After a long, traffic filled drive along the coast, we wound our way up through the hills and back down through the narrow serpentine roads until we saw our first glimpse of the sea. It was beautiful.
The village that we are staying in, Monterosso, is tucked down by the water, edging back up the hillsides like waves slipping onto the beach as the tide comes in. The houses in the sunset light look like pastel paint splashes against the green trees of the slopes. I think we might be staying in a postcard.
Although there is no doubt this is a tourism destination, somehow it feels less so because mostly it's Italian tourists with a few Germans and Brits sprinkled in for good measure. From what I've read the Cinque Terre tourism trade exploded a few years ago when UNESCO named it a world heritage site. From what I can see so far, it doesn't feel like the village has been overwhelmed by a locust cloud of tourists. It still feels like a place where you might only go because you live a few hours drive away. The perfect long weekend escape during the summer.
After getting settled in our next hotel (better than the one in Siena, but still, horrible pillows!), we wandered down to the harbor to see what we could find for dinner. A tiny little restaurant called Restaurant Miky tucked away by the beach seemed like a good fit for our first meal on the coast. And it was, they served beautiful foods. I had a local specialty, dorade baked in salt. When they brought out my fish and began pulling off the salt crust and lifting out the flesh I could barely contain myself. I did manage to ask for my favorite part of the fish, the cheeks. They are so tender and so flavorful, I love them. When all the flesh was off the bone, our waiter brought over a selection of olive oils, all locally grown and pressed. It was beautiful oil, spicy and green. Young, the way olive oil should be to compliment a baked fish. That was all there was to my dinner, the simple moist flesh of the dorade drizzled with piquant local olive oil. Mmm, I can still taste it now.
Of course we also ordered a bottle of wine. I mean what dinner in Italy would be complete without having a bottle or two of vino? So we picked out a really delicious D.O.C. wine from the Cinque Terre, a crisp bot not too dry white. The area is actually known for the D.O.C. white wines they produce and this was a pretty good starting place. Sadly I forgot to pull the label off, but I'm going to try to track down a few more bottles to bring home with me.
The other food the area is known for are the lemon groves that line the hillsides along the cliffs. So of course, dessert had to be lemon tart made with locally grown lemons. They are in season right now and I love nothing more than eating local, seasonal foods. . . .
After all that food a stroll along the ocean seemed about right, so we wandered down the boardwalk for about an hour before calling it quits and heading back to the hotel. I can't wait to hike along the cliffs tomorrow. I hope the weather cooperates.
Where we are staying:
Villa Adriana
http://www.villaadriana.info/
Address:
Via IV Novembre, 23
19016 Monterosso al Mare
Phone: +39 0187 818109
Although the pillows are awful, it is perfectly located in the village and the staff has been very kind and helpful so far.
Restaurants:
Ristorante Miky
Via Fegina 104
19016 Monterosso al Mare
Telefono/Fax: 0 187 817 608
Helpful links:
Cinque Terre Information
Wikipedia
WikiTravel
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment