Breakfast anyone?

I know breakfasts in Italy are meant to be only a coffee and croissant, a few rushed minutes on your feet in a bar, but I want Casa Colleverde to be known for its breakfasts.

Breakfast should be a relaxing time and they do say the most important meal of the day, well, so it will be at Casa Colleverde  as we are or will be a bed and breakfast.

So to make breakfast a meal to be remembered I have been practicing  my baking skills.Yesterday it was some soft white rolls and walnut bread, both good. I made some white watermelon jam the other day it was ok but not a favourite. My ginger and lemon marmalade was great but it gave me indigestion; the ginger I like it but it does not like me. My efforts at crepes were passable and I am sure they will get better, as I am sure my waistline will get bigger at this rate.

Tomorrow I am shopping for the ingredients for homemade granola let's see if I can find them all. I think I will draw the line at making homemade croissants though as I do not want to have to get up too early each morning! Cappuccino anyone?

We are opening.... from the 1st July and with maybe a Bapstism.. of fire?

Well... I had a meeting with the builders in the middle of the roof of the garage which will become a meditteranean gravel garden next to the concrete hole which will become the pool and the house without windows and floors which will become the guest accommodation ....I just wanted to say lads we are opening on the 1st of July and I am moving in on the 1st June can any of you think of reason why not ... he said looking around the building site. Ok good.

This is the third such project I have been involved in and I know it all comes together at the last minute, having said that it will be tense and my back and shoulder muscles are already telling me that already.

So we have an opening weekend offer from 1st July 3 nights for euro 100 per night and after that we have a discounted rate for the remainder of our first season.


I look forward to welcoming our first guests with a glass of chilled prosecco!

Ok my architect asked me if he could hold the party for the baptism of his baby here in June, would I be mad to say yes?

Swimming and Bathing in the Area

Rather than sitting by the swimming pool and enjoying the view some prefer to swim in the sea, from a sandy beach or the rocks.

If you like swimming off the rocks there is Punta Bianca half an hour away where you can dive into the sea from the rocks quite easily.Punta Bianca is just around the headland from Bocca di Magra from were you can look back towards Castelnuovo Magra on the hill and see Casacollverde a little to the right above the town on the hill.

A little further around the headland is Tellaro a lovely little port as nice if not nicer than any in the 5 Terre.(one of the Borghi piu Belli d'Italia) Tellaro is normally reached by road from Lerici but is currently cut off due to a landslide Just outside Lerici is a private beach called Eco del Mar a 'VIP" beach, with restaurant and massages etc. Lerici itself recognisable by its fort above the port is also well worth a visit and from here you can take ferries to Portovenere and the 5 Terre.Finally a little further along the lungo mare is San Terenzo a fraction of Lerici it has asmall sandy beach a is  pleasant walk from Lerici along the sea front.

Finally if long sandy beaches either public or private are your thing starting from the Bocca di Magra there is a succession of sandy beaches.

Me ? I think I will relax by the pool.