Cinque Terre, while hard for me to pronounce was not at all hard to love. This weekend, we got a group together (friends!!) that went to explore the Italian Riviera.
It started bright dark and early Saturday morning, since the sun isn’t up at 4:30am. We grabbed a taxi, then a train, then another train, and then another taxi and ended up between Lerici and La Spezia at a little town called San Terenzo. Our airbnb was up the street from the beach, but check in wasn’t until 4pm. We grabbed breakfast and explored the area as much as we could with all of our luggage.
Thankfully, the host let us drop our suitcases off early while he prepared the apartment. Then we hit the beach! The area we were in was non touristy, which made it cool for us tourists to experience a more realistic environment. San Terenzo is a small town too, which was easy for navigation. It definitely gives off the feel of Cinque Terre but more relaxed.
We spent the afternoon laying in the sun, and then swimming in the water when we got too hot. The temperature was perfect, about the same as beaches in Southern California.
After the beach we went back to the airbnb to freshen up. We made a meat and cheese platter and had some wine. The airbnb was huge with a large balcony. One of the perks of traveling in a group is that nice airbnb’s are more affordable. We spent a while relaxing on the balcony before dinner.
We decided to find dinner in the city and most restaurants are on the beach front. We were able to catch sunset on the water which was an unplanned delight. The mountains were so beautiful in the background, and the sunset was perfect.
Turns out you have to have a reservation to eat anywhere in San Terenzo on a Saturday night. We walked the entire city (again very small) and it wasn’t till we reached the outskirts that we found a place with room. The region is known for their pesto and well as their pasta with mussels. We of course ordered some pesto pasta. Delicious.
That night we went to bed early because we were so exhausted from the day’s travels. We split from the group in the morning and caught a later bus to La Spezia. From there we caught a short train to Manarola, one of the five cities of Cinque Terre. Hungry, I stopped for crepes in the morning. My Nutella, cinnamon, and banana crepe was nothing short of amazing.
Manarola is a very small city and we meandered down to the water while looking at different stores and restaurants. We also found some take away fried calamari while we continued our trek. The ocean view was refreshing and beautiful, made even better by turning around to an amazing view of the city itself. The small town made you feel exclusive while exploring, even despite the abundance of tourists.
Inevitably, we got too hot from the walking and the sunshine so we decided to take a dip in the water. Black rocks enclosed the shore and made a swimming hole. The water was crystal clear and you could see all the fish swimming around and beneath you. Some of the rocks came up high enough that people were jumping off of them like cliff jumpers. The people in the city watching from the lookout would cheer them on despite the steep drop. Enthusiasm, relaxation, and simplicity was in the air. This was the point where we agreed that all of the train and bus transfers, and carrying luggage around was worth it.
After drying off we went for a walk to the lookout. The ability to see the ocean and the city at the same time was a treat. We rounded the corner and got a view of the coastline as well.
We stopped for a meal in the city where I ordered seafood spaghetti with white wine and tomato sauce. I’m not usually one for trying new things or lots of fish so this dish was out of my comfort zone. Not surprisingly, it was delicious and I would order it again.
Of course no meal is finished without gelato. We sat and enjoyed the cool bite and then decided to climb up the outskirts of the city. I say climb because the city is not at all flat, and each street is harshly angled vertically. We made it to a church above the town where we had another great lookout point. We enjoyed a few more minutes of calm before we prepared ourselves for more travel to get home.
Pro tip: when in Cinque Terre, celebrate with a personal bottle of Prosecco. I’ve tried the Rose and now the Prosecco by Maschio and I recommend them for a reasonably priced and yummy drink.
That evening we boarded a short train from Manarola to La Spezia, then another to Pisa, and then finally one to Rome. In total we travelled around 6 hours. Thankfully we were able to rest on the longer trains and get some homework done.
Cinque Terre and San Terenzo were beautiful experiences worth all of the exhaustion and traveling. The brightly colored buildings and the ocean views make the destination almost unreal.
Highlights: Swimming in Manarola, Nutella crepes, fresh seafood, colorful buildings, girl time, and relaxing on the beach.
