Tom`s travels: Cervo, Diano & Imperia (07/08/2021)

This time on another day trip from Riva Ligure we decided to take the bus and head east to visit a few towns along the coast. Our first stop was the beautiful town of Cervo, part of the club the most beautiful villages in Italy, located on a hilltop right on the seaside. As we got off the bus right in front of the waterfront, we started heading up the hill where the town is located. The historic center featured the typical narrow streets, the caruggi, and the pastel-colored houses found in the other Ligurian towns along the coast. After a rather steep uphill climb, we reached the town's main square where the baroque church of San Giovanni Battista is located with its pompous facade and elegant bell tower. We headed inside and admired its rich interior before heading back out and from the square admire the beautiful view of the sea and coast below, so very close. The square was sided to the north by the church, to the south by the scenic view of the sea, and to the west by the 17th-century bell tower of the oratory of Santa Caterina. From the square, a slight uphill climb carried us on through the picturesque streets until we reached the northern end of town which is also the highest spot, where the castle is located. Built over a pre-existing Romanesque tower the small Castello dei Clavesana was erected around the 13th century and nowadays holds an ethnographic museum. After one last stroll through town, we then headed back the way we came and down towards the sea until we reached the small beach of Cervo. From here we could admire the beautiful old town up the hill contrasting with the green of the surrounding hills and the blue of the sea below. We then started walking westwards from the beach following the waterfront, through the mostly modern and seaside resort town of San Bartolomeo al Mare. At one point we left the sea behind us and started heading towards the interior and the nice gentle hills filled with olive trees and other Mediterranean shrubs and trees. Despite the slight uphill climb the view and landscape were really nice with cicadas and the strong sun giving it a typical summer feeling. After quite some walking we eventually reached the town of Diano Castello, as is typical, located on a hilltop. We entered the old town from the south, passing by and visiting the nice church of San Nicola with its typical Baroque architecture. We then continued walking through the nice but mostly deserted streets, due to lunchtime and reached the northern end of town where we came upon and entered the church of San Giovanni Battista. This nice Romanesque jewel featured an apse with partly remaining medieval frescoes. Once back outside we continued on and came across another church, that of Santa Maria Assunta, in a Romanesque style and which featured a rather remarkably preserved series of 15th-century frescoes. After visiting the church we completed our round of the old town of Diano Castello and then from there headed back downhill towards the sea, until we reached it once again at the town of Diano Marina. Here we stopped at a grocery store to grab some food for lunch and then continued on along the waterfront until we reached a cape and finally a beach which was not private as most other but freely accessible. The place was really tiny, as in Liguria due to the lack of space, the beaches are already small by themselves and are then mostly taken over and turned into paid private beaches. We managed to find a spot and then happily took a refreshing swim in the blue and rather nice-looking waters. The sea wasn't the most amazing but it was nearly crystal clear here and still the best we had seen so far, as most of the coast being rather windy and with big waves made that the waters were constantly moving and thus not the most beautiful. After nearly one hour break there we decided it was time to go, and continued on walking westwards along the coast. The water there down the cliff was really inviting but nearly impossible as it was a sheer high drop down with no chance to head there. We continued on like this for a while until we finally reached the city of Imperia, actually made up of two different towns, Porto Maurizio to the west, and Oneglia to the east, a couple of kilometers from each other and divided by the Impero river. The city was created by Mussolini in 1923 with the aim of having the two towns eventually unite into a single continuous urban settlement. This was further incentivized with the creation of large and scenic public buildings, such as the town hall, and post office, in the land between the two urban settlements in order to be able to cater to both in an equal manner. Unfortunately, the plan to create a continuous urbanization never came to the realization and now the large public buildings stand solitary on hill degrading towards the sea separate from both towns and strangely looking because of that. As we reached the eastern town, Oneglia, we walked through its historic center, characterized by a rather baroque and neoclassical aspect with well-defined orderly streets in a grid plan more typical of nearby Piemonte than of Liguria. On the way, we stopped at a gelateria, I Gelati di Fe, where we got super tasty ice cream. We continued on along the way enjoying it and the view around us. We then crossed over the Impero river, leaving Oneglia, and walking onwards through the mostly desolate area between the two parts of the city until we reached Porto Maurizio. This area is considered to be much older and in fact, features the typical medieval urban setting located on a hilltop overlooking the nearby sea. We headed up the hill where the town is located, known as Parasio by taking one of the public elevators instead of taking the harder steep way on foot. Once at the top we admired the beautiful view of the surrounding coast and of Oneglia in the distance with the gentle hills behind it. We then started our round of the nice city center, typically featuring the pastel-colored houses, with a real seaside feel to it. We passed by the nice Logge di Santa Chiara, a series of loggia built to support the convent of Santa Chiara, which grants a beautiful view of the coast. Nearby we then reached and visited the oratory of San Pietro which featured a nice baroque interior and exterior and a scenic facade facing the sea. Continuing on through the narrow caruggi past some elegant palace we then reached the huge Basilica of San Maurizio, the main and largest church in town. Built between 1781 and 1838 in a majestic neoclassical style it measures 70m in length and 42m in width making it the largest church in the whole region of Liguria. After visiting the church we headed down from the Parasio hill and into the Borgo Marina, the old port of the town. Here we walked along the pretty waterfront until we reached once again the desolate land between Porto Maurizio and Oneglio, the latter of which we then later reached. Here we then went to the restaurant Peperetta Dispetusa where Ania had a vegan meal with tofu and grilled veggies and I had paella. After dinner, we then headed to the nearby bus station from where we eventually took a ride back to Riva Ligure.