The Cinque Terre meaning “Five Lands” is a rugged portion of coast on the Italian Riviera that comprises five villages: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore which are all part of the Cinque Terre National Park which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Riomaggiore is the first of the five towns in The Cinque Terre. The village, dating from the early thirteenth century, is known for its historic character with colourful buildings covering the steep cliffs, and rows upon rows of vines surrounding the town. Once a fishing village, Riomaggiore is now known for it’s wine production as are the other 4 Cinque Terre towns.
Dusk in Riomaggiore is truly amazing with the sun setting over the water, whispy clouds and false horizons making for some incredible colours in the sky.
We spent hours sitting in the window of our seaside apartment, watching the locals take their boats out, tourists admiring the stunning scenery and the sky changing colour in the evenings. We cooked pasta with locally made pesto, drank Moretti’s and ate potato chips out of a cone, a local tradition.
On the eastern end of the town is a great little pebble beach which made for refreshing swims in the afternoon. Not many people were swimming at this time of year but for us Aussie’s the water was a warm and delightful 23 degrees.
Riomaggiore was our base for the next week in the Cinque Terre as we explored the other 4 towns, walking, swimming and of course eating… Part II tomorrow, the town of Manarola.
