Cinque Terre

Thursday morning and a lovely Italian style breakfast plus freshly made omelette on the terrace peacefully overlooking the coast. I found out that there are 12 rooms here and that the property was previously 2 Villas made into a hotel. Feel like I will be testing out the pool late one afternoon.

The walk down the hill to Monterosso and I negotiate the train to Riomaggiore, the furthermost town in Cinque Terre. I spend about two hours wandering the streets while thinking I must be missing something from a tourist point of view. I take coffee overlooking the natural stone structures around which people are swimming and sunbaking. After consulting TripAdvisor and metaphorically seeing that the third best attraction in each of the Cinque Terre towns is a gelateria or coffee shop and that a visit to one or two churches will see you done I don’t feel quite so guilty.

I asked about walking from Riomaggiore to Manarola but after being told walk up the mountain then down the mountain – two and a half hours – sanity took hold and I took the short train ride. Same same, lovely scenic Mediterranean town with lots of nooks and crannies to explore. Back to Monterosso where I lounge around on the terrace outside my room and absorb the peace and tranquillity.

During this time I try to work out why I prefer France so much over Italy and it comes to me. Italy offends my OCD senses. Everything here looks so tired and in need of repair. Graffiti covers EVERYTHING, lifts to and from the stations are shut down and look like they have been for so long, the street sweepers use tree twigs wrapped around a broomstick, secondary roads look like they were built pre-war – everything looks to be in need for attention.

Anyawy I catch the 18:30 car down to the Village.Now when I arrived I was surprised at the limited size of Monterosso, there appeared to be a limited number of restaurants, shops and facilities but hey I guessed that was what it was. While searching for a restaurant I became aware that there is a 100 metre tunnel at the end of the boardwalk that led to Monterosso proper – where I am staying is a like a secondary area. Ahah I now find great restaurants, shops and facilities. I find a restaurant for the first time regretting I was alone as almost all of the restaurants sell pastas for a minimum of two people but the waitress kindly arrange for a serving for one person for me – a very good meal indeed notwithstanding that it cost $A63.

Home to sleep and after waking up at 05:30 I decided to get dressed and walk down to the station to get the 06:50 train to Santa Margherita, a coastal town that had been recommended to me by a number of previous tourists to the area. Arriving at 07:30 (express train) I spend an hour relaxing while nursing my cappuccino and reading up on the latest news. I then walk around the town for an hour before catching the bus twenty minutes to Portofino.

The bus was crowded and I was forced to stand up with people who clearly had less of a clue about the use and purpose of deodorant than I do. Anyway Portofino is a lovely fishing Village with shops and restaurants lining the bay in which all the action takes place. I knew nothing about Portofino except mum and dad visited it in their 1966 European sojourn. This made my mind wonder to just what it must have been like to book an overseas trip in that time, no internet, no phone bookings, hotels booked by telex, no TripAdvisor recommendations just word of mouth or a book from the library, no lonely plant or WikiTravel – it all looks so arcane looking backwards but maybe it was simpler and happier times, especially as I sit there watching my phone battery totally depleted in just two hours, but like a good scout I come prepared with a portable battery charger.

A two hour wander around and walk up the hill to the church and fortification, I board the almost empty (phew) bus back to Santa Margherita station where I negotiate a 35 minute ride to Levanta, a 50 minute wait and then the 35 minute train to Monterosso. A few hours relax in the room before getting the shuttle down to the town where I have an amazing meal at Restaurant Micky which I found by looking at the menu outside and later find out to be one of the best in the area. Crustacean, asparagus and leek ravioli done in a most exquisite way – it is cooked with a tomato style sauce in a platter after which it is covered in Pizza dough which is flamed at the table allowing one to use the dough to mop up the sauce – really nice.

Back to my room to catch up on some emails and such and ready for my next adventure – the remaining two towns in Cinque Terre, Corniglia and Vernazza which I plan to do tomorrow leaving my last day here for a real relax, especially after having walked 10kms+ on each of the two previous days.

Saturday morning and I have breakfast before heading off to Vernazza but this time by public ferry for a change. It’s only a short hop to this town nestled near the sea. The buildings are tall in the Genoese style and it dawned on me that the lack of back yards is somewhat compensated by each block having a rooftop area. Coffee and granita and a very deep relax before heading back to Monterosso for a lunch of grilled seafood. Specialty of the region is salted or stuffed anchovies which were quite tasty I must say.

