European Extravaganza - Part III c - Imperia/San Remo

On Friday, Becca and I decided to do a little trip over to San Remo. Lucky for us, the bus to San Remo was right near our hotel. We hopped on and drove along the coast, not really knowing what we'd do when we got there.

It was cloudy.  I think it was humid.  We ran across various traffic streams in order to get to this fountain.

We ventured over to the casino, but I don't think it was open for the day just yet.  Too bad, I really wanted to throw away all my Euros.

This dog attracted quite a crowd.

Dead fish are gross.

I was told I had to eat some farinata while in Italy.  I saw a place that had some, and the baker lady didn't really speak English, but she was delightful and I figured out that she was telling me to come back in ten minutes for the fresh stuff.  So I did.  I had a farinata sandwich.  Maybe not the best way to eat it.  But that Orange Fanta in Italy is MUCH better than Orange Fanta here in America.  It's true.  Wikipedia says so.

Becca and I had lunch under these orange trees.

Anything you'd want, it's in one of these vending machines.

Lots of popcorn vending machines in Italy.  I never got around to trying one, but I really wanted to.

San Remo was/is a really popular destination for Russians, hence this Russian Orthodox church.  It was closed, so we didn't go in.  Bummer.

We kept wandering.

Cactus-tree hybrid?  Is that a thing?

Italian love.

Italy accordion.

We saw what we needed to see in San Remo, so we jumped a bus back and took it all the way over to the other side of Imperia to see Oneglia.  We were staying in Porto Maurizio and needed to explore the modern industrial side of Imperia.  

Our first destination - The Olive Tree Museum.

Growing olives.

Pressing olives.

Carrying olives.

Praying to olives?

Storing olive oil.

I was bummed that the actual factory on site wasn't currently running the olive press.

But the store was open!  I was ready to shop.

Look at all those bottles - way too big and heavy to fit into my suitcase.  I ended up grabbing some smaller bottles of pestos and sauces, since they came in nice little jars that I could safely transport.

Back into town, to the cathedral.

I found a candy shop with my favorite Spanish candy.

Then I decided to jump onto my yacht and sail away.

Not.

A Mexican restaurant in Italy?  Got to be terrible.

We walked home along the port.

I love almost any San Pellegrino beverage, but this one was disgusting.

Back in Porto Maurizio.

We went down into the beach area.  That sand was so soft!

It was time for another ride on the magic diagonal elevator.

Back up the hill to the cathedral.

We needed more bruschetta from our favorite place.

Panna Cotta is yum.

Time to start thinking about our next destination.

Off to France, only 35 miles down the road!