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Published: November 30th -0001
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Monday 27th September 2010
Today a drive from Palma ( Fidenza ) to the Italian Riviera ( di Levante ) and Liguria using the Autostrada A15/A12 over the mountain range of the Appennini. ( note - this caused us some amusement as it reminded us of a visitor from Scotland to our home in Yorkshire who said she had long looked forward to visiting the backbone of England the Apenninis, more correctly referred to as the pennines. However, first a stop to stock up at a large co-op supermarket that had a fantastic range of breads, pasta, cheese, cured meats and wine, I could have stayed longer…
The drive over the mountains of about 100 miles was superb, mainly over viaducts and through tunnels winding up into the clouds and then down steep sided valleys. Eventually we dropped off the autostrada and down a narrow winding road towards the sea and to our campsite at Deiva Marina, a small seaside resort on the Riviera Levante south east of Genova on the Mar Ligure…
Tuesday 28th September 2010
After heavy rain during the night the weather cleared mid morning and with HGV’s, coaches and motor homes being restricted from the narrow
streets of the town we took advantage of the free shuttle bus from the campsite a distance of about 2 miles. The sea was lively with white foamy breakers crashing onto the beach much to the delight of B&J who dodged the waves and threw stones as far as they could into the sea. We took a walk on the promenade before making a visit to the village deli and bakery. These proved a success as we bought ingredients for lunch. We got cheese flavoured with black truffle, white onion topped focaccia and pepperoni pizza sold by weight for the boys. Back then to camp for a delicious late lunch and an afternoon of ....maths.
Wednesday 29th September 2010
Not a cloud in the sky and quite chilly early doors as we set off for a tour of the Cinque Terre the Riviera’s national park, based around five villages that cling to the cliffs by the sea and surrounded by a terraced landscape home to luxuriant Mediterranean vegetation, vineyards and olive groves.
The five Cinque Terre ‘gems’ are Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore and are linked by railway which spends more time in tunnels than in the open
air. A return family day ticket was a bargain at less than £15 and allowed us to hop on and off the regular trains that frequent this route. We began by visiting Vernazza, an ancient turreted village with a reputation as one of the most beautiful in Italy, then on to Riomaggiore whose multicoloured narrow 4 storey houses perch on the terraced hillsides. Here we enjoyed lunch which included small gnocchi (cheti?) with pesto, a speciality of Liguria. On then to Manarola walking the Via dell’Amore or ‘ lovers path’ hewn from the near vertical rock face for 1km over the sea, with Max keeping close to the rock face for the duration at least managing to overcome her fear of heights on this occasion. The boys were fascinated to see the profusion of padlocks everywhere, a symbol of everlasting love left by lovers and attached to railings, fences and seats where ever they could be. Late September is the time of the grape harvest producing the raw material for the Cinque Terre D.O.C wine, a dry, scented white wine and for the Cinque Terre Sciacchetra an exclusive desert wine made from grapes picked and then partially dried ( see
pics ) to ensure the correct sugar level. In Manarola we visited a small museum showing how Sciacchetra is produced and were fortunate to happen upon a small winery processing grapes ready for wine production. The boys were interested to see the machine which separated the stalks, crushed the grapes and pumped the juice to the fermentation vats. By now it was late afternoon and after another short train ride made our final stop at Monterosso al Mare famous for its anchovies and lemons. Here a couple of small beaches complete with sun worshippers and parasols made a change from the rest of the day’s scenery and we stopped for a glass of local vino at a small terraced bar overlooking the sea before heading home. An excellent day out and thoroughly recommended if you stray this way !
Thursday 30th September 2010
A train trip along the coast today to Santa Margarita Liguria followed by a short, packed, hair raising local bus journey to the famous village of Portofino. The narrow coastal road is barely wide enough for cars to pass yet the bus driver accelerated towards the sharp bends sounding his horn as if it energised a
protective force field! However we arrived safely and made our way down to the pretty port. Most of the exclusive brands have outlets here and the goods displayed in the windows don’t have prices tags ( if you have to ask you can’t afford it ) there are also some very nice restaurants lining the harbour - perhaps next time get out the picnic.
Later in the afternoon we returned to Santa Margarita and had some time on the beach before taking the train back home.
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