Arriving in Monterosso al Mare

We leave Sanremo, Italy, on our journey through Paris and Nice and into Italy, arriving in Monterosso al Mare, Cinque Terre, Liguria, Italy, one of our most favorite places on the earth.  We emerge from the train station to view the beaches on a beautiful spring day.

Beaches in the spring

We check into Hotel Villa Steno and enjoy the view of the Ligurian Sea (an arm of the Mediterranean stretching from the French border to the Italian Riviera and down to the islands of Corsica and Elba) across the rooftops of the town.

View from Hotel Villa Steno

We drop our luggage at the hotel and wander down to Piazza Giuseppe Garabaldi, the main square in Monterosso's old town, to stop at the Midi Bar for an aperitivo.

Midi bar

Monterosso in the spring is incredible, with flowers freshly blooming and citrus trees bringing new lemons and oranges out for all to enjoy.  We wander back to Hotel Villa Steno and stroll through the gardens to enjoy the new fruit and flowers.

Gardens at Hotel Villa Steno

Inside the hotel, lemons that have already ripened decorate the lobby, near the mortar and pestle collection for classes in making traditional Genoese pesto from scratch (a fabulous, educational, fun, and tasty experience).

Lemons and pesto-making tools

We share sandwiches (and a bottle of wine) for dinner at Pan e Vino Stuzzicheria (mortadella and stracciatella, salami and gorgonzola, and the anchovy special), then retire for the night, rising the next morning to find that the weekly market is just down the street.

Dinner at Pan e Vino

Nighttime view

Thursday is market day in Monterosso and Piazza Giuseppe Garibaldi, in the old town, is filled with a bustling open-air market featuring fresh produce, local and specialty foods, and general clothing, kitchen, and household goods.  We wander down to the piazza, explore the market, and purchase a shirt and a few kitchen utensils to take home with us.

Market day in Monterosso

We're back in Monterosso al Mare for a week and are looking forward to enjoying old favorites and finding new adventures in Cinque Terre.

Wandering Through Sanremo's Old Town

The historic old town of Sanremo is a medieval labyrinth of steep cobblestone alleys, ancient vaulted archways, and staircases rising above the city.  The streets intertwine to resemble a pine cone, hence the name "La Pigna."  Dating back to the year 1000, these streets now support thousands of tourists wandering through the alleys every year in addition to the residents.

We walk a short ways down Via Giacomo Matteotti, Sanremo's main shopping street, and turn up into the labyrinth through the first archways.

Branching off from Via Giacomo Matteotti

We first stop at a small square to view the Concattedrale di San Siro, the oldest religious building in Sanremo, built in the 12th century on the place where the first Christian church was built in 811.  We wander in and admire

Concattedrale di San Siro

Continuing up the narrow, climbing passageways, we initially wander through residential neighborhoods.

Residential alleyways

We soon find our way to the more touristic area with restaurants and shops lining the streets.

Touristic side of old town

After a fair amount of wandering, we emerge at the top of the old town and look out across the roofs and out to the Mediterranean views of the Ligurian Sea.

Getting to the top

Admiring the views

At the top of the hill, 100 meters above the sea and peering out over it all, is the Santuario della Madonna della Costa (Sanctuary of the Madonna della Costa), a Marian sanctuary dating from the 14th to 15th centuries.  We enter and explore this beautiful church.

Santuario della Madonna della Costa

We leave the beautiful hilltop and its views and descend back into the streets of the La Pigna old town, returning to the port  to look for dinner.

Leaving the hilltop

Descending into La Pigna

At the port, we spot a seafood restaurant and dine well on pacchero ragu di polpo (large tube-shaped pasta from Campania with octopus), lasagna, and grigliata mista di pesche (with tuna, prawn, scampi, squid, and fillet of seabass).

Seafood restaurant

Pacchero ragu di polpo, lasagna

Grigliata mista di pesche

What a great day and great stop in Sanremo (and a great meal).  Tomorrow we rise and catch the train to Monterosso al Mare in Cinque Terre (changing trains in Genoa).