April 4th-6th – Rapallo/ Santa Margherita Ligure/ Portofino

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We arrived at Rapallo late in the afternoon after a pretty wet drive. The campsite was nothing flash but it was the closest one to Portofino and we could catch a bus there. It was really hilly country with lots of steep, narrow and windy roads, apart from the autostrada which tunnels straight through the hills and spans the valleys. I’ve got to say that there are similarities between the Italians and the Chinese when it comes to driving and it seems that fortune favours the brave, not that we came anywhere near an accident, it just seems chaotic.
The next morning we were hoping that the ‘one fine, one wet, one fine, one wet’ weather pattern would continue and give us a fine day, and we weren’t disappointed. After finding out that the buses did actually run on Sundays, we bought tickets and headed off to Portofino. I was so glad we never attempted to drive there as the coast road was narrow and busy with cars and scooters parked wherever they could, causing traffic to have to back up at times, and there was no parking there anyway unless you were a resident. Portofino is a beautiful little fishing village turned celebrity haunt with a very steep backdrop and beautifully clear water. I can imagine half a dozen super-yachts moored at the dock in summer but at this time there was only one. We walked the path out to the lighthouse which had fences and locked gates every 50 meters or so with paths leading into the trees, maybe celebrities summer hide-a-ways? Regardless of that the coastline was beautiful and to cap it off they had a little bar and tables at the end so we could enjoy the view with a cold beer. Unfortunately the day was quite hazy so the view down the coast was limited. After wandering back and around Portofino and buying a couple of bottles of the local Chianti, we caught the bus back to San Margherita Ligure. The bus was packed, which was just as well I suppose as it stopped you falling over going around the corners! San Margherita was bigger than Portofino with a nice beach (a bit stony but), a promenade, a marina and lots of shops. We stopped for a lasagne and a glass of red at a roadside trattoria which was very nice, before catching the bus back to Rapallo at the end of another great day.
The weather pattern broke the next morning with another fine day. We were hoping to catch a tourist boat down the coast to see the five cliffside towns of the Cinque Terre, but they didn’t start until after Easter - one of the pitfalls of travelling out of season. We carried on instead to our next destination of Pisa.

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Photos

Promontory of Portofino
View from the path to the lighthouse back down the promontory with the bays of Portofino, Santa Margherita Ligure and Rapallo

Promontory of Portofino
View down the coast from the cafe/bar at the lighthouse.