I spend some of the afternoon sitting under the umbrella on the terrace watching the 1993 English House of Cards Series (highly recommended)before heading down to the town for a cheapie meal and a relatively early night 22:00.

Sunday and my last day in Cinque Terre. A very relaxing breakfast in the terrace restaurant and I can feel that, like every day here, the weather will be hot (no problem) but with high if not 100% humidity (argggh).

Before I forget, I really loved this hotel B&B Il Parco. I know it uses the word B&B but I have found out that this is for legal reasons and it is a long way away from being a B&B. The family that own it have been so amazingly hospitable and I can say that the place is faultless. Although it is not the cheapest hotel around it is certainly good value for the peak time of the year.

A quick train ride to Corniglio – two stops $A6 not so cheap and then a difficult choice between 382 steps up to the town or a $A4 bus ride – um err um err ok bus it is. Corniglia is the only of the Cinque Terre which isn’t located on the Mediterranean. It is a very pretty hilltop town with lots of small squares, coffee shops and the like. I have my usual cappuccino and granita before heading back to Monterosso, but I should say that unlike elsewhere in Europe, in CT they are made with real lemons and not sweetened syrups – much more to my taste this way.

I f&*k the trains again figuring that if the train stopped at small Corniglia it would certainly stop at the larger Monterosso – hmmm using logic in trying to figure out the Italisna railways is a grave error of judgement. Anyway it wasn’t long before I could get off at the next stop and change platforms to head back to Monterosso after a not too long wait.

I then decide to treat myself to a lobster lunch and it was amazing! Cooked and served quite plainly it was juicy and succulent and didn’t need anything to improve it. The restaurant was Oceanside on a path overlooking a Nazi bunker carved into the rocks lining a cliff but outside of that I just sat there for 45 minutes after finishing and basking in the sun and atmosphere – well that and waiting for the bill – speaking of which the lobster was very cheap $A55.

I walk along the boardwalk and decide to walk up the hill to the hotel - rather than wait for the 14:35 shuttle – where I do some washing and packing in preparation for my departure for tomorrow for two days in La Spezia. I hear it is nothing special but meeting Michael and Vivien Cornell there.

That night down to the town for another quickie meal – guilt after lobster prevents anything more.

Anyway enough for now.

Hope all are well

XD

Photos here for about three months after the trip 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ppxqd8f19s8glfb/AAC8C7ple2lQqkTNqVC1mKfoa?dl=0

Vence and Arriving in Cinque Terra

Again a bridge oriented trip. I will be starting with 3 nights in Vence (just above Nice). 7 nights in Cinque Terra, 11 days at a bridge tournament in Salsomaggiore in Italy then 3 days footloose and fancy free before returning home for just nine days before returning to Europe for another bridge tournament.

Anyway…All checked in – smooth as one could imagine, off to the lounge for an hour then boarding. The inflight system could do with some updating with e-magazines only from 2011.The flight was comfortable (330-300) although the seating on the side is 2-1-2-1 all the way along and the centre was 2-2-2-2 all the way along. This meant that if you had a single seat you had a lot of space around you to spread out and store your belongings - same with window seats who had storage areas along the fuselage – aisle seats on the side no such luck. Anyway a six hour layover in Kuala Lumpur followed which wasn’t too bad as the lounge was very hospitable.

The second leg of a A380 to London was more enjoyable as Business Class was less than 50% full. Food and service was excellent but between the two flights I only managed about six hours sleep. After changing terminals six more hours in London. I elected to have a shower in the London lounge and it always amazes me just how human one can feel after a shower compared to before.  After the short hop to Nice I picked up the car from Avis but seeing how large it was (Citroen 5) I opted for a smaller (haha) Citroen Picasso which trust me isn’t that small. As I left the airport I had serious thoughts of opting for a much smaller car, but anyway.

I head for Vence another beautiful Medieval town just 15 minutes above Nice. I had some problems finding my AirBnb apartment, not helped by the fact that the owner spoke NO English. Having taken a turn into a street, well just let me say you all know what a 3 point turn is – how about a 23 point turn to retreat in defeat after reaching a point beyond which I couldn’t continue. Anyway after realising that one has to use parking stations in Vence, I found the apartment which exceeded all my expectations, spacious 60 sq mtrs as well as tastefully appointed in an Ikea sort of way, it would serve my purpose perfectly.

