Tag: beach life

Our Second Roman Beach Season

Hopes were high for our second summer beach season in Rome. Last year we were able to visit about half a dozen popular spots near to Rome and this year hoped to fill in some of the gaps. In fact, we made our first ‘beach’ trip long before the season opened with a visit to Fregene in April, just to start getting the engines revved.

From there, we enjoyed a lovely long weekend on Ischia at the end of May to start the summer proper. Although we spent more time by the pool and walking and exploring the town than by the sand and sea, the hardcore beach set were already out in the small stabilimenti near our hotel.

Since we didn’t quite beach enough in Ischia, I insisted we go to Ostia the following weekend. We were hoping to find our new favourite beach club after surveying a few last year and ended up at a place called Venezia. Unfortunately, the pool wasn’t open until July and the sea quite choppy (typical Ostia probs). We still had a nice breezy bright day and got to dip our toes.

In June, we were caught up in out-of-Italy travel in Poland and France and likely missed the best sunning weather of the season in Rome. Very few complaints were made as we visited old and new favourites in both countries, including some beauties in the South of France.

We returned to Rome and faced an absolute wall of heat for the heart of the summer. It was noticeably hotter than last year and made all outdoor excursions almost unbearable during the day. Temperatures were the in the 37-38 range for the better part of six weeks and made the sand feel like lava. Although Aleksander had grown out of his habit of last year of eating sand, this year it was impossible to explain to him that he needs to stay off of it for the sake of his feet. All that to say that we mostly stayed indoors until Dalia’s mom arrived in August and we braved the heat for two beach days: one new in Anzio and another old favourite at Santa Marinella.

As the intense summer heat finally started to wane ever so slightly, we hosted Dalia’s brother and family and spent a few nights in the absolutely lovely city of Gaeta. We were debating between Gaeta and Sperlonga for a little bit but the prices were much more reasonable in Gaeta and we were not disappointed. Except, that as quickly as the heat had dissipated, the winds had picked up and seemed to signal the end of the this year’s beach season. In fact, we walked into the empty beach club and they let us stay if we ordered a drink, rather than the standard 40€ day fee. All good things come to an end and so did our enjoyable but a bit scattered and sweltering summer season of 2022.

As with all things travel related in Italy, you will actually never see everything and will always discover more to experience. Next year, we hope to get to Sperlonga, maybe the Amalfi, perhaps the coast near Tuscany and to finally make our already twice postponed trip to Puglia in the South-East of the country. We’re not exactly running out of time here but we may be running out of summers in Italy. We’ll really have to focus next year to get it all done!

A Weeklong Revisit of the Cote D’Azur

The South of France is a part of the world that we’ve been fortunate enough to visit a few times over the years and it always seems to call us back after some time away. As we were considering summer vacation spots from Rome, it was the destination that popped the most. So we planned a weeklong trip, with some new discoveries and some visits of old favourites, as well as a few days spent with some grad school friends from our time in Brussels.

We landed in Nice, headed to our hotel in Beaulieu Sur Mer but as we were too early to check in on Saturday morning, we almost immediately turned our sights to Monaco. It’s a city that has a special place both in our hearts and in our relationship and always makes for an interesting few hours – of indulgence, of nostalgia, of possibility.

We took an important photo (find blog post), ate some great hamburgers, visited the old cliff top castle and let Aleksander play in a park on what’s probably the most expensive real estate he’s ever walked on!

We returned to our hotel home base, oriented ourselves and sketched out the next few days. Beaulieu sur Mer (which quite accurately translates as beautiful place on the sea) was a relatively quiet town between Nice and Monaco and notably, at the foot of the St. Jean Cap Ferrat, a magical Cape that made for perfect sea side walks and the type of gorgeous views that make this part of the world what it is.

We quickly pivoted all previously made retirement plans and decided that St. Jean Cap Ferrat is for us (if the heavens allow!). It’s such a stunning, peaceful and scenic pied a terre on the planet that it would probably convince any passerby to change their life plans to stay at almost all costs.

