Italy's treasure. We arrived in the Cinque Terre with a lot of anticipation. We had heard about it from friends and had seen a number of great pictures online before we left. We knew it was something we wanted to do. What is it? The Cinque Terre is located on Italy's west coast and is made up of five small villages on the cliffs and hills overlooking the Mediterranean. Italy has preserved it as a national park and there are some wonderful trails connecting the villages. The villages are, in order that we saw them, Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore. Our first night in the area, we stayed just outside of Monterosso in Levanto, also a beautiful town on the sea. We planned on making the 9 km hike from Monterosso to Riomaggiore in two days with a day off in between. Unfortunately, our Cinque Terre hike was really only a Quattro Terre hike because the path from Monterosso to Vernazza has closed off due to a landslide. We did get a chance to see a little of the first village as we walked through it, but we had to take the train to Vernazza. So, our first day we went from Vernazza to the third village, Corniglia. It was quite a beautiful, and challenging, stretch. The views were, of course, fantastic and the landscape was incredible. We stayed in Corniglia then for two nights and made the trek to Riomaggiore on our third day. We had a lot of time not hiking the trails to explore the villages and take a lot of pictures. Each village was incredible with its own character. We loved the way the houses all squished together and stacked on top of each other. The colour they displayed was always fun to look at.
Vernazza
Vernazza
Corniglia
Corniglia
Vernazza
Vernazza
Vernazza
Manarola
Manarola
Manarola
Manarola
Manarola
Manarola
All in all, we loved just being in these villages and walking their streets. It was fun to explore the crazy walkways and staircases that people use every day to reach their homes. Reluctantly we left, but with excitement for Florence!
Vernazza
Vernazza
Corniglia
Corniglia
Vernazza
Vernazza
Vernazza
Manarola
Manarola
Manarola
Manarola
Manarola
Manarola
4 comments:
Beautiful... I'm so jealous!! Although not about the hiking... I would never make these days... :) Enjoy Florence!!
Have been following your blog and love all the pictures you are posting. I would love to spend time in Europe so when (operative word - when) we plan a trip, we know who to contact for some good suggestions and advice.
Dianne Toews
Hey Ang and Ty, Pics are great and you both look great ( Ang, new tank tops woo)This looks like it would be so fun. Hey Ang happy birthday on the 3rd. Me and Trish will go out and celebrate. Love Mom
Hope you're having a great day on your Birthday, Angie! Wishin' I could take you and Tyler out for supper tonight to celebrate. Appears like you guys are having a super time. Love all the pictures.
Dad
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