Ventimiglia Things to Do

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Ventimiglia Market Day is Friday

If you like to shop, enjoy an adventure,
like meeting new people, & appreciate
finding a wonderful bargain, then the
daylong open air market just across the
French border in Ventimiglia, Italy.

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I took the train from Nice to Ventimiglia for some shopping. I had read online that they have very nice leather goods, and also having friends with a sur name of Ventimiglia I wanted to get them some gifts. The train ride was lovely, the station nice and lots of little eateries to sit outside and people watch. Walking straight out the station there are many shops. I was disappointed however as the only area to purchase real Italian leather goods was at the large market in the town square. There was amazing fresh foods, flowers, olive oils, etc. to purchase. I went to the extended streets with intent to purchase a couple large leather totes and was disappointed that the shops selling shoes, luggage and handbags were all run by Asian people with Chinese made junk. If you are interested in purchasing wine or liquor they have great bargains for these items. Make sure to come hungry and enjoy sitting outdoors for a nice meal. There were several ATM machines on the main street off of the train station, so it was convenient to take out more Euros after spending my initial lot. I purchased several Italian candies to take home to my children. Those were a bargain and unique. There is a public restroom inside the large open door market in the town square. You tip the lady running the restrooms which were clean and had stalls large enough to set down all your purchases. Very friendly people who seem to speak Italian, French and English. Would love to return!

This is a very nice escape. If the heat is keeping you away the beach try a refreshing tour just few kilometers away, up the hill.
Anatoli has a tip with a good description of Hanbury's Gardens @ http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/2791d/2263e/a/
So I can skip it and give you some practical infoes.

Opening Hours:
Autumn:
from the last Sunday of September to 31st. October
open every day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
(exit until 7 p.m.)

Winter:
from 1st. November to the last Sunday of March
open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
(exit until 6 p.m.)
closed every Wednesday;

Spring:
from the last Sunday of March to 14 June
open every day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
(exit until 6 p.m. )

Summer:
from 15 June to the last Sunday of September
open every day from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
(exit until 7 p.m.)

Entrance fee: 7,50 euro (20 euro for a whole family)

There is a little kiosk at the bottom of the gardens with snacks and beverages (check opening time).

A website filled of info is www.amicihanbury.com/menu_english.html
There is also the schedule of bus service from Ventimiglia.

Sir Thomas was a ninteenth century entrepreneur who with his brother made a fortune trading in Shanghai. He visited Bordighera and fell in love with this area of the Ligurean Coast. He bought up land near the French border to create a botanical garden world-renowned among the plant-fancying set, La Mortola.

In addition to lush mediterranean vegetation, the gardens are also filled with sculptures, fountains, pools, pillars, amphorae, columns, stone benches and temples on every level.

After Thomas's death the Hanbury family donated the gardens to the people of Italy, which the people of Vintemille figured was a jolly nice thing of them to do, and responded with characteristic generosity, by putting up a statue. Upkeep of the gardens and villa is now the responsibility of the Botanical Institute of the University of Genoa.

La Mortola is accessible by a not very frequent bus service from Ventimiglia - the tourist office will supply a timetable. La Mortola is, in my view, probably one of the finest botanical gardens in THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE and vastly superior to everything in a thousand parsec radius and you would be mad not to seize the moment and go and be intoxicated by its ravishing seductive power!

Nearby is the Grotte dei Balzi Rossi (red rock). Here fossils of prehistoric humans, extinct animals and plants were found. Prehistoric bargain hunters, no doubt, after that must-have essential accessory, wooly mammoth skin bag.

Leave behind the market and commercial district, cross the bridge and make the ascent through narrow streets through the old town of Ventimiglia. Here from its high vantage point you can look up the beautiful unspoilt Ligurean coast towards France.

Everywhere people walk and there is space to stand, there are the bag-men.

Counterfeit goods and young men with little future in their own country make a bargain of necessity. An odd trade that flourishes here in Ventimiglia as many of the visiting French prefer to haggle with them, rather than just buy in the shops and stalls. On offer, fake rolexes, designer label sunglasses and handbags, counterfeit jeans and hats, supposed Mont Blanc pens. Just be prepared to bargain and watch the price come down.

However for real bargaining you can't beat an arab souk. True story. I was in the Gulf a few years back, and went looking for a watch with an arab colleague. To show off his prowess at bargaining, he took on the shopkeeper. Trading bluffs and insults he beat him down to his rock bottom price over fifteen minutes . "If I sell at that price my family will starve!" begged the shopkeeper. "So forty dirhams is your best price? OK, then forty it is." he said, appearing to concede a result. Then, triumphantly he rounded on him "Ah yes. Forty for one. But what price if I buy two"?

He didn't want two watches, he wanted to another concession. Its not the money, its something else. The price? A watch he didn't want. But he got his concession, which to him was worth more .

The law of bargaining goes like this: "If the seller asks for ten, he wants eight, but he'd settle for six, which means its worth four, so you offer him two" You have to look at it as a sort of sport. Bargaining is not very "English" - We Anglo-saxons prefer a fixed-price environment with price stickers, and the occasional "Sale! Half Price! Everything Must Go!" (eventually).

Despite being trained by experts, I managed to get a watch down from ten euros to eight. Pretty feeble, really. I think where I went wrong was I actually wanted the watch.

UPDATE
Anti-counterfeiting action - last week a Danish tourist was fined £2,000 for purchasing a £10 fake pair of Chanel sunglasses - take care!

San Remo was first named Matuzia after the rich and powerful Caio Matuzio, but a legend wants for Matuzia to come from the sea & dawn godess Matuta. Today, the city is capital of the Riviera dei Fiori, called the Flower Town... which suits very well all the flower baskets, parks, exhibitions and flowerbeds one will find throughout the city; long ago is the time when San Remo was only a simple fishermen's village, it has been since transformed into an elegant and luxurious lively town. Home to the BEST "pasta al pesto" one will ever have, its visit is worth the detour even if only for that! ...beware of the look you'll get, for Italians don't serve tap water in restaurants, coffee shops or even bars!

It is really worth the 20 minutes drive from Ventimiglia into the countryside, to go visit with a true medieval town. A town named after one of its first owner, in Roman times: Dulcius, turned into Dolciusaqua, then Dolceaqua, for a river runs through it. Nestled in the small valley, the majestic Doria castle dating 1270, still stands proudly at the top of the town, courageously guarding its inhabitants ; but what Dolceaqua is really known for, is its arched bridge across the main square. The town is home to about 2000 dwellers for whom the famous Italian Rossese di Dolceaqua wine making have no secrets... a marvelous destination for a relaxed and very enjoyable excursion.