I remember that we came to Varazze (SV) for about fifteen days a year, staying in some pretty family-run hotel in the S.Nazario area, near the station and the church of the same name, with the gigantic courtyard of the multi-sport club where holds the Sea Festival every year .

The Festivals and Parties

A festival that for five days, in the month of August, brings together hundreds of people who blissfully dance the smooth Romagna, between intense smells of trenette with pesto, focaccette and fried fish at will.

This happens a few days after the anniversary of August 15th, with the solemn procession for the carruggi with the statue of the Assumption taken from the church dedicated to Her, where tens and tens of devotees are crowded, who gasp and praise the pleasure of Salvation .

Over the years I have always been fascinated by this sense of devotion that is perpetuated even for the Feast of St. Bartholomew in the Solaro district, recalling with the exposure of ancient goiters, the seafaring traditions of the locality. The many volunteers who take turns in these festivals and those who offer themselves as bearers of the very heavy crucifixes parading through the narrow streets are observed with great sense of emotional sharing, trying not to get stuck between worn shutters, wires of the current and linen laid out as in “Best” Neapolitan bass.

A beneficial air in the sultry summer periods is found in the beautiful walks along the Viale Europa or cycling on the fantastic cycle path that runs along rocky stretches overlooking the sea.

They say there is not a corner of Venice that has not been photographed or a part of the city that has not been described. A maze of alleys, streets and bridges to get lost. In the collective imagination, it is simply the city of love.

Taking advantage of a gift box we chose Venice as the destination for a romantic weekend with Smartbox .

The most romantic experience of Venice is certainly to be amazed, walking hand in hand through the narrow streets of a city whose elegance is so characteristic that it never fades, just like a rare but eternal love.

Step by step we let ourselves be transported by tourists who, like the current of a slow river, guided us to the “living room of Venice” commonly called Piazza San Marco. The warm air of a May morning, the clear sky and the wind in your hair accompanies the panorama that opens up and there, like a lady of the past, is the majestic Basilica of San Marco whose beauty is comparable only to a strong, tender hug.

We continue along the sea along Riva degli Schiavoni, where moored gondolas, like timid dancers, are cradled by the gentle waves of a peaceful Adriatic. In a few steps we arrive at the Ponte della Paglia and looking to the north there it is, the Bridge of Sighs, according to all the most romantic place in Venice.

Wonder and amazement here go hand in hand with the love that is perceived in every inch of air, immortalized by hundreds of couples of all ages in search of the perfect shot.

But Venice is not just where all tourists go. It is lost in the labyrinth of narrow streets, canals and bridges, where the true magic of the city emerges. Roads similar to each other but completely different, guardians of an original beauty flooded by the smell of salt from the nearby canals where a different life flows, the life of the real Venetians, life in a boat.

When the lights of the day give way to those warm in the evening and the street lamps light up,   the atmosphere becomes even more surreal and you are immersed in past and present, between myth and reality.

And if we talk about magic, a dinner with a splendid view is all that you could wish for. Not all restaurants in Venice are tourist traps, just knowing how to choose. We find the right restaurant, not one of many but the perfect one for us. We sit in a balcony of white marble that protrudes over the canal, at the center table a red rose accompanied by the flickering light of a candle. Here comes the wine, a toast in Venice and another to us.

Venice after ten o’clock has put almost all the tourists to bed and while we head to our hotel we remain silent and listen to it while we are floating on the wings of freedom. From the balcony of our romantic room we watch the slow movement of the boats that sail in the canal without haste, with sweetness. We lie down in bed and start dreaming again, this time with our eyes closed.