POSTCARD FROM MARTINCOONEY.COM

Postcard from Forte dei Marmi, Part Two

Window Shopping

First, a small confession; I really don’t like shopping. In fact it takes something really quite special to turn my head when walking through your typical shopping district, but the flower and tree-lined avenues leading from Forte dei Marmi’s central square down to the promenade quite caught me off guard.

As I made my way through this ritzy neighborhood I found myself increasingly intrigued by not only the variety of wares proffered by the various high-end retailers but quite mesmerized by the many interesting arrangements these proprietors had concocted in order to attract my attention. Well, perhaps not me personally but those with wallets sufficiently padded in order to foot the bill.

As mentioned in Part One, The Flowers of Forte dei Marmi I generally view shopping as a necessity rather than a hobby, but when the backdrop is one of flowers and gardens and superb sculpture I find my instilled resistance to the allure of window shopping insufficient to resist gawping at material goods the like of which would not normally register a second glance.

Admittedly I did feel a little silly once in a while when I caught a glimpse of some sleek, well-heeled sales assistant viewing my new-found interest in women’s sandals with more than a shade of suspicion, but for some inexplicable reason I found myself strangely fascinated by each window as they came into view. It was all so theatrical, to the point where I found myself becoming completely absorbed.

Of course, we are talking post-Italian lunch and so the feel-good vibe was truly running on high.

And, it was my birthday after all. But the sheer vibrancy of it all simply drew me in and held my interest far longer than window shop displays have any real right to expect.

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There’s no doubt about it – Forte dei Marmi is quite unlike anything or anyplace on the Tuscan coast, at least anyplace I was to visit on my Three Month Tuscan Adventure. It’s classy for sure, expensive of course, but in arranging their town in such a beautiful manner it succeeds in elevating the rather mundane art of shopping into a highly cultural and thoroughly enjoyable affair.