As this was our third visit to this part of the Cote D’Azur, we were able to get to some portions of the coast that we haven’t been able to make it to before. One of the main targets was Eze, famous, charming and difficult to get to hilltop village.

The views were absolutely incredible but the crowded bus ride up and completely fool-hardy hike down (with baby and stroller in hand) made for some moments of pause. Add to that, peak June heat and loads of people in Eze’s very, very narrow streets and we had our work cut out for us. We’re glad we finally got up there but probably won’t be returning until the kids are teens at least!

The next day was spent split between one of the world’s most charming beaches at Villefranche sur Mer and an evening visit to the hub city of Nice.

If you’re ever in the South of France and need a dreamy beach day, go to Villefranche, I can’t really say more than that, you won’t regret it.

Nice is a city that we go back and forth on. Dalia is largely a fan and I just as often am happy to avoid it. Somehow this time though, the city spoke to me in a new way and I found it’s beachside, streets and views supremely charming and inviting. Maybe the best feature of Nice, and certainly for us at Aleksander’s age, is the great fountain playground where kids lose their minds in glee while parents try to capture every moment.

We wrapped up our time in Nice and started the second half of our week heading to St. Raphael to meet some friends for a few days. Every time we’re in the Cote D’Azur we always try to add a new city or two to the visit to continue the exploration. St. Raphael was a logical choice to meet our friends who were staying in Hyeres, closer to Toulon.

St. Raphael felt like the ideal retirement town on the coast – full of non-descript apartment blocks, lengthy wide beaches and patios for days. We enjoyed a few lazy days on the beaches and continued our sanding, sunning and summering.

One of my completely inexplicable life goals is to visit St. Tropez, mostly based on the reputation the town created in my mind based on Puff Daddy music videos from the 1990s. In fact, we looked into staying a couple nights on this trip but the prices were outrageously high for public service standards so we decided on a day trip instead.

The island is an easy ferry ride from St. Raphael so we strapped in the kids and went yacht hunting!

We walked, explored, caught up and lunched. The yachts really are impressive as they were preparing for some fancy race or other. Most only have their crews on board, signalling the absurd kind of money that affords a fancy yacht and then the lack of time to actually ever visit it.

The highlight of the day was watching a series of games of pétanque (which seemed super apropos) and Aleksander riding a merry-go-round, his obsession of the moment. Otherwise, we found the town overrated and overpriced, as one does!

We were happy to return to St. Raphael and our more modest comforts. Walks, swims and balcony views!

As our week was starting to approach its end, we parted ways with our pals and headed to Juan-les-Pins, our final French destination before returning home. We had visited Juan-les-Pins on our honeymoon and it had made a strong enough impression that we decided to return.

Again, we strolled, visited nearby Antibes and maxed out some more beach time. Aleksander tried out some of the local merry-go-rounds and we window shopped and dined al fresco. We also made a point of going back one more time to the grand splash pad of Nice for one more frolic.

Our week was absolutely full! With beauty, with thankfulness, with rest, discovery and family memory-making. This region of the world has quite accidentally become a recurring part of our relationship’s story and, obviously, we don’t mind at all. It also speaks to the wonderful options available from Rome – nevermind all that Italy has to offer – France, Portugal, Croatia, Spain, Greece are all short flights away. And that’s not even to mention Tunisia, Cyprus, Malta, etc.

We returned home happy and bronzed. Ready for the summer ahead, and more urgently, a family wedding in Poland in less than two weeks! Mama mia!!

May Long Weekend in Ischia

The unofficial start of the Canadian summer season is the Victoria Day long weekend towards the end of May. Since we get a day off when most Italians don’t and are also keen to get a jump on summer, we planned a fun and novel few days on the iconic vacation island of Ischia.

Last Victoria Day, we took our first proper trip in Italy and went to Venice for the first time. It was a magical time when tourists hadn’t yet reclaimed the city and we enjoyed mostly good weather. This year we turned our attention more firmly towards the coast, it’s crystalline waters and gorgeous islands.

