Your little cozy shelter in the center, 72 steps from the sea
We are in Diano Marina, in Liguria, the narrow crescent-shaped Italian region, full of sea and green hills, in the area called, not surprisingly "Riviera of Flowers". Here you can find the white and subtle sand beaches, the promenade with palm trees and flowers, a small marina with sailboats, the sailing school and the rocks from which to fish. And then there's the country, with its two-storey houses overlooking the promenade where residents stroll every afternoon and every night. Similar houses, with green shutters, stand above the pedestrian streets full of clothing shops, cafés and restaurants, where you eat outdoors, even in winter, because here it's never cold and it almost never rains. Right here, in the center, 4 steps from the pedestrian area and 72 from the sea there is a small house, a cozy shelter, where you can relax, sleep, wash, eat and then go back and live the sun and the sea. It’s a studio, as the French would say, a “monolocale”, as we call it in Italy. You can find it only if I tell you where it is, because it is in a small alley (in Liguria we call them “carrugi”) tight and inhabited by green plants, away from street noise. At this point you can not miss: there is only one door that leads to a pretty pastel color scale and 6 apartments resting quietly. The studio is on the second floor, overlooking the alley from the windows: the large and bright one in the living room and that one in the bathroom. Open the door and it's all there: the floor in black slate tiles - here in Liguria volcanic slate is at home – the white Italian designer furniture of the living room and the kitchen, the sofa bed with its black and white pillows. The furniture has been chosen with care - I promise you, one by one - made to take up as little space as possible and free up space in the room: they are made to measure, are off the ground, are foldable, are transparent. They are roomy and hide intelligent solutions (the shoe rack, space for the vacuum cleaner, the pouf bed) and express their linear style with elegance: no handle, only lacquered solid wood and quality fabrics. The kitchen is white, but loves the black of his crystal induction cooker and of his slate mosaic setting. Here it's not hot, because there is air conditioning. In winter the air curtain heats the room in a few minutes. There are three beds, a double and a single bed, you decide who to take with you. Now, slide the black glass sliding door, which comes from the floor up to the ceiling and discover the bathroom. The tiles that blend with the floor, the glass shower, the lacquered white furniture with washbasin and the strange tap "bishop", the washing machine. And a designer toilet that seems surprisingly nice. Here, in your “monolocale”, you can rest, because the street is quiet. You can lounge around watching the cat of the house opposite strolling on the windowsill in incredible balance. You can refresh yourself with a shower, after the hot heat sun and the sea salt. Then you can get off, cross the road and enter the Benso pastry, the best of the Gulf, where cakes, pastries, pizzas, focaccia are racing to get to choose. If you are on a diet do not enter!
Go instead to Rossi, the home improvement store, filled to the ceiling with baskets, cabinets, table cloths, cushions, jars for tea and herbal tea, tinted or romantic glasses. And do not forget to go to the Panta Rei, wonderful oasis where you will not believe your eyes. Close them to feel the sun on your skin. Open them and you will see the round whirlpool, white beach umbrellas resting on the green lawn, a large swimming pool and the sea nearby. Then you can return home, in your studio, and relax. If you want to enjoy Diano Marina with its sun, its sea, you found a cozy shelter, warm and elegant, where you'll be fine, as it was for me.
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