Well, now I've achieved something else
I never thought I'd do, and I've driven from the UK to the
Mediterranean. When you break it down into stages, the journey is
actually pretty manageable, but it wouldn't have been as much of a
pleasure as it was without my lovely Ma for company (and to help me
at the toll booths – one slight problem I didn't think about before
I committed to driving south for the summer is that the toll booths
are located on the passenger side of my car. Obviously.
We set off from London after not much
sleep. Me because I spent the week packing my flat up ready to be
rented out, and Ma because she flew down the night before we left and
had to help me get the flat ship-shape. That was no mean feat, but we
did it. I think we both relaxed once we were on the train making the
short crossing to France.
The first leg of the journey was from
London to Metz, in north France. Everything went without a hitch:
driving on the right in my car wasn't a problem (in fact I'm really
pleased I've got my car here as it's much easier driving on the wrong
side of the road in a familiar car – it means I'm not whacking the
door every time I change gear!); the Travelodge equivalent where we
spent our first night was very clean, quiet and newly refurbished;
and we survived a late-night trip to the local kebab shop for our
chips and a well-deserved beer. The next day we made the much shorter
drive from Metz to a village near Strasbourg where we spent the day
and night with some friends of the family who we haven't seen since
1998. It was great being reunited again and we spent a lovely day
eating (five desserts to plough through at lunchtime!), drinking, and
catching up. Having tarte flambees in the garden that evening was a real bonus.
After saying our goodbyes we pointed
the car towards Italy, making our way to beautiful beautiful Lake
Como via Switzerland. We stayed in a lovely little apartment in
Torno, a small village on the shores of the lake. We were both just
pleased to get there, unpack, and have two nights in the same place.
It was very relaxing and absolutely stunning. I enjoyed my first
Aperol spritz of the summer on the terrace of Bar Italia, looking out
over the little lakeside harbour and the mountains. It was then that
I really felt that my Italian summer had started, and equally felt
reassured that leaving my flat and UK life temporarily was the right
thing to do.
After taking the boat up-lake to the
pretty but too-twee-for-me-town of Bellagio, it was soon time to say
our goodbyes to Torno and Lake Como and to keep heading south, in
search of the sea. The drive from Como to Genova was pleasant:
slightly busy around Milan, but as we got closer to Genova the
scenery became more interesting and the roads more twisty as we wound
our way down to the coast. We sampled focaccia di Recco for lunch
(delicious as always) then took the scenic route into Genova to find
our hotel. Scenic in more ways than one given that I managed to drive
the wrong way down a one-way street and park up in a disabled parking
bay, the only car in the street facing against the flow of traffic!
Mum pointed out my error when she noticed a bus coming towards us. I
used my best Italian to ask the guy sat at the cafe beside the car if
it was a one-way street. 'Yes', he shrugged, rather nonplussed by the
whole thing. It seemed to bother him more that I'd parked in a
disabled parking bay so I moved the car back just to humour him!
Our hotel in Genova was a pleasant
surprise – recently refurbished to a high standard and very quiet,
especially considering we were in the city centre, just a few metres
from the central station (Hotel Nuovo Nord in case anyone ever needs
a recommendation). We set off to explore the city on foot and, given
that I've now been to Genova a few times, I was able to point out the
highlights to Mum in order to make the best use of the short amount
of time we had there. I really like Genova, it may not be an obvious
Italian city to like, but it suits me. I like the fact its a working
city, a real city, and full of students too. I also like its
situation; on the coast but with a mountainous backdrop.
We met Massimo and Elvira for an
aperitivo then made our way to a restaurant I'd been to once before;
L'Ombre Rosse. It's got a lovely little garden and the food is good.
Even better when it's on Mum (thanks Ma!). It was a lovely evening
and I was pleased that Mum got to meet some of the people I've only
known for a year but who have made me feel so welcome in this
country. Massimo suggested that I take Mum to Portofino on the boat
the following day and when Mum told him we couldn't do that because
Dad was arriving in Nice to meet us, Massi said that she'd seen Dad
every day for the past 30-odd years so it wasn't as important to go
and meet up with him as it was to explore Liguria! Needless to say,
we didn't listen to Massimo and the next day we pointed the car west
on the relatively short and very familiar drive to Nice.
Chri was at home between meetings when
we got there and I was very happy to see him – it signified that
I'd arrived at my destination and that the summer had finally
started. I still find it strange that up until last June we hadn't
seen each other for 14 years but now I couldn't imagine life without
him. I dropped Mum at her hotel where she waited for Dad and I made
my way back to Chri's, successfully negotiating my first solo toll
booth (I only had to throw 1€ in the basket, so it wasn't so
stressful!). Chri made me trofie al pesto, a typical Genovese dish,
for dinner then we headed into Nice for Fete de la Musique and
another reunion, this time with Evelyn and Matteo. It was so nice to
be together again, and even better that it was Fete de la Musique,
even my parents were there – what an exceptional start to the
summer!
