George Sand

It is with these sweet words that the writer George Sand describes the serenity and the calm that enveloped her when in the summer evenings she was lost in contemplation of the flow and reflux of the waves that gently caressed the rocky coasts of the island Palmaria and welcomed as in a tender embrace the Gulf of La Spezia.
You must know, in fact, how he wants to narrate the legend, which is precisely between these clear waters and inside the gulf is born what we all today know with the name of Venus.

Protagonist of the most famous works of Botticelli, it is said that the true identity of the artist who inspired the art of the painter is of a certain Simonetta Cattaneo, beautiful woman born in Fezzano on the coasts of the Gulf of La Spezia.
The promontory breaks in fact has the role of background and frame of the famous picture entitled "The Birth of Venus"; In the foreground is exalted the beauty of the woman wrapped in the shoulders by the serene waters.

The writer George Sand, however, does not dwell only on the gentle sound of the waves that cradle it in a continuous and harmonious melody, in fact speaks also of the beauty and the treasures that enclose the gulf and in particular of its islands.
Located in front of the Italian town of Portovenere, the island of Palmaria presents itself in all its splendour and in all its magnificence.

This fact, you need to know that it does not only boast of the beautiful rocky beaches that surround it, but it contains secrets and places ready to be visited and why not discovered!
Between a rich vegetation and a wide variety of animal species, spectacular spectacles are the caves that open towards the pulsating heart of the island.

One of these is the cave of the pigeons which, despite the excavation of the marble portòro continues to subsist despite being compromised access.

It is a non-marine cave located in the south tip in front of the island of Tino, at a height of about 30 meters to peak on the water.

Various research has also confirmed the gathering of Paleontological finds in the 1869: arrowheads, white limestone beads, perforated shells and remnants of animals typical of cold areas such as the Ibex and the snow-owl.

Finally, I want to conclude with a short, but interesting curiosity about this time a typical and traditional recipe of portovenere, the pesto.

The Lola Pesto is born right here between the wind and the sea breeze of the waters of La Spezia, where prepared and handed down for two generations with mastery by Mrs. Lola Canese, from which it takes its name, has become one of the historical courses of the Trattoria della Marina di Portovenere for more than 50 years now.

« Previous

George Sand

Love for the Gulf of poets

Login

Use your ID and password to sign in