The Ligurian Sea...

...is on Italy's western coast. We traveled for three days between Marina di Pietrasanta and Viareggio in Versilia, Tuscany. 

Visiting Tuscan beaches for a few days was whimsical to the point of ridiculous. It strangely reminded me of the original Charlie and the Chocolate Factory movie where the young boy was transported into a television show - only I'm not a young boy and the station was turned to The Travel Channel.

The trip was in honor of Ink Addiction, the tattoo shop in Verona where Munday works. Very close friends were therefore in attendance and our motley crew stormed the beaches with big smiles, wearing our party hats proudly.

We dined on only the finest of cuisine and drinks for the first meal - fried fish and beer. ;) The restaurant's atmosphere was incredible - palm trees, tropical vegetation, and a few "banana hammocks" walking around every few minutes. 

We stayed at a bed and breakfast off the beaten path, which was easier for us since we had a van at our disposal, but returning to this quiet Tuscan retreat after a long beach day helped sustain the ethereal feelings as well as restore energy for some nighttime activities, sans banana hammocks!

Dinner was enjoyed on the water in Viareggio, the largest town we went to, and definitely the most nostalgic for me. The second we hit the main strip, I couldn't stop taking in deep breaths of the familiar evening salty air where your skin is tight from the sun and the only thing on your relaxed mind is a Bloody Mary. (Well mine anyway. ;) )
We found a perfect upscale bar for an 'aperitivo' that served Bloody Mary's and happened to exist in a nice bookstore - I was in heaven - we enjoyed a classic pre-dinner cocktail. Italians very rarely go straight to dinner, they always stop at a bar (cafè/bars are the same thing here) to have a drink and relax before eating a large meal. 

I ordered thin spaghetti with mussels and clams, but the restaurant kept bringing these baskets of fire grilled flat bread doused in garlic, olive oil and herbs - if my spaghetti wouldn't have tasted so delicious, I could have eaten the table bread as a meal. Our wine was obviously white with this meal - Vesevo Sannio Falanghina - http://www.vesevo.it/ The flavor was stronger than my usual Verenese Soave, but if the bottle is kept on ice while drinking, each glass is perfect.

The following morning we enjoyed a home cooked breakfast thanks to the B & B. The large table (set with white linens and straw place mats) overlooked a huge bay window (Italians never use screens) revealing Tuscan hillsides, pink rose bushes taller than me and clear blue skies. Their espresso was also perfect - not bitter, strong and brewed to the right temperature. 

(Rose from the front window.)

We took a stroll through a part of town that was certainly the 'Beverly Hills' of the area - equipped with the standards: Gucci, Prada, D & G and the fashionable boutiques housing maybe 20 outfits at a time (they have more shabby chic type decorations than they do items for purchase).

(Roberto Cavalli is on the left - not to expose the fashion world - but if everyone knew how these top designers actually ran their businesses here in Italy, maybe people would rethink their obsessions with the high dollar nonsense of it all.) 

Once window shopping was over, we headed to the beach for more ridiculous frolicking. We rented areas from country clubs that supply permanent umbrellas, chairs, showers, a restaurant, bar, etc. Very convenient and amazing but the owner of our first place took one look at our group and offered a lecture to Ivan and I about how 'they were a family establishment and he didn't want any funny business.' 

Ivan politely told the judgmental man that the place was perfect then, because we were a family and we only pay for the best. Then we both smiled and spent tons of money on food and drinks for everybody. After we left, we cleaned up our area neatly, threw our trash away and paid our final bill, then the man's father came running after us and told us to leave and never come back, he was cursing in Italian and screaming in front of his other customers. Beppe was very disappointed and the other customers agreed with us that the man was very wrong to act that way. We left with our dignity but contemplated injecting the swine flu into the club's water supply. ;)

Still, the day was beautiful and the beach allowed all of us to become 10 year olds again, playing games, laughing and not having a care in the world.

(The pic below was taken right before I was completely drenched by these guys.)

(Bocce Ball!)

(Gelato with a black cherry on top.)

The owners of the local tattoo shop took us out on the town this night, starting out with an aperitivo where Sara (Beppe's wife) and I enjoyed more white Falanghina then we went to a trendy, locally owned Italian restaurant. Whoa. The best steak I've ever eaten - the cooking area was surrounded by glass so you could watch the chef pull out half of a cow then go to town with a gigantic clever, everyone could hear the pounding over loud voices and the overhead music. The only dressing was sea salt after just searing both sides of the steak and adding a side of arugula. Simple, yet amazing. 

This was also the best wine of the trip - Montepulciano d'Abruzzo - http://www.lavalentina.it/home.htm - the bottle seemed like a standard red magnum table wine, nobody even bothered to check the label. Then we all clinked our glasses, took a sip and silence took over. Everyone then stuck their noses inside their glasses, took a big whiff then another drink and we almost fell over in joy. Our only words, not being pros at describing wine and such, was that it was beautiful. My words for that wine remain - it was beautiful.

We spent time in the historic center of Pietrasanta on the third day. The center was theatrically quaint, I was waiting for a Shakespeare play to suddenly begin out of nowhere or for street poets to begin chanting Dante's infamous Divine Comedy. Surrounded by an ancient brick wall, Pietrasanta's little downtown center was meant for fairy tale movies and antique collectors.

Here's a few of my photos from our pre-beach excursion:

(The Sunday market.)

(I was in love with the above and the below items.)

(Below are pics from the only main piazza - Piazza Duomo.)

After some afternoon cafès and cocktails, we headed for a new beach and carried on the same as we did the previous days. The country club we chose was superior to the other in terms of friendly service but we enjoyed ourselves all the same. 

We returned to the historic center in Pietrasanta for a night out.  We drank more Bloody Mary's then ate seafood at a restaurant where the chef was also our waiter. The place was quite large and there were other workers so I'm not sure if that was a normal thing but he liked to discuss the dishes. The wine in this restaurant was displayed on a table so customers could pick which bottle they wanted then bring it to the table for the waiter to open it for you.  We chose Morellino di Scansano but I can't remember the winery, it was delicious and easy to drink which was perfect for the moment. Then we rolled ourselves home to wake up early - exhausted, satisfied, sun kissed and happy.