Somehwere, beside the sea…
On Friday, Carolyn, Ryan & I drove down the coast through various towns and villages beside the sea. We were mostly looking for something of interest to fill the time before we headed to the Genoa airport to pick up Clark that evening.
After leaving the Cinque Terre, we drove through Santa Margherita Ligure and Portofino, but the odds were against us in Portofino. In this province of Genoa, we spent 20 minutes trying to find a parking spot in the world’s smallest 4-level parking garage. Not only were the parking spaces WAY too small for the boat we were driving, but the ramps that connected each level were so narrow that it took multiple attempts to enter and then finally exit. That terrible time in the parking garage cost us 5,50 Euro. Boo.
We made our way back to Santa Margherita Ligure, easily found street parking and then had lunch by the water.
The seafood in these provinces has been amazing and extremely fresh. My favorite has been spaghetti with clams and the grilled swordfish was also very good. I never had clams before I came to Italy and I probably never will because there is no way that any other restaurant in the world will produce a dish with clams as fresh as the ones I am eating in this country.
This evening we met up with Giulia & Ludmilla and both of their parents. Giulia & Ludmilla are cousins and are both from Turin, Italy. A few years ago, Carolyn randomly selected Ludmilla to be one of her yearly foreign exchange students. A year after Ludmilla came to Los Angeles and partied it up with the Woods clan, her cousin, Giulia, came for a visit. Then Giulia came again and again. Tonight was the first time we were meeting up with Giulia & Ludmilla and both of their parents, this time in their native country. We had another lovely meal by the water and enjoyed spending time together, getting to know them all better.
Tomorrow morning we say ‘arividerchi’ to the Chinque Terre as we head to Florence. We have a soccer match to make in Florence at 3:30pm and then after the game, we check in at our next hotel.
