Having a caffè in Manarola – Cinque Terre
July 21, 2010 by Anna Merulla / Tags: caffè , Camogli , Cinque Terre , Corniglia , Liguria , Manarola , Nervi , Riomaggiore , Sciacchetrà , snorkeling , Via dell' Amore / 5 Comments
The train trip lasted about 2 hours and during the travel we passed through little fishing towns like Nervi, Camogli, we saw many beautiful panoramas, little bays and then we arrived in Manarola.
The town of Manarola is situated on a rocky pedestral overhanging the sea. It is the calmest of the Cinque Terre, later discovered by the tourists. It is possible to enjoy the nature with relaxing walks, above all the “Via dell’ Amore” that leads to Riomaggiore. Although there is no real beach here in Manarola, it has some of the best deep-water swimming around.
So, in this exact moment I’m sitting in a Cafè, tasting a coffee and writing in my blog to share with you the charming atmosphere of this Sunny day of July in Manarola.
One of the first thing that strikes you immediately when you arrive in Manarola is the vivid colour of the houses which contrasts with the blue of the sea and the green vineyards above the town.
Walking through the narrow streets of the town (the caruggi in dialect) you will arrive onto a square called, Piazza Capellini. The Piazza is decorated with mosaics of the local fish and it is a great place to sit down and relax or have a snack.
The town is full of little seafood restaurants, focaccerie, pizzerie and paninoteche. When the time for lunch came we decided to follow the scent of seafood coming from the trattoria “Il Porticciolo” and we went there. Our instinct was right and soon we tasted good seafood dishes.
Later, we walked through the alleys of the town and found also a little museum dedicated to the most renomanted wine of the Cinque Terre, The Sciacchetrà.
Finally, we went to visit the old church of San Lorenzo and found local people sitting in the little square in front of the church speaking about their everyday life. It’s so characteristic how they use this place also as community meeting place.
Spending a day here in Manarola has been so relaxing. I suggest to you, once you are in Liguria, to see these little five lands…but don’t forget to visit also the other beauties of the Liguria region, I’m sure you will appreciate and fall in love with them!
Fantastic place and article.. One of these days I will have to visit Five Lands, leaving at 30 minutes of train it's crazy I've never been there!
Super post, reminds me of WHY I have to come back over. To see the views and eat some Fritto Misto.. another friend of mine did a post the other day too, and that had the same paper
Beautiful Italia!
I just want to go there, thanks for that
Just returned from Cinque Terre yedrtesay. Wandered through Monterosso quickly and I never would’ve known there had been flood damage there, but Vernazza is definitely still in the restoration stage. Many restaurants have reopened at the harbor area, but not much else is back on its feet. Considering the damage they had, the progress they’ve made is unreal. The trail between Monterosso and Vernazza was open, and some repair work is still being done along the way.