Tag: Riviera di Levante

It hadn’t started well. We woke to a damp morning, grey and unpromising. We took the day slowly, went for some breakfast, checked out the bus timetable and visited the information office. The very helpful chap suggested the best path for the day might be to the sanctuary above the town as it was cobbled and would be ok even if there was more rain.

Returning to our room a wave of umbrellas approached us! Maybe we would wait a little longer …

Patience paid off as later it dried up and we set out, locating the path which went straight up behind the town.

There are watchtowers dotted all along the coast, reminders of a time where pirates sailed the seas …

… and as we got higher we got a better view of the Castillo Doria …

The path became a series of cobbled switchbacks, with stations of the cross on the way.

We had seen various stretches of metal track on the slopes snaking between the olives and vines …

… and when we saw this contraption we realised this was harvesting technology Cinque Terre style!

Near the top there was another view of Vernazza below and a glimpse of the Santuario Di Nostra Signora di Reggio above us.

We felt it was more about the journey than the arrival as the church was closed and looked a little sad although there is still a service here every week.

We spotted the Santuario Di Nostra Signora delle Grazie di San Bernardino on the next hill …

… then made our way back to the town.

Just in time for an Aperol in the last of the sunshine!

The buccaneer theme continued with dinner at Il Pirata – bruschetta and pasta and a Sicilian cannoli for desert filled with chocolate cream!

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Cinque Terre means Five Lands for the five small coastal villages of Monterosso al Mare, Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia and Vernazza, built into the sheer rocky coast of Liguria. They are famed for their rugged scenery and are popular with tourists and hikers alike. The access by road is limited, so most visitors travel between the villages by train, boat or on foot.

We caught the train in Pisa and headed for Vernazza which is billed as the most beautiful and characteristic of the villages.

We are staying with Ivo and he met us at the station, walked us through the village pointing out where everything was and then thankfully carried my case up 67 steps to our room on the fourth floor! Our cheery little room overlooks the small street and will be our base for 5 nights.

We went to explore the village with the rooftops piled higgledy-piggledy around Piazza Marconi and the harbour and up the slopes towards the fortified tower of the Castello Doria, but it was all a bit grey and chilly.

We looked round Santa Margherita d’Antiochia …

… then warmed up with a couple of local specialities – pansotti (a local pasta stuffed with cheese and greens) served with walnut sauce for Chris and minestrone Genovese with pesto for me and were delighted when a little later the sun came out.

The Sentiero Azzurro or Blue Path is the easiest and most famous path linking the five villages. However due to storm damage, only the 2 mile section between Vernazza and Monterosso is open so this seemed a good walk to start with. We followed signs to the start and were quickly rewarded with a great view of Vernazza in the sunshine.

The path was busy with walkers and had plenty of ups and downs as we passed terraces of vineyards.

We caught our first glimpse of Monterosso, although it took a while longer to reach it! This was the first resort of the area and has a tunnel through a headland joining the two parts of town. We only had 30mins till the last boat back … so the priority was gelato but we did take a couple of snaps including this one of Torre Aurora which was built in the Middle Ages to defend the town from pirates and Pisans.

Having taken a good couple of hours to walk there, our boat trip back took 15 minutes! We got views leaving Monterosso, of the coast and of Vernazza from the sea when we arrived.

Another speciality awaited us for dinner – pesto lasagne and a little local red!

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