In Liguria, traveling on foot is arduous. Cities and villages cling to the rocks and ascend sharply upwards. Buildings are built one on top of the other and narrow roads twist and turn through the mountaintops. On a clear day from certain alpine vantages in Genoa, you can see the island of Corsica-a past conquest of the mighty Ligurian empire. The abrupt altitude variations and dramatic contrasts of this
curved coastline nestled between Tuscany and Provence are part of what makes Liguria one of the most fertile, serene and spectacularly rugged regions in all of Italy.

At the very center of the boomerang-shaped province sits Genoa, the region's capitol and the fulcrum that divides the mirrored halves of Liguria's coastline. To its west is the Riviera di Ponente, or Riviera of the Setting Sun, where sandy beaches, quiet bays and world-class resorts attract visitors from around the globe. East of Genoa is the Riviera di Levante, or Riviera of the Rising Sun, where the region's already mountainous topography is exaggerated and amplified. Almost 90 percent of Ligurians live along the coast-a population that keeps growing, as inland communities abandon ancient agricultural practices and move to the sea where the tourist dollars are.
For 1,000 years Genoa reigned as one of the most powerful ports on the Mediterranean, rivaling Venice for dominance over Italy's seas. Many Genoese made their living by transporting massive armies by boat during the crusades and made their fortunes by insuring those soldiers' lives and possessions. Predictably, this coastal city nurtured more than a few famous sea men, most notably Christopher Columbus, who, although unable to convince his own government to fund an expedition to the New World, eventually secured money from Spain and made his historic trip across the Atlantic.

Niccolo Paganini, one of the great violin virtuosos and showmen of the 19th century, also called Genoa home. Paganini's abilities were intermittently attributed to witchcraft and he played up his occult associations and flabbergasted audiences by arriving at performances in a big, black hooded cape having completely memorized hours of music. Often he would intentionally and dramatically break strings on his violin only to astound guests by playing flawlessly without them. Italian patriot Giuseppe Mazzini, who led revolutionaries towards a united nation where he hoped Europe would be ruled by citizens and not by sovereigns, also came from the Riviera.

Liguria's sun-soaked climate is a big part of what attracts people to its cities and villages-the average temperature only fluctuates a few degrees all year. This temperate characteristic is also what makes the region spectacularly fertile and a perfect setting for olive trees. Liguria is full of them, especially on the eastern Riviera di Levante, where the trees are planted in every nook and cranny all the way down to the sea. Ligurian-grown olives produce a smooth and mild oil ideal for cooking, in contrast to the fruitier, more powerful-tasting olive oils of Tuscany and Apulia.
The olive harvest can start as early as September here. Green, under-ripe olives are handpicked from the branches in late summer and yield a relatively mild oil, even by Ligurian standards. If allowed to mature on the tree, the olives enter the red-ripe stage-at this point they're a little tougher and can be collected with less delicacy, often by shaking the tree. During the harvest, big multi-colored nets are cast onto the ground underneath the trees to catch the olives as they fall. Within 24 hours of being picked, the fruit is washed and pressed. If this process is delayed, the olive's acidity can rise, creating a less desirable olive oil. The harvesting season in Liguria can end as late as April (while most other regions finish by December), these first and last rounds of the olive harvest result in the Mild-flavored oil associated with this region.

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