May 18, 2013 - Leaving with a BANG: a plate of spaghetti

Today, was our last day in the Cinque Terre. We woke up and there wasn't a cloud in the sky; after eating our breakfast at the harbor, we filled our water bottles and started walking on the 2-hour hike between Vernazza and Monterosso (town 4-5 of the Cinque Terre). The hike was absolutely beautiful! We hiked straight up hundreds of stairs and then it leveled off and we walked for an hour over-looking the water and both the towns. The path was very narrow and the hike was popular so many times we had to be creative, in order to pass safely....

May 16, 2013 - Thousands of Stairs

Today, we slept in and got bundled up for our two minute walk to the grocery store in the rain storm. We picked up some food for breakfast: granola and yogurt and also bought some pasta that we will be attempting to cook up for dinner. On our walk home from the grocery store, Kayley’s two euro umbrella, she bought in Florence, died. When the storm finally settled down, we walked to the train station and decided to explore two more of the five towns. We went to Corniglia and Manarola. Both towns were located on the side of a huge hill, so we...

May 15, 2013 - 5 Towns

Today, we woke up and quickly packed our stuff so we could get to the train extra early. We LOVED Venice but have been looking forward to The Cinque Terre, so we were excited to go. Today, was the longest train ride of our trip (6 hrs) and we had to switch trains 3 times; we were glad for the previous train practice. Everything ran smoothly, we did have to run to a train with our luggage and at one point, I locked myself out of our cabin (without my ticket), when I used the restroom, and had to wait until the next stop to run back…but all...

May 14, 2013 - Day 7 - Manarola/Riomaggiore

You really get to meet some interesting people at hostels. We spoke with a young man from San Francisco this morning. He'd been on the road for a couple of weeks...first traveling with his German girlfriend for the first week or so...then she had to go back to work while he continued on for another week. He gave us some tips on a few other local hikes before he left. The not so interesting thing about hostels is that they don't provide towels! We had one that was smaller than a hand towel and we made due with that. Also...the while bathroom...

May 13, 2013 - Day 6 - Manarola/Vernazza/Monterosso

Started our day with breakfast at a cafe down near Manarola's small harbor. The sun was just starting to shine at the tables where we sat and it felt great since the morning air was a little cool. Downtown was very quiet in the morning....very peaceful. We took a short walk out to the point for some early morning views...spectacular as usual. We're staying 2 nights in Manarola but we decided to check out of our hotel and try the local hostel for a night. It's a little less expensive and they have a private room available. We've never...

May 12, 2013 - Day 5 - Pisa to Manarola (Cinque Terre)

Some places we visit are so interesting....so different...so fantastic...that you sometimes actually consider that it might be worth changing your life and moving there. Manarola is certainly one of those. After a quick breakfast at the Hotel Leonardo...we packed our bags and headed to Viareggio about a half hour away. We found a spot behind the train station where we could park the car for free. Train fare to La Spezia was only about €5 each. In La Spezia we boarded a local train to Manarola. We decided to stay in Manarola after reading...

Apr 28, 2013 - Pisa to Santa Margherita

Early to rise and travel north towards Pisa. Along the way we stop at Montecarlo in the Provence of Lucca for lunch. It is a working farm with olives and wine, a wonderful shop and a fantastic restaurant...Fattoria il Poggio. We had a brief explanation of the olive processing but it was raining so we didn't go to the fields; ok with me. The lunch was very good and plentiful. We had 5 wines to be tasted and I have to admit, they got progressively drier and drier and I liked each less and less. After lunch we finish our trip to...

Apr 15, 2013 - Ferry to Monterosso al Mare

This morning we went to Riomaggiore by train. We didn't really get to see much of the village because we went directly to the harbor to catch the ferry. Ferries run regularly between all the villages of the Cinque Terre except Corniglia, as it has no harbor. The water was quite calm, so it was very nice. Seeing the shoreline from the water provides a different perspective. We stayed on the boat right through to Monterossa al Mare, which is the last village along Cinque Terre. Monterossa is more resortish than the other four villages. It...

Apr 14, 2013 - Vernazza and Manarola

We LOVE Cinque Terre! Awoke to church bells and a rooster this morning. It was an absolutely gorgeous day today...blue sky, no wind, and quite warm. I even got a bit of colour today. We hopped on the train to Vernazza which costs €1.80/person each way and only takes 5 minutes. Each of the towns is only about 5 minutes apart by train, so if you don't want to do a hike, it's cheap and convenient. We grabbed a bite to eat and a cappucino at an outdoor cafe on the waterfront. Talk about ambiance. Stefano actually works at this cafe (which we...

Apr 11, 2013 - Cinque Terre- Corniglia & Vernazza

Let me mention that the breakfasts at Villa Steno are awesome. They make you coffee to order (cappuccino for us) and their lemon marmalade made from on-site lemons is amazing. We caught the train to Corniglia where the steps up to the town were just not as bad as expected. Maybe because we were rested or maybe because they were so much easier than the prior day's stairs! We wandered about and attempted the trail to Vernazza but were turned away by the guard. I took quite a few pictures but all in all there was not much going on with this...

Apr 10, 2013 - Cinque Terre- Riomaggiore and Manarola

Today we learned how to ride the trains. Our original plan was to hike between towns but all the trails were closed due to landslides. We started with the southernmost town of Riomaggiore and had to hike up a steep hillside to get to a castle we wanted to see. The lower part was along a road with hairpin turns and the upper part was made of stone stairs going up to the castle. Views were amazing. There was an elementary school up by the castle. There was also a church. By the time we made it back down I thought my calves would seize. It was...

Apr 9, 2013 - Cinque Terre- Montorosso al Mare

Drove from Buonconvento to Montorosso in Cinque Terre. This is on the coast. Experienced an unmanned toll booth which popped out a ticket with no explanation and no request for money. Stopped to get gas for the first time. Figured out the pump, how to put it in the car and how to pay. Down the road about an hour got to another toll booth at which we learned we were to insert original ticket then it would tell us what we owed. Weather was gorgeous and views of the town were amazing as we approached. We felt so fortunate that our hotel...