The little town of Bordighera lies on the Riviera di Ponente near the French frontier, some 30km/19mi east of Nice and 10km/6mi west of San Remo. The town has long been a popular health resort and has become equally popular as a seaside resort. Bordighera is famed for the date-palms (Phoenix dactylifera) which grow here because of the mild climate, though the dates seldom ripen sufficiently to be edible. Large quantities of branches are supplied to Roman Catholic churches in spring for Palm Sunday. The Vatican is also supplied with palm leaves from here. Flower-growing is also an important local industry. This part of the Riviera is also called "Riviera dei Fiori" (the Riviera of Flowers).
Just north of the Spianata del Capo is the old town, a huddle of narrow winding streets, still with the old town gates. (Note the parish church of S. Maria Maddalena on the Piazza del Popolo.) From here the Via dei Colli runs west above the little town, affording superb views.
In the outlying district of Arziglia, to the east, near the mouth of the Sasso valley and the Kursaal, are the Vallone Gardens (private property), laid out by a German gardener named Ludwig Winter (d. 1912), where palms are cultivated for their leaves. About 1.5km/1mile east, on the road to Ospedaletti, is the Madonna Garden, also laid out by Winter (and also private property, but open to visitors all the year round).
Some 8km/5mi from Sasso is the little village of Seborga, once a fortified mountain village owned by the Courts of Ventimiglia, it was later taken over by Benedictine monks who founded a mint here. The village commands extensive views.
Bordighera consists of the picturesque old town (Città Vecchia), high above Capo Sant'Ampelia, and the newer districts west of the cape. The main traffic artery of Bordighera is Via Vittorio Emanuele, in which are the theater and the Chiesa di Terrasanta. From this street various side streets climb up to the Via Romana.
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Sasso, Italy
