HANNAH SHARES

Well, it sure didn’t take long for me to totally neglect this site! I’m back with quite a few fun things to share – first, our trip to Portofino and a visit from our sweet friends.

Josie and Zach visited us for ten days in August with their little guy, Thomas, who just turned 1. They actually lived here pre-Thomas until February 2020. We couldn’t wait for them to visit and to meet Lucy. It was so fun to see Thomas with her too! We spent lots of time catching up and exploring their old favorites around Vicenza. We hadn’t seen Thomas (other than via Facetime) since he was 5 months old, so I was constantly in shock at how much he had grown!

When we were planning their visit we knew we wanted to travel somewhere, but since they have seen so much of Italy, we let them choose, which is how we ended up in Portofino. It’s a super tiny village on the Italian Riviera and it was just what we needed in the peak of the Summer heat. We actually stayed in a town just up the coast called Santa Margherita Ligure. Portofino itself is quite small and very expensive, as it attracts some high-rollers, evidenced by the incredible yachts we saw docked over the weekend. Staying up the coast was more affordable, and was also fun to see several towns over the weekend.

We headed straight to the beach in Santa Margherita Ligure after we checked into our hotel on Friday. Everything was very walkable which was great! The beaches in Italy are rocky, not sandy, which we didn’t think about beforehand, but we wished we would have brought water shoes (ouch!). Our favorite meal of the trip was that night at Ristorante Oca Bianca. The food, service, and atmosphere were all fantastic. It was also only a couple of blocks from our hotel, so very convenient!

On Saturday we took the bus to Portofino and hiked (yes, with two strollers) from the harbor to Al Faro, a peninsula that has stunning views. There is a bar on the tip of the peninsula at the end of the hike that we were very much looking forward to an ice-cold limoncello upon arrival. Unfortunately for us it was closed. You really can’t ever count on Italians to be open – even during the height of the Summer season on a Saturday at 11am. Allora. The views alone were worth the hike, and spritzes were waiting for us back in the harbor anyways.

We headed back to the harbor and had a great lunch, with limoncello, and walked around the town a bit. It really is just the harbor area, it’s very small! We took the afternoon to head back to the hotel, clean up, and then went back down to Portofino for dinner that evening. The bus ride along the coast is super convenient, so it’s definitely the way to get around. All of the restaurants surround the harbor, so it was great for people (and yacht!) watching. We even witnessed an elaborate engagement take place on the yacht closest to our table at dinner.

On Sunday we rented beach chairs at a local beach club and spent the day relaxing. Lucy only dipped her toes in the water one time, but didn’t seem to enjoy it much, so she stuck to the shaded beach chair and really seemed to enjoy herself! We had dinner back in Santa Margherita Ligure again that night and Michael, Lucy and I went up to the rooftop bar for drinks afterwards. As we were sitting on the rooftop the entire city went dark, all of the power went out. It was kind of an incredible thing to witness from up there! I was a little worried at first, but one of the waiters at the bar didn’t seem surprised and said since it was the height of the Summer heat and Summer season for vacationers, all of the ACs in the city were running at once and it’s difficult to handle. The power came back on shortly after, thankfully.

We headed back on Sunday and enjoyed the last few days with our friends. The trip was too quick and it is always hard to say “see you later”, something we have done so many times with them! We miss them already, but are fortunate our “homes” and parents are in the same places, so we can always count on the holidays to see them again soon.

Stay tuned for another trip recap and an update on life with our almost-4-month old…

xx Hannah

PORTOFINO GUIDE

DINING

Ristorante Oca Bianca in Santa Margherita Ligure (I would have been happy eating dinner here every night!); Da i Gemelli al Molo for dinner in Portofino

THINGS TO DO

Beaches lots of options in the towns all around Portofino, highly recommend renting at a beach club, but the public beaches are great too (we rented at Covo di Nord-Est); Faro di Portofino/Al Faro di Portofino Lounge Bar this was the hike we did and the bar on the peninsula, fantastic views

HOTEL

Hotel Tigullio Et de Milan – great rooftop and good breakfast, rooms are small but nice