We got up early, sat on the porch. Wendy, Kat and I strolled on the beach and stopped at the only beach cafe to enjoy a tasty cappuccino.

Kat, Wendy, me and Deborah on the ferry

Alix and Dom enjoying the views

The ferry stop is literally in front of our house so we all got tickets for the late morning ferry to Portofino.It's a beautiful ride near the coastline, we stopped at different villages to pick up or drop off travelers, 

stopped at an 11th century isolated monastery , called San Fruttuoso,where the only mode of transportation is by boat.

In Portofino, we finally arrived amidst the enormous docked yatchs, which seemed too ostentatious for such a tiny port.  

Alix and Dom looking at the clear sea

We  visited the small church, Chiesa San Giorgio 

and the castle Brown atop  the village, where the cicadas sang aloud, as we enjoyed 

spectacular views with every turn. 

The castle, now a museum had a room filled with photos of important people back in the day visiting this colorful port; from the Agnellis to Princess Grace and many actors and actresses.

We had a delightful lunch at "La Gritta". We tried a delicious Ligurian wine while the kids ordered exotic fruity drinks.  After Portofino the kids took the train back to Levanto, the four of us took the bus to Santa  Marguerita, a scary ride since there were mirrors everywhere for the drivers to see the incoming traffic on this windy stunning coastal road.

  My idea of rest in a mini fiat, a propos in this case, being that we live one of their many villas!

We rested a bit at a coffee shop since Wendy needed to rest a bit, while Kat bought a bathing suit, being  that she still did not get her luggage.

We proceeded to the old town which I visited 6 years ago with Johanne, my sister in law and our moms.

 We visited the church of Santa Marguerita  Ligure and I remembered how ornate it was, tons of chandeliers, much colored marble, gold encrusted wood carving- a stunning Catholic Church – but how many people could the church have fed???

The town was so empty, quite different than when I saw it years ago., but it was also a Monday. We stopped at a wine shop and  received an education in the Ligurian wines, and of course we bought some!

I remembered the beautiful old market where my mother and I posed 6 years ago with huge local fruits from the regions farmers

And stunning bouquets of lowers.

We took the train back to our town, thinking that we would eat lightly at home, enjoy the wines we selected. We stopped at different markets to buy cheeses, olives, crackers, fruits 

while the boys get some meat to cook on the grill.

We go for a swim. Our hair gets quite messy but who cares, the water feels so good and we just float ( it's quiet here also) and the water is so clear!

We set the table outside,  overlooking the water, getting hypnotized  by the changing color of dusk and here in Levanto it's a long one.. We  eat together, talk about everything and nothing, just simply grateful  to be here. Today is one of the reasons I always wanted to return in the region of Italy.