Foto: The Monastery of San Fruttuoso (bron: Ronald van der Veer)
Italy - Today we’re visiting Portofino—a picturesque town on the edge of a peninsula. Due to its sheltered location and tourist appeal, parking is difficult. Rates go up to six euros per hour. As an alternative, we park in Santa Margherita, a town earlier on the route. From here, we can take a boat to Portofino and the monastery of San Fruttuoso. This monastery is located in a bay and can only be reached by water or on foot. At the harbor, we learn that the last boat today departs from San Fruttuoso at 12:30. Bad weather is forecast for the afternoon, with strong winds at sea. This means we’ll have only thirty minutes at the monastery. Though we’d prefer to stay longer, we decide to buy a return ticket anyway. On the way back, we can disembark in Portofino. Since the boat won’t be running later, we can take the bus back to Santa Margherita. We have about half an hour before departure. We stroll into Santa Margherita. The wind is picking up and threatening clouds loom over the village. In the distance, we hear thunder. It doesn’t take long before large raindrops begin to fall. We find shelter. When the ferry arrives, the shower has passed. There’s still a light drizzle. We sit inside on the lower deck. As the boat sails to Portofino, the announcer provides commentary on the villages and houses along the rocky coast. Almost everyone disembarks in Portofino. Only a handful of people stay on board for the next destination: the monastery of San Fruttuoso. As soon as the boat rounds the bend, the strong sea wind becomes noticeable. The boat rocks back and forth. After about half an hour, the monastery appears in the bay. What a magnificent sight. This former Benedictine monastery dates back to the year 1000. In the 13th century, the Doria family acquired the complex. The monastery underwent several renovations. We walk into the monastery from the beach. There’s a museum inside, but since we have less than 15 minutes, we decide not to visit it. We have no choice—we must catch the last boat back. We walk around the monastery. The view over the bay is beautiful from every angle. At exactly 12:30, we depart again by ferry. The monastery shrinks behind us. As we enter the harbor of Portofino, we see the brightly colored houses clustered around the water. Most buildings now house cafes and restaurants. In the bay, dozens of small boats are moored, along with a few massive luxury yachts.
Florence
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The Ancient City of Pompeii
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The Cinque Terre fishing villages
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The Colosseum
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The Leaning Tower of Pisa
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The old district of Naples
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The Rolli Palaces of Genoa
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The Vesuvius volcano
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Venice
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