About Me

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Delta, British Columbia, Canada
I took very early retirement from teaching in '06 and did some traveling in Europe and the UK before settling down to do some private tutoring. As a voracious reader, I have many books waiting in line for me to read. Tell me I shouldn't read something, and I will. I'm a happy, optimistic person and I love to travel and through that believe that life can be a continuous learning experience. I'm looking forward to traveling more some day. I enjoy walking, cycling, water aerobics & and sports like tennis, volleyball, and fastpitch/baseball. I'm just getting into photography as a hobby and I'm enjoying learning all the bits and bobs of my digital camera. My family is everything to me and I'm delighted to be the mother of two girls and the Gramma of a boy and a girl. I may be a Gramma, but I'm at heart just a girl who wants to have fun.

Tuesday, April 08, 2008

ABC Wednesday - L is for LERICI

My first real WOW moment when I visited Italy in 2006 was when we arrived in the town of LERICI. We stayed 5 days and nights, visiting the town and its surrounding countryside and neighbouring cities and towns, and boating across the bay to the Cinque Terre. Back in February, I wrote "C is for Cinque Terre here.

My friends in England will appreciate that English writers Mary and Percy Bysshe Shelley lived some three miles north in an isolated old boathouse called Casa Magni and anchored their sailing boat in Lerici. Their closest neighbours were the villagers of the tiny hamlet of San Terenzo. Percy Bysshe Shelley was drowned on July 8, 1822 in the Bay of Spezia upon returning to Lerici from a journey to Leghorn and Pisa. His corpse eventually washed up on the beach at Viareggio, located approximately halfway between Livorno and Lerici. The popularity of Lerici with the Shelleys and with Lord Byron earned the Gulf of Lerici its nickname as the Gulf of Poets.

LERICI is one of the mariner communities which take part to the Palio del Golfo, a rowing contest held in La Spezia every first Sunday of August.

LERICI is twinned with Horsham in West Sussex, England, although Horsham no longer records this as an 'active' twinning on its official website.

This was the view that greeted me from my hotel room patio!


Roomie and I decided to take a stroll into the town center. Above the hills stood gorgeous Italian villas like the one below, surrounded by palm trees swaying in the evening breeze.


We arrived just when families were emerging with their children to take in the sunset. Children played on this merry-go-round while mothers, fathers, and grandparents lovingly watched over them.


The fountains were beautiful against the brilliant pastel colours of the ancient buildings.

Upon arriving back at our hotel, armed with a full-bodied bottle of red wine purchased at the local wine shop, Roomie and I settled down to watch the sun set over the Mediterranean.

This was our view towards the west.

The next morning we set off for the Cinque Terre and I got this shot of the castle from the vantage point of the top deck of the boat.


and finally, here are the "Lerici Ladies," as we dubbed ourselves, along with one of our guides. In this photo, we're perched on a crag overlooking the water in the town of Riomaggiore.


If you are interested in seeing a short video clip of the town of LERICI, done by our other guide Umberto, click on the youtube link below. Just watch the first 3.20 minutes because after that it's our other guide Richard showing his two houses just outside of Lerici that he rents out. Of course, feel free to watch that, too, if you're interested in seeing what it's like to live there. I hope you enjoyed this little tour of one of my favourite places in Italy. When we get to the letter "P" I'll write about that place. Stay tuned.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vR1hCGOczE

ABC WEDNESDAY is brought to you by Mrs. Nesbitt. Go on over to see who else is participating today.

39 comments:

Lynette said...

Splendid. Thanks for sharing your wonderful memories with us.

lv2scpbk said...

Beautiful photos. Love the view. I can only hope to visit there someday.

Anonymous said...

Wonderful pictures. Great L!

Paulie said...

Thanks for the "tour of Lerici" -- am sure this is the only way I will get to visit it.

Gordon said...

Great L. I can see why you went "Wow!"

jmb said...

Lovely post Leslie, beautiful photos.

KOSTAS said...

Amazing collection, beautiful photographs, marvellous the subjects, splendid moments charms, very good and informative post!

Rune Eide said...

It seems that the Lerici Ladies really Liked it there! And according to the pictures, they really ought to. Maybe I should...

My L is here

Anne-Berit said...

