No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow. – Lin Yutang

I relax on an old wooden bench in the piazza just around the corner from our hotel.  The sound of the water splashing in the center fountain competes with the growing chatter of people filling the square.  In one corner of the piazza a woman, a street musician, plays Un Bacio A Mezzanotte on her accordion.  The warm Italian evening breeze feels good against my skin. It has been another lovely summer day in Liguria. I close my eyes, I try to take it all in.  Tonight is my last night in Italy and I want to remember this—what I smell, what I hear, what I feel and what I’ve seen.  My attempts to linger, a little longer than I should, finally are thwarted as the sun retreats to its resting place, and so must I.  It’s time to pack.

Liguria has been good to me.  It’s beauty—charming and colorful villages along the coast, stunning and breathtaking views of steep and jagged cliffs plunging into the salty and vibrant turquoise sea—will be a source of inspiration each time I need time to reflect on the beautiful in this world.  What I find so lovely about traveling is that if you keep an open mind, the journey can be filled with secret treasures—sights and experiences of which you may not have anticipated in advance.  Genova has been one such treasure.  Its old world charm, mixed eclectically with the new, provided a glimpse of it’s ancient past by way of art and architecture and gave me reason to pause.  Liguria invigorated me and nourished my soul and I will forever be grateful for my short time here.

But alas, as much as I have traveled and love to travel, I equally love the pleasure in returning to the creature comforts of home.  As always, my travel has helped me to learn, to grow, to challenge myself in ways I had not yet explored, to stretch my limits and to develop a greater appreciation of both the world we live in and the joy I receive from drinking a cup of tea while sitting in my favorite living room chair waiting for me at home.

As I leave this beautiful place, I consider ways in which I might bring it home, to keep the people I’ve met, the places I’ve seen and the lessons I’ve learned close to heart and home.  Arrivederci bella Italia. Ciao ciao a tutti!

Below is a photo gallery of more of my photographs of eastern Liguria (Genova and the coast) that did not make it into previous posts from this trip. To see the other photographs from my time in Liguria, feel free to visit: Liguria: Genova, Portofino, Camgoli and San Fruttuoso, Golfo dei Poeti:Portovenere, The Cinque Terre, and La Cucina Profumata. The music that accompanies the following photo gallery/slide show is by one of my favorite Italian singer songwriters, Gianmaria Testa. His song here is titled Il Viaggio.

To view photo gallery/slideshow, click Liguria Photo Gallery. Ciao!