Little Pearl, Portofino!
Taking
a little time out from the daily grind and after all the rain and snow,
they decided to dash over to Portofino for a stroll, photos and a cocktail. Portofino is a tiny pearl tucked away on the Ligurian coast not far from Genoa, next to Santa
Margarita Ligure and Rapallo; a little fishing town, now a haven for
VIP. Little did she know this was a place for “whoop-dee-doos;” once she
spotted Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Hermés, Ferragamo, etc., she realized
this was way out of their league pocket-wise (although, not out of her
realm of taste). Of course for these two poor “street bastards,”
visiting a town such as this in the off-season is their habitual MO,
nevertheless off-season does not lower the prices of absolutely
anything in this fabulous town (as it does in other places where normal
folk forage).They arrived late in the afternoon, just in time to catch the last of the setting sun reflecting
against the pinks and yellows of the walls along the harbor. The wind
was picking up, the tide coming in and only two bars out of a ga-bunch
of them were open as well as, just two restaurants; it was Monday so it is possible
more were closed because it was Monday, but then again, these folks
make so much money during the four months of the season, who the hell
needs to stay open in the winter? They are probably sunning it in the
Bahamas or Caribbean!Few windows bore signs of life from behind the green shutters along the docks and port shore (except for a few on the top floors); it was closed up tighter than a button but still, one could imagine
the beauty of Spring with bars, gelaterias and store fronts open,
bubbling with signs of life and color. The few boats moored in the
waters were just those of the local fishermen and one lone sleek
sailboat (a mere 40 footer). The wind was cold and whipping around the bend of the cove but that did not deter these t
wo nuts.
They settled into benches and chairs made for midgets with their knees at their cheeks, outside suffering the cold so they could soak up the sounds, the smell
of the ocean and the changing light on the castle towering at one end of the surrounding hills as well as, the
church perched above the harbor. She had no idea how much of a haven
for two-legged creatures with buckets of money this place was until she
saw the prices on the drink menu; € 13,00 per concoction! When you walk away leaving 26 Euros for two drinks, one realizes the prices here will singe the hair off of one’s two rear cheeks. ;-)Parking
prices should have tuned her in at € 5,00/hour as well as, the fact the
road is so narrow and small, cars must line up on the road coming into
town in the summer before
a lighted sign displaying parking availability as cars leave the
structure. Yes, this is a small town, where you can walk from one end to
the other in ten minutes (if not window-shopping) so, I suppose the
prices work for parking. They crossed over solid brass water
grates and manhole covers; huge, thick pieces of brass and, highly polished! Clearly, city hall makes a nice penny on
tourists she deduced while walking towards the harbor. Ah yes, she forgot, this
is one of the fabulous jewels of Italy where Silvio Berlusconi has
another one of his homes, nestled high above the harbor (poor
guy eh)? (He has one on Lago Maggiore, one in Portofino, Costa Smeralda
and an Island in the Bahamas, all the best-protected jewels of Italy
and beyond).After
strolling by the ultra clean and pretty public showers, it slammed into
her big time just how much money rolls through the place and, with all
the water and electrical hook ups for boats (hot and cold water) she
knew this w
as
a great people watching trove. Her companion told her it seemed that only sloops or yachts of 10 meters and up moored there; she did not believe him until
she looked at a few postcards. Wow, so this is how it is when you have buckets and buckets of the stuff to keep a floating palace in fuel.Portofino
is stupendous; truly a pearl tucked away along the coast with only one
way in and out. Its history dates back to 986 known as Portus Delphini
and today is part of the club of I Gioielli d’Europa. Francesco Petrarca
spent many a day (1300’s) in this glori-
ous place along with his sailboat and where he asked to be buried.
Near
here appears Portofino enclosed by luminous greenery; with a mountain
barrier that repels the violence of the winds a silent respite in
ecstatic quietness. Africa VI 845-847
The
houses are long and narrow, the colors faded with many dilapidated
facades lending more charm than ever to the scenery. Everything is
small, streets, doors, and houses all squished in to the coastal hills
and mountainsides, such a lovely contrast from the California coast.
She tried to think of a place in California to help describe this town
and all she could come up with was a mix of Big Sur, Carmel and
Sausalito and still this does not do Portofino justice.
Having
retrieved their wheels they headed for Santa Margarita for dinner since
the town, on passing by while headed to Portofino, seemed more inhabited
with many more places open for business. Exploring this lovely resort
was a few steps down price-wise from the tiny pearl but still not a
place for “commoners.” Prices in the restaurants are not for the faint
of heart. We ended up stopping at La Palma since the other place could
not take credit cards due to “technical” difficulties. Suffice it to
say, this is not a place to go for those looking for a great meal.
Service was 15% plus cover so between that, the water and a ½ carafe of
wine, € 30,00 went to waste, well actually into someone’s pocket.
Thinking
about how difficult it is to find a bad meal in Italy she realized how
easy it is to find those few bad meals in places frequented by money.
What is it? Do they just want to be in the surroundings so they never
look at the money spent? Is food quality not on the docket because they
are there to be seen and willing to pay the price of the chair location
(or boat slip location)? Seriously, the money spent for two cocktails and
for the service and beverages at dinner equal at least 3-4 meals out of a
basket from the supermarket. Maybe she is just envious, wishing she
could wander these ports of call without a second thought to the price
of a caffè or a glass of water ;-) With
heavy hearts, they headed for the car after dinner; wishing for a
way to remain and savor the change of air and soak up the idyllic
lights al
ong
the coast. As they left the lights behind them and entered the endless
cord of tunnels, they decided to return at the end of March,
beginning of April for an aperitivo and more eye candy; a chance to see the
place in it’s glory before the long lines of cars and people clog the
tiny piazza along the harbor.
February 12, 2009
d
out on the chance of a lifetime! All around the harbor were floating
palaces, sleek (longilinea) boats just begging to go out in the open
water. 
s well as the penguins.
