Back to Italy - Arriving in the Cinque Terre – Monterosso

Yes, I still intend to complete the "Stories of Italy". Slowly but surely! Afterall, I still need to create a Blurb Book with all the pictures and stories....For previous entries, click on this handy-dandy Italy Trip Link

Our drive out of Modena led us north on the A1 past Parma, then south on the A15 towards the Ligurian coast. Along the trip, we viewed the beautiful mountains of the Tosco-Emiliano National Park, before heading into the Cinque Terre.

Driving in the Cinque Terre reminded me and Scott of our adventures in Scotland, three years ago - narrow roads and limited visibility with the added feature of sharp cliffs to the sea. I am glad I wasn’t driving. We felt much better once we could see the coastal beach coming ever closer and finally, we had arrived on the main strip of Monterosso al Mare, the furthest north village of the Cinque Terre.

We checked into our hotel, La Spiaggia, located right along the Monterosso’s long strip of beach.


After the three hour car ride, it felt good to be out and about, taking in the beautiful ocean view and breezes. And check out the view from the room. (This was the view from Dave and Dawn’s room, but ours was very similar, being two floors down).

The first thing we checked out was the beach where we dipped our feet in the salty water.

Monterosso is the largest of the five villages of Cinque Terre, with a lively resort and touristy feel. The temperature was perfect – in the low 80s with that cool ocean breeze (we just missed the heat wave from a couple weeks back).

We enjoyed dinner outside as the sun went down, and as we walked back to explore the shops along the walkway, we saw a full moon rise above the mountains.

And yes, the image is a composite of two shots, but it gives you an idea of how beautiful it was at night! We experienced our first gelato from the little stand right outside our hotel before calling it a night.