Tag Archives: Portofino

9 May 2018:
Portofino, Italy:
A Fine Port, With or Without Dolphins

By Corey Sandler

No one would ever blame you if thought the name of this lovely town and harbor meant “Fine Port.”

Alas, that’s merely a coincidence.

Portofino is truly a fine port.

But according to Pliny the Elder, the great Roman chronicler of the first century, Portofino was founded by the Romans and they named it Portus Delphini, or Port of the Dolphin, because of the large number of dolphins that inhabited the Tigullian Gulf.

The dolphins are mostly gone now, replaced by swarms of tourists who come to see the fine harbor.

I went with a group of guests up the hill on the promontory on the left side of the harbor to Castello Brown. Here is some of what we saw:

Photos by Corey Sandler, all rights reserved.

Castello Brown is a former fortification, now converted to a private residence. The hike up the hill and the stairs at the castle were quite a workout, but well worth the effort.

Midway to the castle we stopped at the Church of San Giorgio, where the castle was framed by a cemetery with one of the world’s best views.

Photos by Corey Sandler, all rights reserved.

Back down in town, Portofino was as attractive as ever.

All photos copyright 2018 by Corey Sandler. All rights reserved.

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Now available, the revised Second Edition of “Henry Hudson Dreams and Obsession” by Corey Sandler, for the Amazon Kindle. You can read the book on a Kindle device, or in a Kindle App on your computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone.

If you would like to purchase an autographed copy, please see the tab on this page, “HOW TO ORDER A PHOTO OR AUTOGRAPHED BOOK”

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1 Oct 2016
Portofino, Italy:
La Bella Figura

By Corey Sandler, Destination Consultant Silversea Cruises

Portofino, of course, is famous as a beautiful place.

If it seems familiar even if you’ve not been here before, perhaps you’ve seen it somewhere else.

There are recreations of Portofino’s harbor in Orlando, Florida at the Portofino Bay Resort at Universal Studios and another one at Tokyo DisneySea at Tokyo Disneyland in Japan.

There are also real estate developments with a Portofino theme in Reston, Virginia and at Gulf Harbour on the Hibiscus Coast in New Zealand.

None are quite as handsome…or as small…as the real thing.

Elizabeth von Arnim, born in New Zealand in 1866 as Mary Annette Beauchamp, wrote more than 20 books, including “Mister Skeffington,” which was made into a movie in 1940 starring Bette Davis and Claude Rains.

In 1922, she wrote her novel “Enchanted April” while staying at Castello Brown which still stands above the harbor. That book was filmed in 1935 and then remade in 1992.

The novel tells the story of four very different women in 1920s England who leave their damp and rainy environs to go on a holiday to a secluded coastal castle in Italy.

The 1992 remake of “Enchanted April” was filmed on location at Castello Brown.

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Portofino Sandler-2

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On this cost,  I went with guests to Rapallo and Santa Margherita di Ligure, two larger towns on the coast. These are places with things not found in Portofino, like buses, trucks, and stop lights.

One highlight in Santa Margherita is the church of Saint Margaret of Antioch.

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Text and images copyright 2016 by Corey Sandler. All rights reserved. If you would like to purchase a high-resolution image, please contact me.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PURCHASE AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF ONE OF MY BOOKS, PLEASE CONTACT ME.

SEE THE “How to Order a Photo or Autographed Book” TAB ON THIS PAGE FOR INSTRUCTIONS

————-

Now available, the revised Second Edition of “Henry Hudson Dreams and Obsession” by Corey Sandler, for the Amazon Kindle. You can read the book on a Kindle device, or in a Kindle App on your computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone.

If you would like to purchase an autographed copy, please see the tab on this page, “HOW TO ORDER A PHOTO OR AUTOGRAPHED BOOK”

Here’s where to order an electronic copy for immediate delivery:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IA9QTBM

 

6 April 2016
Portofino, Italy

By Corey Sandler, Destination Consultant Silversea Cruises

Portofino Sandler-2

No one would ever blame you if thought the name of this lovely town and harbor meant “Fine Port.”

Alas, that’s merely a coincidence.

Portofino is truly a fine port.

But according to Pliny the Elder, the great Roman chronicler of the first century, Portofino was founded by the Romans and they named it Portus Delphini, or Port of the Dolphin, because of the large number of dolphins that inhabited the Tigullian Gulf.

