重回波托韦内雷 – Return to Portovenere

2026年5月31日，星期日，2026北部意大利之旅的第十天

May 31, 2026, Sunday — Day 10 of Our Northern Italy Trip

PJG 和他的家人曾在 1999 年来过五渔村旅行，当时就住在今天我们的目的地，波托韦内雷。因此，今天对我们来说不仅是一趟观光之旅，更是一次跨越二十多年的故地重游。早上来到码头，买了两张十点出发的往返船票，每人28欧元。上午的游客还不算太多，渡船离开码头后，十多分钟便经过了第一站奥马焦雷。

PJG and his family visited Cinque Terre back in 1999 and stayed in today’s destination, Portovenere. So for us, this was not only a sightseeing trip but also a return to a place remembered from more than twenty years ago.

In the morning, we went to the harbor and bought two round-trip ferry tickets departing at 10 am, costing €28 per person. There were not too many tourists yet, and after leaving the dock, the ferry passed the first stop, Riomaggiore, in just over ten minutes.

继续向波托韦内雷驶去，三十多分钟的航程中，海面十分平静。阳光洒在海面上，海风迎面吹来，是一段轻松愉快的旅程。沿途还能看到许多建在半山腰上的房屋，不禁让人好奇，当地居民每天究竟是怎样出行的。波托韦内雷也是一座美丽海滨小镇，它与五渔村及周边岛屿一起被列入联合国教科文组织世界遗产名录。沿着海港排列着一整排高大而狭窄的彩色房屋，红色、黄色、橙色与粉色交错排列，十分醒目。据说这些房屋在过去不仅是居民住宅，还共同构成了一道面向海洋的防御屏障，用来抵御海盗的袭击。

As we continued toward Portovenere, the sea remained fairly calm during the more than 30-minute journey. Sunlight shimmered across the water, and the sea breeze made for a relaxing and enjoyable ride. Along the way, we could see numerous houses perched on the hillsides, which made us wonder how the local residents manage their daily commute.

Portovenere is also a beautiful seaside town. Together with Cinque Terre and the surrounding islands, it is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Lining the harbor is a row of tall, narrow, brightly colored houses in shades of red, yellow, orange, and pink. According to local history, these buildings once served not only as homes but also as a defensive wall facing the sea, helping protect the town from pirate attacks.

不过今天我们的任务并不仅仅是欣赏风景。复制老照片，一直是我和 PJG 旅行中最喜欢的活动之一。这一次，我们带着 1999 年的照片来到这里，准备寻找当年的拍摄地点。

第一张照片是波托韦内雷港湾，拍摄于当年他们一家入住的酒店，波托韦内雷大酒店的平台上。二十多年过去了，港湾依旧，海景几乎没有变化，除了更大的商圈。

But today, our mission was not just to admire the scenery. Recreating old photographs has always been one of PJG’s and my favorite travel activities. This time, we brought along photos from 1999 and set out to find the exact locations where each were taken.

The first photo was of Portovenere Harbor, taken from the terrace of the hotel where his family stayed, the Grand Hotel Portovenere. More than twenty years later, the harbor remains much the same, and the sea view has changed very little, aside from the presence of larger boats.

第二张就在港口码头附近，可以看到小镇的彩色房屋和。第二张照片的位置就在港口附近，从这里可以同时看到彩色房屋和山上的圣洛伦佐教堂。整体景观依然与老照片中的样子十分相似。

The second photo was taken near the harbor. From this spot, you can see both the colorful houses of the town and the Church of San Lorenzo on the hillside above. The overall view remains remarkably similar to what appears in the old photograph.

