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| Albenga |
11-04-2015 - Albenga
Walked along the coast from Albenga to Finale Ligure (20km)
I walked through the old town of Albenga with its
"caruggi" [narrow lanes] and its
"stendua" [washing on the line], and quaint little restaurants selling fish and
farinata [chickpea omelette]. The bakeries let out a perfume of fresh bread and
"fügassa" [white pizza]...
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| Clothes hanging to dry in the small lanes |
Outside the walls of the old town -now a pedestrian area- the traffic is pretty heavy and you just breathe car smog... better to head off to the beach. The seaside restaurants and seashore facilities -cabins and bars- are getting ready for the new summer season ahead, sieving sand and repainting walls.
There's a nice fresh breeze, and it's a little overcast so I feel quite comfy with my wind jacket and long trousers. I still have the idea of putting my feet in the water though...
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| sieving sands |
Along the road from Albenga to Ceriale, the greenhouses are in full swing and the campsites are also getting ready for the summer. Midway along the road I took a break to wear my Xero shoes - the sockless season has begun ;-)
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| Xeros are GO! |
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From Ceriale to Borghetto Santo Spirito they built a nice wooden sidewalk overlooking the sea, running along the
Via Aurelia - the first paved Roman road, that runs from Rome to France. The view here is really something!
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| great views |
Now I have to find a place to eat... to start with, I'm stopping for an apple in Loano.
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| Borghetto |
The way from Borgio Verezzi to Finale Ligure includes walking under a road tunnel - only 145m, but still I used my buff to protect my airways. Fortunately there was a guard-rail protected pavement, quite safe to walk on.
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| the tunnel! |
Finally, I reached Final Borgo by 5:00pm -and only with that apple and a cereal bar. The whole tour measured 20 km in length plus detours in the old parts of the towns I passed.
My feet are pretty tired, but overall I feel well. I have a bit of a stiff neck as the rucksack was a bit too heavy - I could have avoided bringing the tablet along... I kept my Xeros for a couple of towns, but then went back to my well-padded trainers - to avoid my feet going up in flames. Like with barefeet, with Xeros it's a gradual thing - about 10 km for the first time this season, I guess it's a good enough start! :-)
I waited in Final Borgo for the climbers (and Rosie) to get back for a drink.
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| Finale |
Dinner tonight was in a highly noisy environment - our group + another smaller but louder one - the background noise was so loud you couldn't hear yourself think!!! The meal took way too long, but I still managed to sneak away just after dessert... and retire to our camperised Qubo car ;-)
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12-04-2015 - Finale Ligure
Walked the Geology Trail on the Orera mountain
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| the trail |
Tonight was colder and I felt a bit chilly, in spite of the extra blanket. I must keep in mind that April nights in Finale are not that warm, in spite of the hot days.
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| on the trail |
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| the 3 dots |
Today I walked with the climbers up to their climbing spot, then carried on along a trail in the woods.
I followed the 3-dots trail to St. Martin's Church, then followed the Geology Trail to see some local CAVES and an ancient DOLMEN.
Then I went on to the Tower of Bastia where I had my lunch of apple and cereal bar, before heading back to rejoin the others.
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| the Dolmen |
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| the Tower of Bastia |
I spent just some 15 minutes at the climbing walls then started on my way back to Final Borgo, where I got me a well deserved ice-cream. I'm sitting on a bench in a quiet little square, away from the hustle and bustle of the more popular lanes and will be doing some reading before catching up with the climbers again, when they're back in about an hour or so.
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| Back to Final Borgo |
More pix here :-)
