Page 121 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Italian Riviera

THE RIVIER A DI LE V ANTE  119

skiing. In summer, visitors can is now Via Nuova Italia.
enjoy the simple pleasure of Historic monuments
strolling around the pretty include the church of
historic centre, with its winding Santo Stefano, dating
alleys and small squares. from the 10th century,
Close to the village are the but rebuilt in 1653, when
isolated, imposing ruins of a Baroque staircase and
Castello Malaspina, built by asymmetrical bell towers
the local nobles in the 12th were added; the imposing
century, and subsequently 17th-century Palazzo
passed to the Fieschi and Franzone, now the town
Doria families. hall; and the church
The Val d’Aveto was formed of Santa Giulia di
by the Aveto torrent, which Centaura (1654), reached
carves out an upland plain along a scenic road from
southwest of the town, where Viale Mazzini and with
pastures are enclosed by panoramic views along
mountains covered in forests Impressive Basilica di San Salvatore dei the coast.
of silver fir, Norway spruce, and Fieschi, Lavagna
beech and ash trees. Much of Environs
this is now part of the Parco 0 Lavagna A short drive or 30 minutes’
Naturale Regionale dell’Aveto. Genoa. Road Map E4. * 12,900. V walk inland from Lavagna lies
From Santo Stefano, visitors n Piazza della Libertà 48/A, 0185 395 the village of San Salvatore
can reach Monte Aiona, the 070. _ Torta dei Fieschi (7–14 Aug). di Cogorno, from where visitors
tallest peak in the park at 1,700 ∑ turismoinliguria.it can reach the Basilica di
m (5,576 ft), along trails that San Salvatore dei Fieschi,
reveal the beauty of this wild, The town of Lavagna lies across one of the most important
unspoiled area. Note that the the Entella from Chiavari, to Romanesque-Gothic
western slopes form part of which it is linked by several monuments in Liguria. It was
the Riserva Naturale delle bridges, including the fine commissioned in 1245 by
Agoraie and are open medieval Ponte della Maddalena. Ottobono Fieschi, the future
only to those doing In the Middle Ages this Pope Adrian V and nephew
scientific research. coastal town was a stronghold of Pope Innocent IV (another
Another area of of the local Fieschi Fieschi), who made it a basilica
interest is the great counts. Historically, in 1252. The building lies in a
forest of Le Lame, where its prosperity has particularly lovely setting, on
there are marshes and been due largely to the top of a hill covered in olive
small lakes of glacial the local slate quarries. groves, and surrounded by
origin. The icy cold Nowadays, the town ancient buildings, among
water has perfectly depends more on its them the ruined 13th-century
preserved some Logo of the Parco beach and marina, Palazzo dei Conti Fieschi.
2,500-year-old fir Naturale dell’Aveto which has space for The church is dominated by
trunks, which can be seen lying more than 1,500 yachts. The a powerful square tower which
on the bottom of Lago degli town’s medieval heart developed rises over the crossing. It has
Abeti. inland from the sea, from what cornices of blind arches and
four-mullioned windows, and
The Slate Road is crowned with a tall spire
with four pinnacles. The upper
For information on the Via dell’Ardesia: GAL Fontanabuona e façade features alternating
Sviluppo, Via Chiapparino 26, Cicagna. Tel 0185 971 091. bands of marble and slate,
∑ fontanabuona.com and a large rose window. The
marble and slate striped bands
From the black stripes of San Salvatore dei
Fieschi to the roofs of numerous houses, slate is a are repeated inside the rather
characteristic element of many buildings in the austere interior, and slate is
Riviera di Levante. It is still quarried in the hinterland used elsewhere, too, in the
behind Chiavari (not far, in fact, from the town of form of tiles in the transept
Lavagna, the Italian for blackboard). To visit the and presbytery.
quarries, take the SS225 road from Chiavari to the
Fontanabuona valley. There are six itineraries to R Basilica di San Salvatore
follow as part of the so-called Via dell’Ardesia (“slate dei Fieschi
road”). There is a slate quarry at Isolana di Orero, and Piazza Innocenzo IV, San Salvatore
Sculpture in there is also a slate museum at nearby Cicagna, di Cogorno. Tel 0185 380245.
slate 20 km (12 miles) from Lavagna. Open 8am–noon, 1:30–6pm daily
(7pm in summer).

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