Genoa, the Italian Riviera, and a Palm Tree

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I was skeptical about the palm tree on the Genoa travel poster and whether it could actually grow in a city that far north.

Riva Ligure in the Italian Riviera by AudreyH

What I hadn’t realized is that Genoa is on the shores of Mediterranean — specifically, the Italian Riviera. This coastal region in Liguria also includes towns like Portofino and the Cinque Terre, and it has a climate warm enough to support palm trees, agaves, and sun-seeking tourists.

La Riviera Italienne Travel Poster

In fact, the Italian Riviera  was already a tourist destination in 1884, when Claude Monet visited and painted scenes like the Palm Trees at Bordighera.

Claude Monet's Palm Trees at Bordighera

Now if the word “riviera” initially made you picture a river (same here), you weren’t completely wrong. The Italian word rivièra can actually refer to the shores of a river, lake, or, in this case, a sea.

North Italy map

Because there’s an Italian Riviera, English speakers called the Mediterranean coast on France’s side of the border the “French Riviera,” borrowing the Italian word again. Apparently, there’s also a (much) lesser-known English Riviera, which seems like a tourism-bureau invention.

And, yes, in Italy, you can just call the Italian Riviera the “Riviera.”

Alassio, Italy by Martina Pathogens.


Photos via:

Detail from: Palm Trees at Bordighera


I’ll be linking up with Thursday Tree Love at Happiness and Food.

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14 Replies to “Genoa, the Italian Riviera, and a Palm Tree”

  1. What a beautiful part of the world. I have never been off the North American continent – a fear of flying doesn’t help. But there is so much beauty in the world that I am missing out on.

  2. Wow! I love those pictures and the painting. I have never been to that part of the world. So your pictures was the first I saw. Beautiful. I am so glad you joined Stephanie. Thank you!

    1. I assumed they were date palms (since that’s what I’m more familiar with), but I’m not sure how to tell the difference.

  3. I adore this area of the world. I’ve been three times, have hiked in the hills behind Portofino, and on the Cinque Terre, swum at Santa Margherita Ligure, and have not spent nearly enough time in Genoa. I love love love these photos!

    (It’s Travel month on my TakeTwo365 at wordpress dot com blog this month. You’ve reminded me to think about writing about this region.)

  4. So gorgeous! I wonder about palm trees when I see them where I don’t expect to… I forget how far south France and Italy are on the Mediterranean. Your post is making me have wanderlust!

    1. Haha! I made myself have wanderlust too!

      I think it’s the Mediterranean that keeps the climate warmer there than it might be otherwise.

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