The last post left off at the olive oil factory of Carlo Carli in Imperia with “trouble at t’mill”. There was talk of revolution and dissent in my group of half-hardy trekkers on this Timon Lepidus Trip  This however spoiled not a bit the first fabulous thing of the day, which was:

Fabulous thing to do No.1: have breakfast on the terrace

The sunrise was, if anything, even more fabulous than on the previous two days, and the air just as warm.

We sat glowing over our fresh croissants, fruit, bread and home-made jam.

Left to right: Inma, Katarina, Alessio, Els and Marika (with an odd expression)

If we still carried anxiety about how we would cope with a 22km walk in 28 degree temperatures, as far as I recall, we kept them to ourselves (possibly because our leader, Alessio, had joined us for breakfast and no one wanted to spoil this very special start to the day.)

We were on the mini-bus by 7.30, driving  back to Taggia, where we had finished yesterday’s walk. In fact Alessio had already made things a little easier for us as rather than climb up the hill from Taggia to Castellaro, he drove us to this pretty hilltop village shaving at least a kilometre or two off the walk and saving us a steep climb.

Fabulous thing to do No.2: Visit Castellaro

In fact we saw very little of the village as we walked in line through its narrow streets ( I bet it is fabulous, though).

No one was about and if it did have a “must see” church, we missed it. I suspect Alessio was keen to conserve our energies……

…….because this was going to be our best experience yet of the real reason we were there, which was to:

Fabulous thing to do No.3: walk the Via della Costa

Up to now I had not been that impressed by our introduction to this 348 km way-marked walk from the Frech/Italian border to Rome. There had been too much walking by noisy roads and through built-up areas or unloved countryside. But today we had left the busy coast and were up in the hills.

Taking a tarmac road out of the village, we passed some roadside orange trees….

… and climbing gently, had a great view back to Castellaro.

I’m sure we should have had a tour of that church

After a  mile or so the village was framed in the distance by olive trees.

Looking towards the sea, our view was of the A10 motorway and the green fairways of a golf course.

We left the road and, still climbing,  joined a wide stone track which took us through an olive grove lined with trees; I was  already grateful for their shade.

The views to the coast became quite impressive……

… but what was so great was to be in the quiet of the hills on this warm and perfect day.

We took a break on reaching Mount Morrei (around 1500 feet), which was immediately a designated posing spot.

Everyone took their turn…..

……Lorenzo contemplating climbing a tree but decided against it.

After Mount Morrei the path was quite flat for 1/2 a mile or so and shaded by pine trees until we had a view of our first destination – the village of Lingueglietta.

Across the valley beyond this village there was our lunch spot – the village of Civezza.

When she heard that there would be a drink and rest at Lingueglietta Katarina got quite excited.

Fabulous thing to do No.4: visit Lingueglietta

The village is officially one of Italy’s 200 most beautiful. We were soon strolling through its cobbled and deserted streets….

… where several houses had plastic bottles of water fixed to the bottom of their walls.

According to Lorenzo to deter dogs from peeing at that spot. Who’d have guessed?

We made our way to the main square…

…. where the Chiesa parrocchiale della Nativita di Maria Vergine …..

…..had great views over the surrounding countryside.

The doorway was probably the most lovely part of this little church….

…. but I popped in for a shufty.

The ceiling was especially nice.

The most amazing thing about the village though was Alessio had arranged for a little wooden refreshment kiosk to open for our benefit where we were treated to a mini carb-fest and whatever we wanted to drink. Sometimes a cold coke is what hits the spot.

One titbit was especially delicious and I asked the kind women serving us what it was called and what was in it.

Panzerotti: this one with Ricotta cheese, courgettes, rice.

Rested and refreshed, we left the village via its more famous church, the Chiesa Fortezza di San Pietro.

Sadly this C13th fortified church wasn’t open.

It was quite a steep descent from the village into the valley….

… where an ancient stone bridge crossed a near dried-up river San Lorenzo.

From the bridge we climbed back up the hill almost continuously. It was only a mile or two to Civezza and only the last bit was really steep but it was really hot and some of us found it a bit of a slog up the hill. At a chapel near the top we paused to re-group and for Lorenzo to do his showing-off thing by pull- ups on an iron bar.

He’s hanging off right whilst Els takes a picture of his monkey impression

Civezza appears from the relatively uncommon signs I saw on the wall to be both on the Via della Costa….

