History on land and under the sea

Stamattina (this morning) Mamma e nonna mi hanno detto che oggi (mamma and grandmom told me that today) we are taking another trip. We are are going to visit un’abbazia (abbey). Spesso visitiamo l’abbazia vicino dove abitiamo a Cassino. (We often visit the abbey near where we live in Cassino). However today we are taking a long trip to visit la vecchia abbazia di San Fruttuoso (the ancient abbey of San Fruttuoso) which lies between the Ligurian villages of Camogli and Portofino. While nonna drove mamma and I looked out il finestrino (the window) at the beautiful mountains of the Portofino regional park where we could also see the crystal blue waters of the Ligurian sea.

Aside from exploring l’abbazia del decimo secolo (the 10th century abbey) and its slightly piu` nuovo torre (newer tower) built nel sedicesimo secolo (16th century), mamma took me on a seasonal boat trip to see the statue of Christ of the Abyss, an incredible bronze creation with arms outstretched in a gesture of peace that was lowered about 50 feet deep into the clear Mare Mediterraneo (Mediterranean Sea) in the 1950s. Mamma was not so keen on diving
in the water so it was a good thing the boat we were on was equipped with video shows in real time and we saw the divers below swimming around the striking Christ in the sea.

Non mi piace tanto stare nel sole (I don’t really like to be in the sun a lot), but other visitors enjoyed soaking up the plentiful Ligurian sun. I was happier to walk on la piccola spiaggia che offre un pomeriggio tranquillo (the little beach which offers a tranquil afternoon) and to splash in some of the acqua piu` chiara che io abbia mai visto (clearest water that I have ever seen.) La spiaggia is not crowded because San Fruttuoso can only be reached by a challenging hiking trail which seemed more like an old mountain goat path, or by the hourly connections during the high season by boat from the nearby villages of Rapallo, Camogli, Santa Marherita Ligure or Portofino. I didn’t mind the walk but was glad to cool off in the mare bello (beautiful sea.) Mi piace tanto viaggiare con Mamma e nonna! I love to travel with Mamma and Nonna!

Sara wishes all readers a safe and fun estate (summer)!