On the route of sailing ships that plied the seas of West: A day at Loano

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It was April of 1825. The people who passed on the seafront in Loanhead noticed a tartan or a boat with lateen sails, heading East. At the time, so I spent a lot of boats along the Ligurian coast, but this was something special: it was owned by Domenico Garibaldi, the father of Giuseppe Garibaldi. On board were he and his son, already entered in the registry of the hubs of Genoa, glad I finally got the approval of his father to pursue a career sailor. That time had gone on board the tartan from Nice Santa Reparata, to Rome with a cargo of wine for pilgrims coming for the Jubilee. Upon reaching the heart of Loanhead Garibaldi beat louder Rosa Raimondi, the mother of Joseph and his five brothers were originally from the beautiful coastal city. One of the first stages of our day loanese is in fact at the home of Rosa Raimondi where a plaque commemorates the famous mother. At the Sea Museum, the Kursaal Palace on the waterfront, you can instead immerse themselves in the atmosphere of the maritime past of the area where he grew up Garibaldi. The oldest evidence of life at sea loanese is the Church of Loreto, built in 775, built for the faithful who lived on the coast. Moving toward the center reach the elegant Piazza Italy, from the evocative beauty thanks to the imposing Cathedral dodecagonal shape, dedicated to St. John the Baptist, which stands next to the Oratory of Turchine hoods, built in 1661. The Brotherhood of Hoods Turchine carried out annually by the ritual of the Sea Festival, bringing the shoulder near the shore the sculptural group representing the Virgin of the Visitation, which are made to make several bows in front of the sea. The charm of the seventeenth century surrounds us even in the Cathedral, which houses many valuable paintings of the era. Wandering around the old town we visit also the sixteenth century religious complex of St. Augustine, which houses a rich library. Going to the Castle, built in the thirteenth century by Oberto Doria, we discover a district of great historical interest. At the foot of the castle runs the village castle, medieval dall'intatto. A short distance we reach the Castle Bridge, built in the eighteenth century on the original foundations of the Roman era, and the monumental complex of Mount Caramel Convent. Founded in 1602, the Convent can be admired in spite of the renovations in progress: the octagonal dome of the church is visible from far away, while next to the quiet cloister are the gardens of the friars, where medicinal plants are cultivated. Returning in the colorful alleyways of the old town, admire the Gates of Passorino, whose clock is one of the symbols of Loanhead. We remain close to this historic port for dinner, the restaurant choosing Matam, in Ghilini. We settle in the cozy common room with a vaulted brick and decorated the tables with some very unusual plants of different varieties of chiles, and once we discover to be in a place where you can enjoy the authentic cuisine of Liguria, adapted to modern tastes . "The word" Matam "Precious in the Ligurian dialect means a cut of boiled," explains Mr. Mauro, the owner who runs the restaurant with his wife Lorraine. "We select the meat with great care, by giving only the best quality. Our dishes vary greatly depending on the season, we use almost exclusively of local products, based on what he offers the sea and the garden. We also make gluten-free restaurant kitchen, as we adhere to the Italian Celiac ", tell us about the owners. Being just a few steps from the sea, the fish remains, however, the protagonist: in fact, we begin our meal with raw prawns Oneglia and the stuffed zucchini flowers with roasted zucchini. We follow these exquisite appetizers from trenette with fresh lobster and trofie with Giant Squid, clams and black truffle. As a second course, taste the specialties of the most popular restaurant, the ortho-fried sea. Some of our friends but other dishes taste fresh fish, sea bream and sea-based hens. Let's water these fine wines of the goodness of the Ligurian Riviera, selected in the local paper provided which includes a good selection of champagnes. The sweet end of the evening sees us enjoy a drink in the Bavarian served with stewed strawberries, ginger and fresh strawberries and a meringue and cheesecake with berry sauce, while our friend celiac choose a gluten-free dark chocolate soufflé. Loanhead is also called Island of the West, for its mild climate: we will take advantage to go back maybe even out of season.

Bertha Frances

FOR INFORMATION:
www.comuneloano.it
Trattoria Matamà
Via Ghilini, 26 Loano (SV)
Tel.: 019/677459