Day 9: Lerici
It's a disappointingly overcast chilly morning in Lerici....not exactly what we were hoping for...and we have a slow morning. After breakfast the weather improves and we relax on our terrace for a while. My plan today is to drive to Vernazza, the fourth Cinque Terre village. We have driven in the past years to the first town--Riomaggiore--which was pretty easy but I have always heard how difficult the drive to Vernazza is. In the interest of research, we decide to make the attempt.
In fact, it is a pretty spectacular drive and only the last several kilometers--when the road to the village drops down to sea level--can be considered challenging. But up to then, the road is quite acceptable and the views are quite amazing...not consistently amazing like the Amalfi Coast drive, but very nice nonetheless and from a much higher vantage point.
The very narrow and very winding road to Vernazza ends at a pay parking lot about a kilometer above the town...it is an easy stroll down through a pretty tight valley with houses wedged into the hillside and crops (olives, grapes and lemons) arranged on the steep hillside.
As we enter the town above the train station, things are very quiet, peaceful and orderly.
but as soon as we pass under the train tracks, the small village of Vernazza seems to explode. This is a midweek afternoon in May and the streets are crowded with tourists--old and young--and there a number of Italian school groups enjoying their day in the Cinque Terre. The number of shops that cater to the increased tourism has multiplied exponentially since our first visit in 1993 and, unfortunately for us, it doesn't seem like the same town anymore.
The scenery is still beautiful and the reasons for the popularity of the town are evident...the charming port area, the rocks along the water, the castle overlooking the town, the church on the harbor, the painted buildings enclosing the main piazza with the beach and the water just beyond.
But the sheer numbers of people and the band moving from restaurant to restaurant performing international pop tunes and the bar serving American breakfasts is unsettling to us. We plan to eat at the Il Castello restaurant which is at the top of the town but we find, after climbing up that it is closed on Wednesdays so we go back down and eat lunch at Gambero Rosso (on the main square). The food at lunch is quite good.....a caprese salad for Diana followed by trofie (local pasta) with fragrant pesto. I have some delicious marinated anchovies in a lemon sauce and a very good version of spaghetti alle vongole. The local white wine goes down very easily and we have a nice conversation with the Australians at the next table.
But there are just too many people for Vernazza to digest....people have always come to Vernazza because of its charm...but now for us the charm is diluted by the crowds. When we visited Riomaggiore on a weekday a year ago, it was much quieter so maybe it is just Vernazza that is over-run by tourists. But we're glad we did the hikes before the Cinque Terre became so popular, and experienced a quieter, more charming Vernazza.
We avoid the walk back up to the parking lot because we catch the shuttle bus from the top of the town and we enjoy the ride back to Lerici. The road passes several towns high up on the cliffs that are not as well known as the five villages....perhaps there will be increased interest in places like Volastro, Groppo and Fornacchi in the future.
Our dinner plans with our friend Luigi and his wife are cancelled because of illness, so we decide to eat at the place that Megan recommended to us the night before--Bonta Nascosta. Before we go to dinner, we stop to say hello to the owner of the wine store we have been visiting for many years. He is always happy to see us and we get a explanation of Lerici politics (he opposed the party in power who have instituted very strict rules against cars in the centro which is bad for business) and his personal experience with Italian children who don't leave home. We buy a bottle of limoncello that he recommends and I get a supply of the olive oil soap that I like so much.
The restaurant--which also serves pizza, farinata (chickpea crepes) and foccacia--is small, cozy and friendly. We order a local speciality called sgabei--a deep fried bread preparation served with prosciutto, salami and stracchino cheese (like we have had in the past with focaccia and panigacci). It is very good....and we are very satisfied. We search for a gelateria that is open and have one sitting on the wall of the seafront. Then we climb the hill to the hotel, admire the view
and go to bed.
Tomorrow we are off to Parma.
In fact, it is a pretty spectacular drive and only the last several kilometers--when the road to the village drops down to sea level--can be considered challenging. But up to then, the road is quite acceptable and the views are quite amazing...not consistently amazing like the Amalfi Coast drive, but very nice nonetheless and from a much higher vantage point.

The very narrow and very winding road to Vernazza ends at a pay parking lot about a kilometer above the town...it is an easy stroll down through a pretty tight valley with houses wedged into the hillside and crops (olives, grapes and lemons) arranged on the steep hillside.
As we enter the town above the train station, things are very quiet, peaceful and orderly.
but as soon as we pass under the train tracks, the small village of Vernazza seems to explode. This is a midweek afternoon in May and the streets are crowded with tourists--old and young--and there a number of Italian school groups enjoying their day in the Cinque Terre. The number of shops that cater to the increased tourism has multiplied exponentially since our first visit in 1993 and, unfortunately for us, it doesn't seem like the same town anymore.
The scenery is still beautiful and the reasons for the popularity of the town are evident...the charming port area, the rocks along the water, the castle overlooking the town, the church on the harbor, the painted buildings enclosing the main piazza with the beach and the water just beyond.
But the sheer numbers of people and the band moving from restaurant to restaurant performing international pop tunes and the bar serving American breakfasts is unsettling to us. We plan to eat at the Il Castello restaurant which is at the top of the town but we find, after climbing up that it is closed on Wednesdays so we go back down and eat lunch at Gambero Rosso (on the main square). The food at lunch is quite good.....a caprese salad for Diana followed by trofie (local pasta) with fragrant pesto. I have some delicious marinated anchovies in a lemon sauce and a very good version of spaghetti alle vongole. The local white wine goes down very easily and we have a nice conversation with the Australians at the next table.
But there are just too many people for Vernazza to digest....people have always come to Vernazza because of its charm...but now for us the charm is diluted by the crowds. When we visited Riomaggiore on a weekday a year ago, it was much quieter so maybe it is just Vernazza that is over-run by tourists. But we're glad we did the hikes before the Cinque Terre became so popular, and experienced a quieter, more charming Vernazza.
We avoid the walk back up to the parking lot because we catch the shuttle bus from the top of the town and we enjoy the ride back to Lerici. The road passes several towns high up on the cliffs that are not as well known as the five villages....perhaps there will be increased interest in places like Volastro, Groppo and Fornacchi in the future.
Our dinner plans with our friend Luigi and his wife are cancelled because of illness, so we decide to eat at the place that Megan recommended to us the night before--Bonta Nascosta. Before we go to dinner, we stop to say hello to the owner of the wine store we have been visiting for many years. He is always happy to see us and we get a explanation of Lerici politics (he opposed the party in power who have instituted very strict rules against cars in the centro which is bad for business) and his personal experience with Italian children who don't leave home. We buy a bottle of limoncello that he recommends and I get a supply of the olive oil soap that I like so much.
The restaurant--which also serves pizza, farinata (chickpea crepes) and foccacia--is small, cozy and friendly. We order a local speciality called sgabei--a deep fried bread preparation served with prosciutto, salami and stracchino cheese (like we have had in the past with focaccia and panigacci). It is very good....and we are very satisfied. We search for a gelateria that is open and have one sitting on the wall of the seafront. Then we climb the hill to the hotel, admire the view
and go to bed.
Tomorrow we are off to Parma.
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