The Bill was over €80 Euros and if you do the math at about $1.45 Canadian to the Euro you will get my drift.
But I really wasn't surprised... what happened next I will never forget!
In fact, I will never let Barb forget it either! :)
As my eyes moved up the bill from the total below I noted each price of the items. My eyes quickly stopped at Barb's after lunch Bellini. At that point my eyes sent a message to my brain!
Now I saw the Bellini that she consumed. It was in a regular sized Champagne glass but very petite when compared to the price. We were charged a mere €25.00 (Euro) for that little bit of a delight.
Well I thought... That was enchanting wasn't it and I draw your attention back to the name of Robin Leeches TV show of days gone by!
My advice is bring a snack or eat before attending Portofino!
Oh... And before I forget... the food at Portofino's in Cochrane, Alberta is better in my opinion!
After lunch we wandered a bit then roadie the ferry back and took the train home to Dieva Marina.
Much of the rest of our time staying in this area was exploring other towns and relaxing. We even had a day on the beach and did some reading too. All in all we love Dieva Marina! It is easy to get around to other places and has everything you need including a nice beach right in town.
VENICE, ITALY
We had decided that we would go over to some of the eastern countries while here and in doing so headed up to Venice for a couple of days including it in our route.
If you know Venice, it's that city built out on the water so many years ago. Canals line the buildings like alleys and streets. It is unimaginable to me how that long ago they were able to build & do all of this. It is one thing to see the photos or the video on your lap top computer or TV, but once you arrive and step out to see it for the first time in real life I guarantee your jaw will drop. The only bad thing I have to say is the crowds, it's like all the other popular tourist places, crowded!
Here as you come in to Venice is view from a distance!
Our advice was to stay away from the tourist area and to eat in the regular area (local restaurants). One can go into the tourist area but it is best in the evening after they have either left or have gone somewhere for dinner. By the way dinner in Italy doesn't really start until about 8pm.
We arrived by train at around 430 pm. After we got into the area we took a public bus (often the best & cheapest anywhere in Europe) over towards where we were staying. By the way the buses here are all boats, as are the taxis, ambulances, police vehicles etc. There are no cars or vehicles here - none!
We made it over to our drop off point and what a sight to see. It's busy here and lots of coming and going. The locals are busy and the work boats are either doing construction, carrying food, or goods and materials back and forth up and down the canals of this wonderfully crazy little place.
I didn't realize this but there are several islands which are apart of all this. We didn't venture to the others we stayed on the main island.
Our home for the next two nights was what we would call a mix of a B&B and a little boutique hotel. It had 6 rooms. We had breakfast every morning here. The owner (Davide) who runs the place is very helpful & friendly.
The building was 15th Century (late 1400's) and was originally someone's palace.
Due to rules put in place by the ruler of the time no one else could call their place a palace so they called them "Casa." You will see a picture of the name plate in Brass above. Venice in it's day was a very rich and powerful group of people I'm not sure I can call it a nation but? You can read up about it on the internet - pay particular attention to how the islands were built to support these buildings.
So on our first night we had a nice little Venetian dinner at a place recommended by Davide. Our reservations were for 8pm and after dinner we decided to walk and enjoy the warm (very humid here) evening while taking in the sites.
At 130am with Barb almost in tears and me not far behind her we stopped.
We had asked several people how to get back home and they all had their opinions. Most of their directions while heartfelt I am sure but were so lengthy no one could follow them so we had hoped we would just get closer and closer to home each time we asked. That was not to be.
We had a full moon that night and it started off as a beautiful evening with that moon out there above the buildings shining down on us. Once we were trying to find our way, the buildings were so close together we couldn't see where the moon was or get our bearings. By this time we were both exhausted and not feeling all that great about Venice.
We couldn't bring my IPhone with us as the battery was dead therefor we had no compass or GPS to find our way with. We did have a map that was given us but we also found out we need new reading glasses. No more fooling ourselves we could not read the tiny print with the street names! Yikes!
Finally a young Italian man with broken English saw us at the steps of a canal bridge with a map in our hands. He was the one who thankfully walked us half way and sent us down the right streets to our door, we were ever so thankful!
You must understand that many of the streets are very narrow and dark. The buildings in places almost touch each other as they wave back and forth (wavy walls after so many years). Every canal begins to look the same and so do their bridges. When we saw an actual street name they meant nothing at all to us if in fact we could speed them or even pronounce their names.
One of the problems was that map they give out. Neither one of us realized before this just how bad our eyes were getting for reading small fine print like that, especially in the darkness of the streets and alleys. What a way to find out. I would also think that normal vision would have had a problem reading the fine print (street names) on these map! But alas the adventure was over and to bed we did retire!
The next day we used my cell phone as it was now charged up.
So we spent the next day seeing more of the sights. We took one water bus that toured us all around the Grande Canal and that was fun. So many boats, so many people and all this old buildings sitting like that on the water.
Traffic is starting to build with Taxis, busses and all sorts of cargo boats!
I think we spent close to half the day trying to get Answers and figure out how to get a bus to go to Lake Bled in Slovenia.
Every time we thought we were close to the right answer it failed. We walked and walked. The Tourist people didn't know, the other bus driver thought you could buy direct from the bus driver who goes there and we couldn't afford to take a chance without knowing or a reservation of some kind. If one didn't get out of here one may not get a room again for the next night without a hotel reservation. Finally we got the bus issue solved but it took hours and miles of walking.
Let me say this. Barb is the ultimate Travel Tour Booking Agent!
She spends hours ahead of time researching places to go, how to get there, pricing and where to stay etc. I have to say with out her I would be lost and not very happy. If you do one of these trips and we recommend that you do, do the research and bring a computer (we have IPads this time) with you.
Back to Venice, The humidity was a bit heavy (high 90's I was told) the temps were only in the mid 20's C but it felt warmer in the sunlight. Due to all the tourism (people here from all over the world) most locals in the service industries speak some kind of English, to some degree. So my thoughts are; come see the place but don't plan staying for a week, a couple of full days is enough and well worth it.
So as our time closes for Venice and Italy (not sure if we will be back again this trip) I think of all the fun we have had here. I also begin to wonder what the weather will be like as we head farther into Eastern Europe through so,e of the Alps into Austria and then into Slovenia. Stay tuned!
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