Matthew was reluctant to part from Lucca and wanted to stay another day but Alissa was eager to get to the Mediterranean Sea as she was told that hiking along the Qinque Terre was the best, most romantic thing you could do in Italy. We were also told we would never be able to find a room in any of these five small secluded cliff fishing villages in peek season, and this was confirmed by our hotel receptionist in Lucca after trying unsuccessfully for an hour to book us a room. In the end he told us that, that we could be sleeping on the beach without a room. He said our best chance would be to go to the largest of the five villages, Monterosso al Mare, and see if anyone pulled out from their reservation last minute. And so we took a risk...
The trip to Qinque Terre was long and required three train transfers. The long day of travel was worth it the second the older train, which effortlessly hugged the rocky cliff face and peek-a-booed through tunnels, gave us our first breathtaking view of the emerald waters of the Mediterranean Sea. Just as we laid our first glace on the water, it started to rain.
When we arrived at the train station in Monterosso, the last stop of the five cliff villages, the rain was steady and getting heavier. Alissa had a feeling about where to go to try to find a room and it paid off. We nailed one down the first place we tried, and took it on the spot. Latter that night we would spot a group of tourists that weren't so lucky and had to spend the night under the train overpass.
We arrived late afternoon and spent the rest of the day marveling at the beauty of the sea- even on a dreary day it was beautiful. Wondering through town we picked up some local meats, cheese, and, of course, wine- a red DOC Colli di Luni called AUXO LVNE. The red DOC wine from the region is spicy and flavourful and cheap.
The rain stopped, so that we could enjoy a romantic night eating an assorted platter of the famous local sardines (salted, pickled, lemon, and smoked) and just a few more glasses of wine- this time very local Cinque Terre DOC, a white that is very light, citric, and fruity and paired wonderfully with all that fish.
The next day we spent all day at the beach.