This was really great,loved your photos,the video,the story.Thank you for shearing!Have a nice day!

Anonymous said...

I love Italy so really enjoyed your photo's, especially as Lerici is new to me.

FO - 2 said...

WOW! ;)
It can`t get any better! :)))

imac said...

Certainly looks super place,and sounds you had fun and enjoyment.Beautiful buildings and a sunset to go with it also a glass of wine, what more could you ask for a ABC post.

Thanks for visiting my blog and your kind comments.

Russell said...

Most interesting... I have never been overseas but Italy certainly sounds inviting. The photos are wonderful and the water is so blue. Just like what you imagine it would be.

Never mind me. I am still re-reading your post about meeting that most interesting gentleman!! The basket overflowing with lilacs presents a most fanciful image...!

I guess my thought is this: there are lots and lots of wonderful people in our world and if we keep our eyes and hearts open it is amazing the things we will do... (I think someone else said something about "it is amazing the things we will do" or else that is a Ford commercial... but you get the idea...)

Take care.

Juliana RW said...

Excellent photos you have for L theme.

My ABC : L theme Thanks.

Michele said...

WOW WOW... what a fantastic journey from my chair. Thank you Leslie.. I really enjoy that. The pictures were awesome! It looks super fun and if I could, I'd be on the next plane over there! Great memories for you, I am sure.

As far as my post on the Llamas today... there are a few up here that roam around and maybe they belong to someone but they roam freely as the deer do. It's amazing. It was only lucky that I was able to capture it on camera.

Unknown said...

This is a great L post.
I really enjoyed your photo's, thanks for sharing.

Andrea said...

Beautiful photos. The group of ladies look like they have having a great time.

Anonymous said...

Fantastic story about LERICI. Now I know one more place on earth!!
Most of all photos I like that coloured houses!

Nessa said...

That's a very pretty place.

Tai said...

oooooh, I LOVE Italy. I stayed in Monterosso last May and it was sublime.
Great post! Great pictures!

Anonymous said...

Looks like a wonderful place for a trip. Your view was amazing. It's fun to revisit these trips with our blog posts, isn't it? enjoy...

Jan said...

A great L post, your photos are great. The "Lerici Ladies," look like they had a great time.

Jo said...

Leslie, I could just step right into these photographs.

*sigh*

I can feel the warmth!

Neva said...

Somoe wonderful photos. Glad you had a great time!

Lilli & Nevada said...

What a lovely view to wake up too and looks like you had a wonderful time. The buildings are beautiful with some great colors

Kim said...

It looks like an amazing place and you captured it wonderfully.

Pernille said...

Wonderful photos.
Have a nice week:)

Katney said...

All these vistis to Italy give me a bit of a nostalgic feeling. I spent a year in Florence during my college career(the first college career when I was young and foolish.) Although I didn't visit these particular spots, I did see some very like them. And I have a feeling I will see soem very familiar sights when we get to P.

AVCr8teur said...

What a lovely trip! You sure had a beautiful view from your room.

Liz Hinds said...

You really had an amazing time on your trip, didn't you, leslie? Lerici looks lovely.

Berit T said...

Beautiful photo, I can understand you said WOW!!!

Trubes said...

Leslie:
I am having the most strange dreams at present, particularly, of people, that I worked with, when I was quite young.
Especially those, whom, I disliked the most!

Help! It must be the Steroids, kicking in.

I am now getting the 'moon face', and am constantly hungry.

Eating very healthily, mind, lots of oily fish and fresh vegetables,fruit and meat !

love Di.xx

P.S. Love the Pictures too, xx
P.P.S. I think I may have posted my message under the wrong Blog heading.....Hey Ho..It's the medication you know...........

nancy said...

Thankds for the L's. That looks like a great time. Beautiful photos.
Nancy

VP said...

Lovely L Leslie!

Petunia said...

What agreat post and so many beautiful pictures!
Thank you for sharing!

Petunia's ABC

Miss_Yves said...

Beautiful pictures !
I love Italy !
Miss Yves

Barbara said...

Looks like a beautiful place.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for sharing with us the beautiful pictures et memories of this lovely trip to Italy.

Greetings,

kml said...

What a beautiful place!!