Portofino 6Apr2016 EDIT blog-4142

Silver Cloud at anchor offshore of Portofino today

The dolphins are mostly gone now, replaced by swarms of tourists who come to see the fine harbor, its nearby Paraggi beach, and the surrounding area including Camogli and Rapallo.

BLOG Portofino 2June2015-1384

Text and images copyright 2016 by Corey Sandler. All rights reserved. If you would like to purchase a high-resolution image, please contact me.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PURCHASE AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF ONE OF MY BOOKS, PLEASE CONTACT ME.

SEE THE “How to Order a Photo or Autographed Book” TAB ON THIS PAGE FOR INSTRUCTIONS

————-

Now available, the revised Second Edition of “Henry Hudson Dreams and Obsession” by Corey Sandler, for the Amazon Kindle. You can read the book on a Kindle device, or in a Kindle App on your computer, laptop, tablet, or smartphone.

If you would like to purchase an autographed copy, please see the tab on this page, “HOW TO ORDER A PHOTO OR AUTOGRAPHED BOOK”

Here’s where to order an electronic copy for immediate delivery:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IA9QTBM

Hudson Book Cover

Henry Hudson Dreams and Obsession: The Tragic Legacy of the New World’s Least Understood Explorer (Kindle Edition)

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PURCHASE AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF ONE OF MY BOOKS,  PLEASE CONTACT ME.

SEE THE “How to Order a Photo or Autographed Book” TAB ON THIS PAGE FOR INSTRUCTIONS

29 September 2014
 Portofino and the Italian Riviera

By Corey Sandler, Destination Consultant Silversea Cruises

Portofino: no one would ever blame you if thought the name of this lovely town and harbor meant “Fine Port.” Alas, that’s merely a coincidence.

Portofino is truly a fine port.

Portofino Italy DSC_2806 Portofino Italy DSC_2783

But according to Pliny the Elder, the great Roman chronicler of the first century, Portofino was founded by the Romans and they named it Portus Delphini, or Port of the Dolphin, because of the large number of dolphins that inhabited the Tigullian Gulf.

The dolphins are mostly gone now, replaced by swarms of tourists who come to see the fine harbor, its nearby Paraggi beach, and the surrounding area including Abbey San Frutuoso and Camogli.

Bring on the tourists: in the late 19th century, first British, then other Northern European aristocratic tourists began to visit Portofino. After World War II, tourism surpassed fishing as the town’s chief industry, and the waterfront became a nonstop ring of restaurants and cafés.

Here are some photos I took on our visit to Portofino, Rapallo, and Santa Margherita on this cruise

PORTOFINO

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RAPALLO

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Like many of the towns of the Italian Riviera, much of the decoration of Rapallo is an Italian version of trompe l’oeil–fool the eye.The flourishes on the walls are painted mostly on flat surfaces.

The last photo in this series is looking up at the frescoed ceiling of a gazebo along the shore. It looks ancient, but was actually built in the 1930s by Italians returning to their homne town from South America.

ABBEY OF SAN FRUTTUOSO

The Abbey of San Fruttuoso is along the sea at the foot of Monte Portofino, reachable with a two-hour hike, or by water taxi or excursion in about 20 minutes from Portofino.

The Benedictines of Monte Cassino built their abbey in the tenth and eleventh centuries, at times having to share the little inlet with pirates.

Restored and now owned by a national trust, the church contains the tombs of some illustrious members of the Doria family.

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The Abbey San Frutuoso, a sacred site with a beach and café.

CAMOGLI

Camogli is another pretty seaside town, not as famous and not nearly as crowded as Portofino. It’s one of my favorite places in this part of the world.

It’s on the other side of the peninsula from Portofino, about half an hour’s drive; 20 kilometers or 12 miles away. You can also reach it by boat from Portofino.

Some even dare to prefer it to Portofino, enjoying Camogli’s beautifully painted houses and frescoes, many of them trompe l’oeil: fool the eye. What appears from a distance to be an ornamented front with windows and doors is paint.

Camogli Italy DSC_2877 Camogli P1040915 Camogli Italy DSC_2821

Camogli has a double meaning in Italian.

The first translation is houses close together, which fits the scene quite well.

The second meaning is houses of wives, casa delle Mogli, which also works: the fishermens’ wives spent their time at home while their husbands were out at sea.

Camogli Italy DSC_2881 Camogli P1040946

The cathedral of Camogli, and an upcoming appearance by Il Clown Bistecca, Beefsteak the Clown.

All photos by Corey Sandler. All rights reserved. If you would like to purchase a high-resolution image, please contact me.