Going to Italy for the first time? Going to Italy for the second time?

This time, forget jumping from Rome to Pisa to Milan to Florence to Venice to Bologna to Como, and packing and unpacking every couple of days... set up your base for travel in Italy in the friendliest town in all of Italia, Pietra Ligure. 

Pietra Ligure is located on the Italian Riviera approximately half way between Genoa and the French border.  In P.L., the sun shines 300 days a year, and you can walk from its beautiful sandy beaches across its lushly florid promenade right into the old town shopping district in less than 3 minutes... this is one of the most conveniently laid out towns anywhere.   P.L., a small town with less than 10,000 permanent residents (swelling to 25,000 or more during its 3 holiday seasons), is big enough to serve you, but small enough to know you. 

The walk from P.L.’s train station to its old town business district is less than 5 minutes. By the way, while you are waiting for the train, you will probably meet Sandro, who not only will serve you a hot cappuccino or espresso in the station bar, but also knows everyone by name and, if you ask him, will tell you everything you need to know about soccer.

Ok, let’s meet David “Zac” Zaccariello, P.L.’s most notorious cobbler and the “Michaelangelo” of leather; Gianni “The Fish” Auricchio, P.L.’s infamous seafood chef and food sculptor, and his assistant “Frankie Baby”; Giandomenico “Johnny Sunday” Grosso, who uncorks the best wines in town; Fabrizio, Raffaella, Sabino & Fabio at the “Il Grifone” down on the beach who make the best American version of an Italian sub east of Boston; Gabriele “Fudgy” diBergallo, with the best fudge topping for your gelato; Nino “The Split” Ricotta, who is still in training to serve up an authentic American banana split; Fabian “Big Al” Giordano, who adds a different sauce to every scoop of your gelato; David “The Capo” de Silvestri, the town sage, once prepared culinary masterpieces for Onassis & Jackie O.; Ciro “The Waiter” Bitteralli, who usually works wherever they serve the thinnest pizza; Franca & her cohort Vladimir, who serve some of the best pizzas in P.L.’s outer reaches (a mile from the town center).