While in Italy

It was my intention to eat Gelato every single day, 

maybe even twice a day.

That didn't happen.  I almost missed this opportunity if my eye hadn't caught the hand painted tiles in this shop in Sestri Levante,  Italy.

So much to do and so much to see in Sestri Levante. 

Gelato sometimes has to take a back seat. 

We stayed at the Grand Hotel Dei Castelli in Siestri Levante, Liguria, Italy,  many years ago.  Thankfully, not much has changed. 

 The rooms are beautiful, the dinner was fabulous. 

The Hotel retains its charm while providing modern amenities for their guests. 

The Castelli sits on top of a hill and has an elevator that takes you down 5 stories to the ocean side promenade.  Another elevator takes you to their private beach, imported sand and all. 

And then, Relais del Maro a new discovery!

Borgomaro

And the fabulous hotel Relais del Maro. 

A little out of the way but only 15 minutes north of the Italian Riviera between San Remo and Albegno, Italy. 

This is where we met a very confused and lost little black and white Spaniel. 
He would repeatedly cross the only road in the village, 
completely lost and wearing out.  

I knew that it was only a matter of time and he would get hurt.


 The hotel owners tried to find his owner. They made numerous calls and posted a notice on the internet.  

In the meantime he was safe in the furnace room.

Gene decided that this was not how the owner could find his dog.  

No leash was available so Gene wrapped an orange wedding ribbon around his neck and he and the lost dog sat on the bench, across from the hotel, in the rain, for almost 2 hours.  

I felt sorry for both of them. I took out a cup of tea for Gene (yes, the hotel serves high tea in the afternoon). We sat for another half an hour. 

 Suddenly a car drove up, a man jumped out and the dog flew into his arms, wedding ribbon and all. 

Relais del Maro

is spread among three different buildings in the middle of town and a few steps up a side hill.

If you like to shop, this is not the place for you.  If you just want to spend a few days relaxing, maybe hiking a little and just be pampered by the hotel staff, than this is the place.

 This beautiful church is the largest building in town. 
What I like about European churches is that they are open, every day and all hours of the day.  

If you must make a choice then these two places I would like to suggest for your next visit to either Italy or Germany.
the Herrnschlösschen in Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Germany and the Albergo Diffuso Relais Del Maro, Italy. 

Leaving the beautiful Italian and French Riviera and driving toward Avignon, France, we found another charming chateau.  

The Chateau de Varenne is located on a quiet side street in the small hamlet of Sauveterre.

Love the use of red in these old walls. 

Growing out of an ancient wall, a powerful perfume guided us up the stone steps.







Driving towards Paris.

We stopped in at the Chateau De Bellecroix, near Chagney, France.

This was a "Discovery" trip. 

We didn't stay long in any of the places we visited. 
The bonus is that we now know where our next visit will take us.  Then we can take our time and get better acquainted with the surrounding area. 

 All of our places were chosen because they were beautiful, interesting, in the quiet countryside, with easy parking and , hopefully a good place to rest your head on a comfortable pillow.






And fine dining, if we are lucky. 

Chateau de Bellecroix filled all of those requirements. 


Happy travels my dear friends. 

Gina  

http://betweennapsontheporch.net/