Ischia features somewhat prominently in the Neapolitan novels of Elena Ferrante (maybe my favourite fictional series of all time), and even though the island may have long passed its peak as a summer destination, it offers all the charm, island pace and scenery of its more famous Amalfi neighbours and with less pretentiousness and unnecessary cost.

Our lovely hotel lent for easy postcard perfect photos, especially in our toddler induced early mornings. The light was exactly the reason people come to Italy from all around the world. Because it’s pretty much as heavenly as it gets.

The main tourist worthy stop in the town of Ischia is the incredible floating Castello, which really blew both our expectations and minds. The challenge of leaving the stroller behind notwithstanding, it was easily one of the most scenic, impressive and engaging sites we’ve ever visited in Italy.

Otherwise, Ischia proved to be a compact, interesting and not yet over populated weekend destination. We walked, we ate, we ran after our child in the streets! He was happy to kick his ball, run near the water and climb all stairs he could manage.

On Sunday, we decided to take a quick ferry ride to the nearby island of Procida for a day trip. We had initially debated whether to stay in Procida for a night but we’re happy we didn’t. It was even smaller than Ischia, less stroller friendly and full of (mildly annoying) day trippers like ourselves. That being said, the views did not disappoint and again reminded us of how lucky we are to live to such world class beauty.

Our beautiful first summer long weekend passed in a beautiful flash. We were happy to have discovered this long enjoyed gem of the Italian sea and started thinking about where to next (ie the South of France!). We managed to sneak in a Neapolitan pizza on our way back to Rome – at a restaurant we dined at on our honeymoon five years ago.

Italy is truly endless with inspiring, gorgeous and accessible travel options – something you can dig into even deeper from within the country. We’re always grateful to discover new places, create family memories and share this wonderful experience with Aleksander.

Alla prossima Ischia!

Day trip to Fregene – early kickoff to summer beach season!

We’ve had a pretty lowkey start to the new year, interrupted quite regularly by bouts of sickness, both covid and daycare-related pandemics. But eager to brush off our travelling spirits, we decided on a quick Saturday day trip to Fregene, only about a 30 minute train ride from Rome Termini.

Fregene often pops up on any top ten list of beaches near Rome and as we didn’t get a chance to visit last summer, it seemed like a natural place to venture to to start the sun and sand season (if undoubtedly early).

The town itself is maybe one of the most underwhelming in Italy, the place clearly exists to help people tan, relax and swim from May to September. There’s something charming for me about off-season travel. The tranquility; the mild eeriness of empty homes, beaches and restaurants; and the knowledge of how different everything feels in just a few months.

We hopped on a bus from the train station and walked the 20 minutes or so to the beachfront for lunch. Beach clubs were in very early preparation for the season: few lounge chairs to be seen, handymen fixing fences and signs; and families strolling, some in shorts, others still in scarves.

We chose an inviting looking restaurant for lunch and enjoyed our meal while Aleksander marvelled at the amazingness of sand and all its possibilities at the playground nearby. We discussed with excitement our array of summer plans ahead and how fun this summer would be when hopefully he does more than just try to eat sand at the beach.

It really is grand to have beaches less than an hour for Rome, even windy ones with sand not quite as smooth as silk. We stopped at a Hawaiian themed street patio before heading back towards the train station. Aleksander snoozed, we started building our base tans for the summer and planned where to head next weekend.

A fun preview of summer 2022 indeed!

September in Sicily

After a fairly hot slog of a summer in Rome, we decided to bookend our late Springtime trip to Sardegna with a week or so in the southern island of Sicily in September.

Sicily conjures up a whole range of feelings and ideas, most often related to (outdated) pop-culture references to the mafia. I was never a big fan of the Godfather and have only heard great things about the island since being in Rome, so we struck off on our trip with good vibes and an open mind.

