In Manarola, multicoloured houses spill down the dark hillside, their balconies looking out over the turquoise harbor surrounded by craggy rock formations. The town is a work of art in its own right, each street bursting with colour, detail and history. Manarola is the centre of Cinque Terre both geographically and in terms of wine production. Here, you can taste the fruits of local labour in a number of wineries as well as at the "Cooperativa Agricolutra". The village of Manarola itself dates back to the end of the twelfth century, and owes its origins to settlers who came down from Vicus Oleaster (present day Volastra) on the mountain towering above, originally populated by Roman colonists and legionaries. The name almost certainly comes from "Manium Arula", probably a temple deidicated to the Manes - the souls of the departed - built at the bottom of the valley on the land of an ancient Roman family.