Le monde de Tokyobanhbao: Blog Mode gourmand

Cinque Terre delicacies

Fri 21 Jun, 2013 · Food, Illustration, Travel

This italian week comes to an end with a savory post to show you the food I tasted in Cinque Terre. When you decide to fly off to Italy, you generally know it’s going to be yummy.

I found these addresses during my visits, it was all about the “feeling” you know… and luckily, the feeling was conclusive (Irene Cara can confirm). Don’t hesitate and post your own recommendations if you’ve already been in the area, it’ll be a great help to all!

TRATTORIA LOCANDA IL PORTICCIOLO

(92, Via Renato Birolli MANAROLA) it’s the kind of restaurant that looks scary at first glance. On the towns main street, well exposed, it looks like the typical tourist trap restaurant that should be avoided at all costs. But after tasting the food, you walk out delighted (and full). The decoration however is a tad outdated (mural painting, yellowish lighting) but a table on the patio is very pleasant.

For starters, anchovy bruschettas will stimulate your appetite in a simple yet savory way.

The al Porticciolo spaghetti are delicious. I wanted to see if it could compete with the “seafood linguine” I had had near the Coliseum. Even if the Romans win (but only by a short margin), these spaghettis put up a very, very good fight.

Other very yummy dish: the squid ink Fetuccine with shrimp, clams and vodka.

IL PESCATO CUCINATO

(199, Via Colombo, RIOMAGGIORE): If you’re more the “nibbling” type, know that on Cinque Terre these fried seafood cones can be bought just about anywhere.

So YES, it’s greasy, but it’s crispy, and YES, it’s good. I don’t know if this shop is the best one there is, but as the saying goes, it’s the type of food you can eat without even being hungry (and without any limit).

LA MEDUSA

(74, Via Capellini, PORTOVENERE) : this address was recommended to us by a local handcrafted jewelry saleswoman. Of course, you can’t be sure she doesn’t have a deal with said restaurant … I’d rather be naive and think that it’s a place close to her heart.

Anyway, I readily forgive her, the food was great. There we go again with fried seafood for starters (Love knows no limits … except maybe once you step on the scale

And this delicious seafood risotto, that you can only order for 2. So if you go to Cinque Terre with someone, make sure that person loves seafood.

And what about sweets? Ice cream of course!

GELATERIA DI GIULIANO

(28, Via Capellini, PORTOVENERE) right by La Medusa. This shop has creative flavors like Kinder Pingui ice cream (that I didn’t try, but I’ll leave that to you).

What really intrigued me was this donut ice cream. Or rather this ice donut. It’s not home made, but I thought it was funny. I had to try it! Actually, it’s cake topped with ice cream and a strawberry glazing. Not at all traditional, or as good as italian ice cream, but I enjoyed the fact it was uncommon.

GELATERIA IL PORTICCIOLO

(12, Piazza Marconi, VERNAZZA): perfectly creamy, to be enjoyed while gazing out on the Vernazza harbor, sitting on the low wall in front of the shop.

There is also a GELATERIA in RIOMAGGIORE, Via Colombo (I don’t remember the number, sorry, but it’s across the street from a coffee shop’s wooden porch). It has ice cream brioche sandwiches (focaccia con gelato). If you wanted even more indulgence, here you are. Brioche + ice cream: winning duo.

Well, I’ll leave you at that, and go running for a bit … if you see what I mean …(English translation by Bleu Marine)

Cinque Terre : Land & Sea

Wed 19 Jun, 2013 · Fashion, Travel

We continue our little visit through the Cinque Terre villages. What’s really nice about this place is that you can choose between lazing on the beach or sweating off gallons of water by walking through the paths that link the villages to one another: cocooning or sporty vacations, YOU decide.

On these pictures, a glimpse of the path that links Monterosso to Varnazza: a walk of 1h30 to 2h by on the cliffs, and your reward is discovering Vernazza and its small castle.

Following my previous post, some of you wanted to know all about the access detail, transportation and housing in this beautiful place. So during this post, I’ll try to act the part of a tourism office hostess (on an “intern” level only though, because I looked around on the internet for information before I left).

ACCESS

I flew from Paris to Pisa, got to the main train station to take a train all the way to Levanto (where I was residing) but you can stop in all the different Cinque Terre villages, it all depends on where you choose to set your bags. There are probably other ways to get to Cinque Terre, but I found that one relatively simple.

GETTING AROUND

once you get to Cinque Terre, to go from one village to the next, you have various options:

Train: there is a daily pass (10 euros) or 2 day pass (19 euros) to take the train, the bus, and benefit from reduced rates in the museums, take the hiking trails of the national park (these paths are not free of charge, so the pass encompasses everything, just to be clear), all unlimited. It’s pretty practical because you can travel indefinitively between villages.

Your feet

you can walk from village to village by borrowing the different hiking trails. I didn’t try them all, because we wanted to keep the rythm rather laid back, but do know that it’s not a good idea to go hiking in flip-flops or 12cm heels. However you don’t need big hiking boots (or at least not on the paths I took!): sneakers are quite sufficient!

All in all, you can more or less keep on acting as a fashion blogger (except when you’ll be sweating heavily … except if you decide to set up a rather hot-caliente-dripping wet photoshoot).

Boat

we took it the last day to go to Porto Venere and get an idea of the villages on the seaside. It stops in all the villages, except for Corniglia, that doesn’t have a harbour.

Housing

there are a gazillion guest houses and hotels in all the Cinque Terre villages, for various prices. I wouldn’t quite know how to advise you on this aspect, because it all depends on your criteria (budget / comfort / luxury / no fuss?) but it is easy to book … at least in June!…I suppose during the summer it might be more complicated.

I don’t know if I answered all your questions, but I’m closing the counter in 5 minutes ladies and gentlemen. (I’ll answer your additional questions in the comments during my working hours). Baci baci! (English translation by Bleu Marine)

My Outfit

Jacket Vero Moda
Tee shirt Sandro
Tote bag Maje
Bracelet McQ Alexander Mc Queen
Skort Zara (déjà vue ici)
Sunnies Ray-Ban
Sneakers Reebok x Alicia Keys

Cinque Terre

Sun 16 Jun, 2013 · Fashion, Travel

I’m back from a short trip to Cinque Terre in Italy. We decided on it last minute, looking for sun and singsong accents, and I wasn’t disappointed. This is the perfect destination for breathtaking scenery lovers (and lovers themselves).

Cinque Terre comprises of 5 gorgeous villages along the Mediterranean coast: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore (don’t you feel the sun on your face just saying these names out loud?)

This first post is dedicated to the last two towns (Riomaggiore and Manarola) I visited on the first day. As you can see, it’s quite hilly here! These villages with colorful houses are built “on the rocks” in a land where vines and olive trees are cultivated.

I exchanged my run for walks on the top of the cliffs, which meant climbing hundreds of stairs, but it was worth it: the view was spectacular. There’s actually a pretty renown path, called “Via dell’Amore” (The lovers path) but I couldn’t go: it was closed to the public, due to stone falls this past winter (yups, there’s even a love crisis going on!).

That said, the other paths that connect the villages to one another are beautiful too. On these pictures, you get a glimpse of the path linking Manarola to Volastra, a high perched little village (after this intense climb up, I’ll admit, we came down by bus, which totally impressed two hikers we had seen on our way up, who wondered how we had managed to make it back down so quickly! “We have super powers, ya know!”).

Next stop, Monterrosso, Vernazza and Corniglia, please step away from the side of the platform! (English translation by Bleu Marine)