Sex-Segregated Beach Pictures, Lanterna Trieste Italy

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Photographs by Lavinia Parlamenti.

Pedocin Beach is nestled in the northeastern city of Trieste, Italy. It looks like any other beach in the seaside town, save for one key detail: Men and women are separated.

Since its founding in 1890, Pedocin has been totally segregated by gender. A low wall divides the men's side from the women's side, and while that may not sound like a beach you've ever visited, Pedocin's regulars find this distance freeing rather than restrictive.

Photographer Lavinia Parlamenti paid a visit to Pedocin to photograph and speak with beachgoers one on one. She met women who prefer to chat with their friends rather than have men look at them in their swimsuits, men who spend their days sunbathing in silence, and couples who enjoy the beach but crave alone time, too.

Parlamenti's images show people totally at ease, happy to relax on the beach as they wish. While a gender-divided beach might not be everyone's first choice for a vacation destination, the single-sex experience is what makes it special to some. Pedocin's visitors have found a beach they love; it's a place where they feel comfortable. And isn't that what we're all looking for in a summer getaway?

Click ahead to learn more about Pedocin Beach and see the men and women who frequent its shores.

It's your body. It's your summer. Enjoy them both. Check out more #TakeBackTheBeach here.

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