On to the Cinque Terra (Tuesday 6th August 2013)

We had a great two days in Rapallo. We both agreed it exceeded our expectations. The Hotel Villa Luisa was perfect. Not overpriced as it was not on the beach but still just 5 minutes from the beach. Our host, who we called “Luca”, was courteous, polite and attentive. A lovely chap.

We walked to the station and saved 12 euros of taxi fare in the process Two tickets to our next destination, Monterosso al Mare, set us back 8.40 euros. The train was pretty full but we found two seats and one for our bags. The journey was short, only 52 minutes, with the train hugging the coastline all the way passing through numerous tunnels along the way.

Monterosso in the first of the five towns that comprise the famous Cinque Terra. It's much smaller than I expected. Then main street, squeezed between the cliff-face and the beach, manages to support numerous restaurants and bars. The rest of the town is somewhere up the hill, but we haven't seen it yet. After checking into the Hotel Cinque Terra we donned our togs and headed for the beach. Private beaches abound but there are still a couple of public ones, well located. The water is crystal clear, there are no waves and no sand just dead flat water and pebbles. It's a great beach for swimming. The water depth quickly reaches 2-3 metres just 5 metres from the shore-line. There is a line of buoys two metres out so the young kids don't get out of their depth. We spent an hour or so on the crowded beach.

It was past beer-o'clock so we found a bar down the street after making inquiries at the tourist information shop about the Cinque Terra walk and the boat trips up and down the coast. We sat right above the beach and enjoyed the breeze and the views. We next strolled down the street and found a restaurant that served calamari which we both enjoyed. A couple from Manchester and their two young girls were at the next table so we stuck up a conversation with them.

But house duties called so it was back to the hotel to do some washing and prepare for tomorrow's walk to Vernazza and Coniglia.