Santa Margherita, Portofino, San Frutuoso, and Camogli

For one of my last weekends here, we decided to experience the Italian Liguria region. I had visited other coastal areas, such as the Italian Riviera and Cinque Terre, but this was one spot I still wanted to get to. My expectations were upheld when we arrived at the train station perched above the sea. From the station it was a short walk along the sea to our hotel. Pungent honeysuckle lined the walkways and the sea breeze made me feel like I was home. Places by the ocean are always my favorite and I often wonder if it's because it reminds me of home. After finding our hotel easily we went out for a late dinner after our trip from Lugano. The trip had been relatively easy except for the part where we were waiting to leave Milan and the train was stiffling. We grabbed a bite at a cute trattoria along the water and then called it a night, since we wanted to spend Saturday exploring the area. I had read that there was a nice hike from Santa Margherita, where we were staying, to Portofino that is farther out on the point. We awoke rather early, since there was a rather loud church tower nearby, ringing it's bells at 6am. Instead of hiking through the more mountainous terrain we stayed along the water not wanting to miss the more than perfect view. Every new cove we approached, we all kept saying, "IT'S SO PRETTY!" It was getting a little old, but we weren't kidding, the views, the blooming flowers, not to mention the ridiculous yachts. Entering Portofino we headed down to the water and then walked up to a nearby Castle to check out the view from the top of the hill. After spending some time checking out the town, we took a ferry to another town around the coast called San Frutuoso. It was actually just a couple of quaint beaches with a church and a few restaurants. We enjoyed a light lunch overlooking the water and then relaxed on the beach. I guess it is the end of May, but I was still surprised the water felt so warm and refreshing. Three of us jumped right in, but my friend Lizzie, who is from Florida wasn't convinced it was warm enough! We left there about 3pm to stop in one other town before heading back to Santa Margherita. The ferries are really quick and give you a chance to see the towns from the sea. Our last stop was Camogli. It was definitely the biggest of the four and didn't look as welcoming at first, but once we walked around it wasn't long before we were saying we would love to come back. From there we took a bus, that we happened to find, back that provided us with a glimpse of the more mountainous towns along the peninsula or point. It was a perfect day filled with beautiful sights and lots of relaxation. That night we went out for apertivo (where we could have eaten an entire dinner) and then ate at a great fish restaurant along the water. Before bed, we stopped in at this cute wine bar called Divino overlooking the harbor. We were really trying to meet someone with a nice yacht for Sunday! That night we got talking about our summer plans. Hearing about my what Lizzie and Emily have planned for the summer does make me quite jealous. Living here definitely provides amazing opportunities. For me, it's a really easy choice, but hard at the same time. Luckily, not only has this trip given me many travel opportunities it's opened my eyes to new people, places and ways of viewing the world.
Our last day, we spent relaxing at the beach. It was a perfect day, so we paid for chaise lounges and enjoyed the sun! Beaches in Italy are always entertaining. Whether it's the skimpy suits, men and women... or the constant changing of clothes it's always a sight. It's so funny none of the little girls wear two piece tops, just so innocent. There was a huge group of divers that were also entertaining since there was a lot of talking and smoking and then a tiny bit of diving. We couldn't believe the layers they were putting on under what looked like dry suits. Very interesting. We did love our chairs because they were the kind with tops on them where you can cover your head. Definitely need one of those for the beach in Del Mar. We felt like real Europeans showering at the beach and changing in the little huts to catch our train. The best part was the dock that had a shower off the edge, so you could rinse all the salt water off the minute you were getting out of the water. You know how I don't like my hands to be covered with salt! Everything went rather smoothly, until we boarded our train from Milan to Lugano and realized that it wasn't going to only be hot for a short period, but instead the whole hour. We were dying of heat...did I say it was hot here? Today in Lugano it was 92...way too hot for school. Luckily tomorrow we're off to Luzern on a field trip. Hoping that side of the alps is cooler!