Manarola! – A colorful surprise!

Manarola, is one of five small towns in the section of the Italian Riviera known as Cinque Terre of Northern Italia (see the map below). It’s pronounced as ‘Manaea’ in their local dialect. The town of Manarola gets its probable dialectical evolution from the Latin word ‘Magna Rota’ which translates to ‘huge wheel,’ and references  the mill wheel present in this village. Manarola is also considered to be the second most famous, yet the smallest village of Cinque Terre that gets frequented by visitors.

Being one of the supposed oldest towns of this region, dating back to the early 14century, it stands tall with astounding, colorful houses. The village looks very picturesque and almost painted. Manarola in Italy is also regarded as one of the most ancient towns in the region and is home to the 1338s San Lorenzo cornerstone of the church.

It is rich with cultures like its other four villages and the town uses Manarolese as the local dialect. This dialect is quite similar to that of their neighboring villages but slightly different from mainstream Italian. In addition to this language a few of them also are conversant with a bit of English. The locals and visitors are a very friendly crowd.

The village residents of this Italian town thrive mainly by producing wine and fishing and these have been the towns’ primary industries. The Roman literature has various mentions on the praises of the fine wine quality produced by this town. Sciacchetra – their local wine- has been talked about for years now!

The summers now particularly have become immensely famous amongst the tourists for traveling to Manarola and its villages nearby.

The colloquially known and famous ‘Love’s Trail’ and the other hiking trails on the hills in-between Riomaggiore and Manarola attract various visitors. The luscious vineyards above the town also look very pretty. In the later 80s and early 90s artist Llewelyn Lloyd, showcased different paintings of Manarola.

Spending time here can be very interesting. Manarola has ample wineries, trekking places, gothic historic parishes and churches.