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issue 13 - Oct/Nov 2003 - day trips


POSTCARD FROM PORTOVENERE, ITALY
by Nina Ondine



Dawn diffuses a pale glow upon the coarse coastline of the Cinque Terre. The postcard is thumb-tacked to my bedroom door. It shows a sharp outcrop that rises like a narrow peninsula out of the Tyrrhenian Sea. The rocky promontory emerges from the wind-swept bay of Porto Venere.

A fortress rises at the heart of the fortified cliff. It stands resolute and impassive to the fading centuries like a perfectly preserved panforte. Beside the fortress, a medieval church perches perilously on the edge of the overhang.

A time not long ago, I lit a candle at the altar and sat on a plain wooden bench, my back resting against the ancient marble; the scent of frankincense and mildew lingered in the dark and draughty church. Beyond the centenarian walls, the billowing sea crashed against the cliff face. The liquid mass swelled and rose, blowing sea spray across the church floor through the cracks in the walls and to the lament of church bells, quivering up in the tower.

There, I prayed for true love.

Across these implacable waters, Lord Byron dared the waves and swam safely, to the other shore.



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Calata Doria Pier
Portovenere
Italy
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Harbor
Portovenere
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Via Giovanni Cappellini
Portovenere
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