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Liguria
The region in the north-western part of Italy, Liguria finds the border to the French countryside on the west, Piedmont region of Italy to the south and Tuscany to the east.
The third smallest of the Italian regions, the coastal area hugs the Ligurian Sea to the north of the Mediterranean with the Gulf of Genoa at its heart. This strip of coasts enjoying a mild seaside climate is part of the Italian Riviera, though further inland the region’s cliffs are part of the Apennines and Alps.
The hilly terrain in this region limits agricultural activities though produces delicate Mediterrenean produce such as olives, fruit and flowers. It is notable that some of the region’s most desolate stretches of coast and terraced hillsides produce olive oil considered to be more delicate than oil from the Tuscan region.
The four provinces in Liguria are its capital, port city Genoa (Genova), as well as the cities of Imperia, the naval base of La Spezia and Savona.
The stretch of coast that brings seaside city of Genoa to France is the La Riviera di Ponente. Complimenting the La Rivera di Ponente is La Riviera di Levante, the coast on the Italian peninsula itself. Perched higher up the rugged hills close to the Mediterrenean are the Cinque Terre (Five Lands). The Five Lands are charming fishing villages of Corniglia, Manarola, Monterosso al Mare, Riomaggiore and Vernazza.
Visitors can often be found after a long day viewing the ancient Roman artifacts that abound in the area to sample the traditional Ligurian food over a glass of sciacchetrà, a prestigious dry white wine produced in the Cinque Terre.
A typical meal in the region would have an exotic array of seafood specialities such as mussels stuffed with cheese and herbs and orata (a local fish) cooked with olives and potatoes as well as the torta di verdura (a vegetable pie made with herbs).
