While staying in Levanto, we spent an afternoon exploring Vernazza and Monterosso al Mare, two of the five villages that comprise Cinque Terre.  While typically packed with tourists, we purposefully went later in the evening to avoid the crowds, and subsequently got to enjoy a stunning sunset and dinner in Monterosso.  At our first stop, we enjoyed gelato from Gelateria Vernazza while exploring the tiny harbor and climbing to the top of Belforte tower for stunning 360 views of churches, vineyards, and colorful cliffside homes.

In Monterosso, we wandered past a tomato garden that took up an entire block, through a peaceful quiet town (compared to the heavy tourist presence in Vernazza, at least).  It was getting close to sunset so we stopped at Torre Aurora, a medieval tower turned tapas restaurant set on the side of a cliff.  We ordered a couple aperol spritzes and were soon surprised to be presented with a sizable plate of free and delicious tapas to nibble on as we enjoyed the sunset.  Later, we enjoyed dinner at Tarttoria Da Oscar, sitting between a couple from Belgium and a couple from Oregon at a cozy community table outside overlooking the street life.