Posted by grazia on November 26th, 2009 — in Liguria
Airole is located in the province of Imperia and it is 61 kilometers far from the city of Imperia in Liguria.
It lies on the Ligurian mountains and it is a small jewel nestled between the mountains, famous for its medieval aspect, the amazing views, its bread, its honey and its good food.
It is the first village encountered up the Roia valley, built on a hill overlooking a bend of the river, at the crossroads of ancient roads mule. It retains the typical medieval village compactness.
The parish church was rebuilt in Baroque style, in a superb panoramic position, the sanctuary of Our Lady of Grace is the starting point for hiking on Mount Abella. (more…)
Posted by grazia on November 6th, 2009 — in Italy, Liguria
Rapallo is a town of 30,425 inhabitants in the Italian province of Genoa in Liguria. Its urban area extends over its entire Gulf and is the tenth of the region with 43,000 residents.
Rapallo is located in the western Gulf of Tigullio, set in the bay that bears his name. It is one of the most famous summer resort in the region. 
The origins of the village are very old and its foundation dates back to prehistoric times.
The economy of Rapallo is primarily linked to summer tourism.
This small town has a picturesque historical centre with its colourful streets, which are worth visiting for their beauty and the atmosphere once can catch walking through the streets.
Rapallo’s most important monuments are:
- the Castello sul Mare, a symbol of the town, which was built in the sixteenth century on a cliff overlooking the sea; (more…)
Posted by grazia on November 3rd, 2009 — in Italy, Liguria
Campo Ligure is a village in the county of Genova and is located 34 kilometres far from the city of Genoa. It counts 3170 inhabitants and it is situated on the northern slope of the Ligurian Appenines, 342 meters above sea level.
Campo Ligure has been difined one of the most beautiful villages in Italy.
It is possible to admire its urban elegance just driving on the motorway and watching out of the window.
If you walk through its streets you will discover a medieval village worthy of its past as an imperial fief.
The feudal castle towers dominate the whole village; the medieval bridge crosses the river Stura; the Palazzo Spinola is resplendent with its decorations and colours at the intersection of the main streets. (more…)
Posted by grazia on November 2nd, 2009 — in Liguria
Stuffed courgettes are a Ligurian regional dish. This recipe is often imitated and varied as each family might easily change the ingredients.
Ingredients: 
- 3 anchovy fillets in oil
- 2 tablespoons salted capers
- 2 onions
- Milk
- 1 tablespoon marjoram
- Extra virgin olive oil
- 50 gr. grated Parmesan Cheese
- Pepper
- 20 gr. pine nuts
- 1 medium tin of tuna in oil
- 2 eggs
- 8 medium-size courgettes
Preparation:
- Wash the zucchini and then boil them in salted water for about 5-7 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cut the bread into cubes and let it soften in a bowl with a tablespoon of milk.
- Clean and chop the onions finely and fry in two tablespoons of oil together with the chopped anchovies. (more…)
Posted by grazia on November 2nd, 2009 — in Italy, Liguria
The Mediaeval village of Torri Superiore is situated in Liguria, near Ventimiglia, a few kilometres far from the Mediterranean Sea and the French border.
It is a small jewel of popular architecture at the foot of the Ligurian Alps. Its origins date back to the thirteenth century. 
The village is divided and organized into three main parts with several rooms, all connected by a maize of scale and steps. Its structure is so complex and fascinating that has been often compared to that of a fortress or a maze perched on the mountainside.
Much of the village has been restored and it is now open for ecotourism, with courses, meetings and environmental education programs, offering the opportunity to learn about the life of the village and to appreciate its peculiar atmosphere.
Torri Superiore is also ideally situated to make beautiful excursions.
The resident community consists of about 20 people living in the village.
In Torri, people are fluent in several languages, including Italian, English, German, Dutch and French. (more…)
Posted by grazia on September 22nd, 2009 — in Italy, Liguria
Serves 6:
Ingredients:
FOR THE DOUGH 
1 kg of white flour
4 tablespoons of oil
salt and water.
FOR THE FILLING
2 kg. Onion
20 grams of dried mushrooms
100 grams of butter
100 grams of grated Parmesan cheese
salt, pepper and ricotta cheese.
(more…)
Posted by grazia on September 12th, 2009 — in Liguria
The naturalistic passion of an English man and his wife created the Hanbury Botanical Gardens since 1867 near Ventimiglia.
This botanical gardens were thought for the acclimatization of plants coming from many different countries of the world, exploiting the good position of the area and the peculiarly mild climate.
Thanks to the cooperation of mostly foreigners botanists, agronomists and landscape experts, it was created an enormous complex unique in the whole Europe from both points of view the botanical one, with 5800 species of ornamental plants, herbs and fruit, and that landscape one, thanks to the happy compositional harmony between buildings, ornamental and cultivated terraces.
The gardens were built from 1867, thanks to the passion of the English explorer Sir Thomas Hanbury. He had made his fortune as an exporter of tea in Shanghai and after he decided to settle on the Ligurian coast, and firstly bought the palace of the 
Marquis Orengo of Ventimiglia, still existing, and then the surrounding land, on which he wanted to make a wonderful garden with botanical specimens collected all over the world.
To develop the project he was helped by his brother Daniel, by several botanists (including, in particular, Ludwig and Winter Alwin Berger) and by unskilled gardeners living nearby. The garden soon became known around the world.
When Sir Thomas died, his son Cecil and his wife Lady Dorothy carried on the work until the Second World War, when the site was abandoned. (more…)
1 Comment »