Exploring the Liguria di Levante

Seizing the moment of a September the like of which hadn't been seen for years, warm and sunny, I decided to take advantage of my brother's flat in La Spezia to spend a few days in Liguria and enjoy its beautiful villages, its blue sea and its food too. In less than 2 hours from Reggio Emilia I'm already in Lavagna, where I stop for a couple of hours to visit the beautiful Basilica di Santo Stefano, which dominates the whole town from above, and then I head into its alleys; the beach is certainly not like in other towns, but a stop is worth it for the basilica itself. From Lavagna I move towards Sestri Levante, driven by curiosity from the phone advert; once I arrive I'm truly struck.

To the big beach with its lovely seafront, the Bay of Silence (Baia del Silenzio) on the opposite side of the town is opposed: a small gulf with pastel-coloured houses right on the beach, a breathtaking inlet, dominated by the church of the Immacolata on one side and that of San Nicolò on the other, from whose top you can see the whole bay. On the second day I decide to visit the town of Camogli, considered by everyone a pearl of Liguria, and indeed it truly is.

I arrive and immediately treat myself to a walk along the lovely seafront with the pastel-coloured buildings and houses reflected in the sea; I reach the Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta, which dominates the inlet, and the Castello della Dragonara, then through an arch you enter Camogli's little harbour, small, colourful and full of life, from which I took a boat that for 12 euros took me for the whole afternoon to the magnificent beach of San Fruttuoso, with Caribbean-blue water and dominated by the basilica itself. Not to be missed! On the third day, instead, I spent the day visiting the lovely villages of Moneglia, Bonassola, Levanto and Monterosso, towns with bright colours, alleys full of typical little shops, and beaches washed by an intense blue sea; it's worth spending a day there.

The last day, instead, I spent in the places of my childhood, where I used to go to the beach as a child with my family. I started with the “one and only” Portovenere, in the Gulf of Poets, a place where great English poets such as Byron lived, rich in history, where you can see the Doria castle that dominates the whole town from above, the church of San Pietro on the promontory, the church of San Lorenzo, the town with its colourful houses and typical alleys, the island of Palmaria and much more. From Portovenere I then moved to San Terenzo and Lerici, still on the Gulf of Poets, with their castles dominating the landscape, and finally to one of the most beautiful villages in Italy: Tellaro. A little village perched on the sea, with very narrow alleys that descend to the sea but are full of charm. What I did was a true leap into the most authentic Liguria! And now let the photos speak!