第三张照片则有些挑战。PJG 记得大概是在多里亚城堡旁附近拍摄的，于是我们一路朝城堡方向寻找。起初绕了好大一圈都没有发现，后来仔细研究照片里的岩石，忽然就看到了那个独特的岩石，还有前面的胖女人雕像，目的地就这样被找到了。

The third photo proved to be more challenging. PJG remembered that it had been taken somewhere near Doria Castle, so we headed in that direction to search for it. At first, we wandered around for quite a while without success. Then, off in the distance, we saw the rock formations visible in the old photo, and just below that was the fat lady statue! Just like that, we had found the exact spot.

第四张照片更费体力。我们先在广场旁找了一家餐厅吃午饭，补充完体力后才再次出发。因为这一次，又意味着熟悉的项目，爬山、爬石阶，而且是很多、很陡的石阶。一路气喘吁吁地往上爬，走走停停，最终竟然真的找到了照片中的位置。最令人惊讶的是，照片里岩石上的裂痕，二十七年后依然清晰可见，仿佛时间在这里走得格外缓慢。

The fourth photo required even more effort. We first stopped for lunch at a restaurant near the square to recharge before setting out again. This time meant returning to a familiar activity: climbing hills and stairs—lots of steep stairs.

We slowly made our way upward, stopping frequently to catch our breath. In the end, we actually found the exact location shown in the old photograph. What surprised us most was that the crack in the rock visible in the picture was still clearly there twenty-seven years later, as if time had passed especially slowly in this place.

风景没有变，城堡没有变，雕像没有变，海水没有变，连岩石上的裂痕都没有变。变的是时间，和照片中的人。

坐船返回民宿后，晚饭我们选择了海边的一家餐厅。点的两个前菜味道都不错，让人对接下来的主菜也多了几分期待。不过我点的龙虾意面上桌后，却有些意外。盘子里虽然有龙虾，但几乎全是龙虾头，根本没有龙虾肉，吃起来多少有些失望。吃完饭后，我向服务员委婉地提了一下这个问题。本来以为他只是礼貌性地听听，毕竟这里的顾客大多是游客，很多人可能一辈子只会来一次，餐厅未必会太在意这样的反馈。没想到过了一会儿，他专门回来告诉我，他们已经向厨房确认过了。当时厨房同时在准备十几份龙虾意面，这确实是一次意外，并不是正常情况。为了表示歉意，他们主动给了我们10%的折扣。虽然那盘龙虾意面并没有达到预期，但餐厅处理问题的态度倒是让人印象不错。比起折扣本身，更难得的是他们认真对待了一位游客的意见。

The scenery had not changed. The castle had not changed. The statue had not changed. The sea had not changed. Even the crack in the rock had not changed. What had changed was time—and the people in the photographs.

After our Portovenere adventure, we returned to Manarola. For dinner, we chose a restaurant by the sea. The two appetizers we ordered were both quite good, which raised our expectations for the main course. However, when my lobster pasta arrived, I was a bit surprised. Although there was lobster on the plate, it consisted almost entirely of lobster shells and heads, with virtually no meat! It was rather disappointing.

After the meal, I politely mentioned the issue to the waiter. I assumed he would simply listen out of courtesy. After all, most customers here are tourists, many of whom will probably visit only once in their lives, so restaurants are not always concerned about such feedback. To my surprise, he returned a little later and told me that they had checked with the kitchen. At the time, the kitchen had been preparing more than a dozen lobster pasta dishes simultaneously, and this had indeed been an accident rather than the normal standard. To apologize, they voluntarily gave us a 10% discount n the bill.

Although the lobster pasta did not meet expectations, I was impressed by how the restaurant handled the situation. More than the discount itself, what stood out was that they took a visitor’s feedback seriously.

坐在民宿的阳台上，看着最后的灯光一点点亮起在山坡与海湾之间。明天，我们将离开五渔村，前往佛罗伦萨。再见了，这个陪伴我们几天的彩色小镇。

Back in our apartment, sitting on the balcony, we watched as the last lights gradually came on across the hillsides and around the bay. Tomorrow, we will leave Cinque Terre and head to Florence.

Goodbye, colorful little town that has been our home for the past few days.