lunch on the Ligurian coast

...I have taken Lena away for a few days to celebrate her birthday in Portofino. There was heavy cloud in the mountains when we left but, by the time we reached the coast, the sun was out and the temperature improved.

Today's blip is of Sestri Levante, where we stopped for lunch and to explore the town. It was once a quiet little fishing village but has become increasingly popular with Italian holiday makers as the foreign tourists have made Portofino and the Cinque Terre areas too crowded.

The old part of the village is on the peninsular but it has since expanded across the isthmus and beyond. The headland and the land-bridge have resulted in two bays. The one pictured is know as Portobello or, more poetically, Baia del Silenzia (Bay of Silence) and the one on the far side is called Baia delle Favole (Bay of Fables) in honour of Hans Christian Andersen, who lived in Sestri Levante for a short time in 1833...