Of Poets And Pirates

As luck would have it, we had the chance to visit Portovenere on the Ligurian border with Tuscany. Boats run from April 1-October 31, but stormy seas can suspend service at any time. Thanks to timely good weather, we scored the first boat of the summer season from Genoa to that mystical land of poets and pirates.

Perched strategically on the western end of the Gulf of La Spezia, Portovenere – known as the “Bay of Poets” -- is a favorite among literati. The poet Lord George Gordon Byron purportedly swam five miles from Portovenere to Lerici to visit his friend Percy Bysshe Shelley. Nearby “Byron’s Cove (below) is named in his honor.

The name of the picturesque town has been attributed to the Romans who founded “Portus Venerus” as an outpost and fishing village, with a temple dedicated to the goddess Venus. The Italian scholar Petrarch described Portovenere thusly: “Such sweetness made Minerva forget about her homeland, Athens.”

Another explanation links to stories of a hermit monk known as Venerio, who today is celebrated as St. Venerius, protector of lighthouse guardians. According to legend, during stormy nights, Venerio would light huge bonfires on the island of Tino to save ships out at sea as the approached the Bay of Poets.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, Portovenere became a base for the Byzantine fleet and was eventually destroyed by the Lombards. Later a strategic base in Genoa’s war against Pisa for domination of the Ligurian Sea, Portovenere features a castle, fortified walls and other structures strategically facing the sea.

The site became a frequent target of raids by pirates from the Barbary Coast in Northern Africa. The Genoese erected the Gothic Church of St. Peter adjacent to the castle in 1198. Viewing the formidable fortification (above) from our boat, it’s easy to envision the Château d’If from the Count of Monte Cristo.

In 1575, Genoese Admiral Andrea Doria initiated a modern military seaport in the Gulf of La Spezia. In 1606, he built a small fortress (above) named "La Torre Scola" (tower of St. John the Baptist) on Palmaria Island. Portovernere and vicinity became part of the Kingdom of Sardinia in 1815 and the Kingdom of Italy in 1861.

After a lunch of anchovies and chowder at a chic restaurant, the return trip to Genoa provided better views of the Cinque Terre (below) -- the collection of pastel hamlets nestled among terraced hills that descend precipitously into the jade and indigo waters of the Mediterranean along the Riviera Di Levante.