Another shower – don’t know why and I go out for a one hour walk around the old town. Good pick David, this is an amazingly charming old town with lots of nooks and crannies to explore and here I am staying in the centre of it in what is probably a 300 year old building – love it.

I manage 7 hours sleep till I wake at 04:00, lay awake for some time and then manage just one more hour before getting up, doing some “administration” and heading out. The compulsory chocolate croissant and coffee and then 5kms to St Paul de Vence - certainly one of my favourite places in the world - check it out http://tinyurl.com/gldujsk. It’s a small village on a hill top with undulating winding cobblestone passages lined by the most interesting art galleries and other eclectic shops. I was on a bit of a mission here. Last time I was here I went to a shop where I had previously purchased a crystal piece and resisted buying another one only to regret it for the rest of my trip – all solved now. But there is Karma – last time the father wouldn’t give me any discount, the daughter this time offered a generous 21% discount so DEFINITELY all solved.

Back to Vence which is not a great idea because of parking – the spaces are narrow, the turns from floor to floor almost impossible to manage – grrr. Mercifully I find a two hour space and take the opportunity to buys some groceries and have a Non Kosher Meat, tomato and cheese baguette.

In the afternoon I head to Tourettes Sur Loup, yet another lovely village built around the major square with the nearby very old church. It might sound as though I am being facetious but really I am not. Each town is built to a formula but has its own charm. In T sur L they were playing Boules and Platanque in the main square with a large number of spectators. There was an amazing shop with handmade wooden items and if it wasn’t for the schlepping and customs (well that and the fact that I am decluttering) I would have been seriously interested in two of the pieces.

Back to Vence where I made a soup and salad dinner and went to bed quite early – bad idea – after which I woke at 05:00, Around 09:00 I left and walked the 2,5kms to what is commonly known as the Matisse Church of Vence but more formally Chapelle du Rosaire, a church adjoining and run by the Dominican Sisters (well after my choc croissant). I went to a Matisse exhibition and MOMA New York and while it was good I can’t say he is my favourite artist, well until I saw this church – check it out here http://tinyurl.com/hsghqwb. I really enjoyed it and the integration of art into the Church works sooooo well.

I basically wandered around Vence for a few hours, went back to the apartment and around 15:00 I drove towards Nice planning to wander around Nice and then have dinner with a friend at 20:00, Now one needs to know that Nice is not my favourite place in this region and based on that I decided to drive the extra 30kms to Monte Carlo where I wandered around and played at the American Casino (the French one requires a Passport to gain entry) where I had a small win and a very relaxing hour. Back to Nice and the restaurant which was well appointed and played to my tastes with a €55 (less 20% to €44 because I booked through TripAdvisor) Grand Truffle Menu. But I would have to say they missed. All of the dishes had shaved truffle on them but none of them had the truffle flavour infused into the dish proper. It wasn’t bad but I think they could have easily done better – disappointed. Anyway good to catch up with a friend who works with a development company so I learned a lot about what is happening in the market – Russians and finished and Scandinavians are in with one block of 12 being individually sold to Norwegians. Prices for new apartments are around $A11k per square metre – almost think same prices as Sydney.

Back to Vence where I take the opportunity to do a load of washing before going to bed. Next morning up, packed, dressed and at the car at 08:00 for the four, no six no four no six hour drive to Cinque Terra. So my phone said four hours while the car GPS said six hours. I trusted my phone more but after driving through all the back streets of Genoa I realised that the car GPS was set to avoid toll roads. While I knew enough about the route to take toll roads up to Genoa it still took me five hours – make that five and a half hour when I took a wrong turn and ended up going the wrong way on the freeway and when I finally got off, remember set to avoid tolls it took me down to sea, along the seafront to a point where the road was blocked and I had to head all the way up to the freeway….. 40 minutes of my life I’ll never get back.

I was warned about the road down to Monterosso, the only town in Cinque Terra where one can drive into and while it was a difficult navigation I have had plenty worse in Europe. Managed to reach the Hotel which was something like a Villa converted into hotel rooms – usual Europe small but very well appointed. Pool and nice views down to the Mare it felt good to be here. After I unpacked I headed for the 10 minute downhill stairway walk to the sea where the beaches (don’t for a moment think Bondi) were crowded with holiday makers seemingly having loads of fun.

I sit and relax finally succumbing to a Prix Fix dinner of lasagne and salad before heading back to the hotel for a relatively early night. The older I get the bigger the toll that driving takes out of me.

Anyway you are all up to date.

Best to All

David