If you are thinking about a European tourist destination, why not consider the Liguria region of northern Italy, commonly known as the Italian Riviera? This thin strip of land lies on the Ligurian Sea, close to Monaco and the French Riviera. While Liguria is hardly undiscovered, its crowds are much smaller than those next door. There are many little towns or villages, and one international port city almost smack dab in the center of the coast. This article explores Liguria east of Genoa, or as the locals call it, Riviera di Levante (The Riviera of the Rising Sun.) Be sure to read the other articles in this series: western Liguria, Genoa, and Cinque Terre, five little seaside villages that just might steal your heart.

We start our tour just east of Genoa at the seaside town of Nervi. We continue southeast down the coast to the Portofino Promontory and the towns of Santa Margherita Ligure and Portofino. Then it's back to the main coast and several destinations: Rapallo, Moneglia, La Spezia, and finally Lerici.

The little town of Nervi near Genoa has been a resort for well over one hundred years. Swimming there is not recommended because of Genoa's pollution. You may want to visit in July when Nervi hosts the International Ballet Festival. Nervi's highlight is its mile-long (1.5 kilometer) Passeggiata (Promenade) Anita Garibaldi named for the wife and comrade-in-arms of that famous Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Garibaldi, the founder of the modern Italian state. I'll return to this great promenade, but first let's talk about Madame Garibaldi. She was born in pre-independence Brazil to a poor family and raised by a single mother. She married at age 14. According to legend when Garibaldi first laid eyes on her he could only whisper, "You must be mine." And she was. She taught the sailor Guiseppe about the gaucho culture of her homeland and fought by his side in many battles. The couple had four children and she died where carrying their fifth child several years before the independence of Italy. In 1860, when Garibaldi rode his horse to greet Victor Emanuel II as King of a United Italy, he wore Anita's striped scarf over his gray South American poncho.

The rock hewn mile-long (1.5 kilometer) Passeggiata (Promenade) Anita Garibaldi is full of palm and orange trees in its 300 acre (120 hectare) park. Be sure that you visit the Parco Villa Grimaldi with its magnificent collection of roses. And don't forget Anita Garibaldi.

Santa Margherita Ligure, population about ten thousand, is an old, upscale resort town. There's a Sixteenth Century castle, and a few churches and villas to visit. If you have the money you can stay in a top of the line hotel, costing a lot less than in neighboring Portofino, which is such a famous tourist attraction that it has been recreated, so to speak, in Japan and at the Portofino Bay Resort in Orlando, Florida.

Portofino, population about five hundred, not counting the very numerous tourists is considered one the most beautiful Mediterranean ports. You'll want to see the Castello di San Giorgio (Saint George Castle) already restored in the Sixteenth Century, with its lovely gardens, views and exhibit showing famous visitors including Clark Gable, Marilyn Monroe, and Prince Rainier at play. When you have seen enough of these pictures walk out to the lighthouse and view Portofino's villas from afar. Stop in for a coffee and watch the fishing boats and ferries go by. Then walk or ferry to the Tenth-Eleventh Century Abbazia di San Fruttuoso now a conservation site that occasionally has exhibits.

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