Exploring Italy by Train

There were no taxis in Monterosso, so we walked to the hotel to pick up the key to our apartment. The town is bisected by a mountain reaching down to the water, with a tunnel connecting the two sides. The apartment was on the other side, in the older, more charming part of town, with its brightly painted buildings, quaint shops, and narrow alleyways. We climbed hundreds of steps up to our apartment. It was someone’s actual residence, containing their personal belongings, and the whole time we stayed there we kept expecting the owners to return and throw us out! Probably it was just an opportune way for the hotel clerk to make some money by subletting his own place. In any event, we spent a few days there without incident, and had the added convenience of a washing machine.

In spite of its seemingly small size, there is a lot to see and do in Monterosso. The harbor bustles with activity as fishermen mend their nets, repair their colorful boats or cast their rods from the dock. Tour boats offer excursions to the nearby coastal towns. There are many sidewalk cafes and outside restaurants. Several shops sell local products including wine, olive oil and the regional specialty, a lemon liqueur. The hills above town, accessible by hiking paths, offer extraordinary views of the coast and harbor. High above the tunnel is a statue of St. Francis of Assisi overlooking both sides of the town, a wonderful place for a picnic lunch. We have returned to this friendly town several times, once spending our entire vacation there.

Our plan was to explore the other Cinque Terre towns, so we set out early one morning by boat to the furthest, Riomaggiore. Unlike the train, the boat offered us unobstructed views of the dramatically situated towns. Between them, the steep mountains were covered by terraced vineyards reaching all the way down to the Mediterranean.

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