The journey so far

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!