… and the Sentiero Liguria.

Els and I were the first to reach the square opposite the pretty pink painted facade of the San Marco Evangelista Church. We  were admiring it with a couple of German tourists who, when they heard that we had climbed up the hill on foot, gave us a formal bow of respect. Nice.

If you google images for this church you’ll find more of my pics on Getty

Civezza was as quiet as very other town and village we had been to on this trip. Its narrow lanes had the same “bridges” between the buildings to protect against earthquakes….

… and, and I have not mentioned this before, they were entirely devoid of litter.

Most houses were painted in warm pinks and soft yellows.

Our itinerary was to include a guided tour here but Alessio had taken note of those that had raised concerns about the extra walking involved on such a hot day and had stood the guides down. We made straight for the BARcollo ma non mollo, where we were greeted by its owner, Franco. Which leads me neatly on to:

Fabulous things to do No.5 – eat lunch on the terrace at Civezza

Katarina had stayed in this village the previous year and had become friends with Franco and his dachshund.

Thanks to Katarina Wohlfart (@antligenvilse) for this pic

Franco had laid a table on the terrace for us with white table-cloth and an awning and it was a perfect setting for a well-earned lunch.

Katarina is partial to Prosecco so this was offered to us all….

… and Franco and Alessio were duly toasted.

Thanks to Katarina Wohlfart (@antligenvilse) for this pic

Unknown to me (though if I had thought about it I should have known) Alessio had already arranged the menu of bruschetta and pasta; I was getting desperate for greenery and asked for a  salad much to the approval of my companions. I thought that this was what we would all get, so I felt a bit of a heel when mine was the only one. The regional pasta is called Trofie, often served with a pesto sauce.

Thanks to Katarina Wohlfart (@antligenvilse) for this pic

Everyone thought it was delicious. There’s nothing like a sparkling wine on a sunny day to lift the spirits.

Add into the mix a terrace in a pretty village in Liguria with fab views to the surrounding countryside and it was a successful recipe for a strong sense of wellbeing.

From Civezza the only way was down. We walked a mile or so on paved roads….

…… and farm tracks by olive groves….

…..towards the bottom of the hill passing under the A10 motorway.

I think the Via della Costa takes a road to Imperia from here. Alessio has other plans. His mission is to improve the route and what he is hoping to do is make use of the disused railway line to make a new foot and cycle path.  He had obtained special permission for us to test this out. I wish he hadn’t.

What not to do (Alessio please take note): walk on the railway track to Imperia

Thanks to Katarina Wohlfart (@antligenvilse) for this pic

I don’t know if you have walked on a railway line. I did for a while on the Wales Coast Path and I can tell you, it’s not a nice experience. The stones between the sleepers are large and loose and unpleasant under the feet.

The sleepers themselves are not far apart enough for a comfortable stride.

It was altogether horrid. Marika appeared to enjoy herself, though.

Not even going through a tunnel made this fun as far as I was concerned.

So whilst I am sure that Alessio’s plans are good I would rather have not done this bit. You might be OK if you are a tightrope walker.

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That was it for walking for the day and we had time back at the apartment to shower and change before supper.  Alessio lives up in the hills above Imperia and he had arranged for friends of his to host us for supper.  They were a lovely couple and we met Alessio’swife and his handsome young son. Marika was the only one to take advantage of the swimming pool and whilst she played with the boy in the pool the rest of us chilled and chatted with a glass of wine. Anne was keen to see what their house and garden was like and the friend, who spoke reasonable English, gave me a guided tour.

It was open-plan and full of interesting and objects and art, the lighting  warm and soft. I thought it cosy and charming. The garden was mostly full of olive trees (they make their own oil) tough shrubs and specimen trees. A bit rough, but lord knows, not everyone wants to make a garden.

Alessio’s wife and friends had been cooking for us all day and had laid out a beautiful table outside for a feast.

Once again it  felt very touching to be invited by total strangers to their home and to be offered such generous hospitality.

The food was a celebration of  savoury pastries and fried titbits; all delicious. And for pudding we were presented with trays of home-made biscuits.

I might have taken more pictures but at the same time this was one of those occasions to sit and savour the moment,  to take in this gift from Alessio and his friends that money could not buy.

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Over 350 images from this whole trip can be found at Getty Images. Just click this link