While planning the trip, we had to decide which coast to visit, which major city to structure our trip around. Palermo is Sicily’s capital and it was a close decision, but we finally targeted the east coast centred around Catania. We flew into Catania, picked up our rental car and headed north towards Mount Etna and the incredible city of Taormina.

One of my colleagues is from Taormina and did a really great job selling us on this gorgeous city that we had never heard of. He also provided a load of local tip for sites, food and beaches. We checked into our mostly empty hotel in the countryside and breathed in the tranquility of the place.

We ended up completely blown away by Taormina – somehow this ends up being a pretty common reaction to places in Italy we’ve never heard of. The country is just full of jewels for travellers! Despite the ongoing pandemic, the main streets and squares of Taormina were quite busy. The shops drew us in, buying shoes and a hat for Aleksander and Pistacchio liquor for mommy and daddy.

We spent two full days doing this and that in Taormina. Trying Giuseppe’s gelato recommendation, familiarizing ourselves with Sicilian dishes like caponata and arancini, debating which is our favourite restaurant, taking in all the views, visiting the Churches, peaking down alleyways and even eating ice cream for breakfast Sicilian style, in the form of brioche granita. Dalia was so smitten she was pretty much ready to move in. If the drive up the cliff side wasn’t so harrowing, I might tend to agree!

We couldn’t resist the beach views for too long and spent our final day near Taormina in the beach town of Giardini Naxos. An interesting connection in name with Naxos in Greece where we vacationed a few years back. Apparently the ancient Greeks named this Sicilian town after the Greek original. We didn’t complain about either!

From the north-east of the island we drove south past Catania to the uber-historical seaside city of Siracusa. Neither of us are particularly historically minded but Siracusa speaks to all the layers of what has made up Italian and long-pre-Italian history. The Greeks, the Romans, the Sicilians, North African influences, a living classical Mediterranean outdoor museum.

We took in the culture, the architecture, we walked and walked and walked. Eventually we found another beach for a quick dip, took advantage of the wonderful sea wall for evening strolls and enjoyed our coffees and aperitivos on Siracusa’s Piazza del Duomo. Siracusa is another incredible Italian destination that offers so much to all who find its friendly shores.

Really hitting our Sicilian stride, we headed even further south next. And I have to say that this is where the distance and isolation of the place became most evident. We would drive for what felt like hours without seeing much then coming across a full formed city hanging off a mountain. The first of these stops for us was Noto.

Noto is one of southern Sicily’s famed Baroque style cities and again made for a wonderful day strolling, eating and snapping pics.

We stayed at an agriturismo farm just outside the city and it proved to be a real win for Aleksander who got to meet and interact with more animals than he’s ever seen. Kittens, donkeys, Vito the friendly sleeping guard dog, horses, chickens and goats!

Our next day trip stop was in Ragusa. A smaller but equally as intriguing location as Noto. The city peaked in the Grand Cathedral where a wedding was taking place. The sun bore down on us and even feeling a million miles from everything, we deeply appreciated the beauty and serenity of the day.

Our final day in the south-east of Sicily was split between another short beach visit (why not?!) and the absolutely charming town of Marzamemi, which apparently had become almost entirely abandoned before a couple Michelin starred restaurants put it firmly back on the tourist trail. Neither was disappointing as Sicily continued to reveal more and more elements to itself to us.

With full hearts, bellies and phone photo storage, we made the trek back to Catania where we had booked our final night before flying back to Rome. Even though it’s probably the portion of our trip we planned out the least, it offered another wonderful experience. Our hotel was located on the waterfront on the outskirts of Catania, was equipped with a pool and made for a perfect final snooze in Sicily. We ate pizza, swam some more, ate our final plates of pasta alla Norma and prepared for life back in the real world.

We left Sicily completed converted. There may be no more misunderstood island in the world! It’s a beautiful, welcoming, historical, modern, artistic, rooted, lush, surprising and scenic place that is much more than you expect. We’re so happy and grateful to have had this visit and hope to make it back to the other side of the island as soon as we can!