After an eventful day of travel from Venice...missing trains...organising new travel plans...we finally made it to Riomaggiore. Our apartment host, Mattia, was waiting for us at the station to guide us to our accommodation (and thankfully help with luggage). "It's just a 5-10 minute walk," he said. "For a mountain goat," we said afterwards. Finally settled in we ventured back down the hill to the town centre for some dinner. Yep, and that meant having to climb back up afterwards. Dinner was great. Delicious pasta followed by tiramisu and washed down with prosecco (how Italian). Can't feel guilty about over indulgence. We're on holidays after all AND we get to climb up and down hills and stairs everyday! At least once a day!
Day 1 Cinque Terre
Grabbed our Cinque Terre passes from the train station and jumped on the first available train up the coast. First stop Monterosso - the northern most village of the five. We'd been a bit late getting started with no brekky so finding pizza was our first task (as you do). Delicious pizza in a pizzeria on the beach overlooking the Ligurian Sea...Perfect! We explored this lovely little spot, climbed some stairs, walked the streets, saw lemon trees everywhere, took lots of photos, and hopped back on the next train down the coast.
Next stop - Vernazza - another picturesque and mountainous seaside village. And an opportunity to taste the local gelato as we walked down to, and enjoyed the marina and spectacular views along the coastline. The castle is said to be a great photo stop, and, although the signage indicated it was closed we decided to give it a go anyway. Quite a climb up stairs to no avail. Worked off the gelato tho.
The next train took us back to Riomaggiore for an early night in front of the fire. And the hope of a hot shower.
Day 2 Cinque Terre
After another relaxed start we determined to make our way to Levanto. Although not one of the five villages Levanto held the promise of being a slightly larger town with the opportunity (hopefully) of a little more activity. A pretty little bay greeted us once we had walked through the centre of town. We found a lovely cafe serving pretty good cappuccino. It gave us a bit of a boost to explore further while waiting for the restaurants to start serving food. All a bit relaxed for hungry travellers. A climb to the top of the hill...church, castle, more stairs...and our chosen restaurant was ready to serve us the local Zuppe Di pesce. Very tasty! This is what travel is all about! We lost our way a little as we walked back to catch our train and a lovely Italian man, who could see our confusion, got us back on track to the Stazione.
Straight through on the train to Corniglia. Tiny little spot and even less activity than the other villages. Corniglia is at the top of the headland and, fortunately, a bus is provided to make the climb. Yes! We took it! Another, slightly less exhaustive climb, through the centre of town and we found a cute little church in the main square and a great spot for some panoramic pics.
Away from Corniglia on the train and in to Manarola. Through town to the marina. It's always nice to find the seaside and watch the waves for a while. Climbing up and down stairs and laneways offered the chance for some pretty photo opportunities.
The next train took us for the short ride back in to Riomaggiore.
Another early night to settle in to our apartment in front of the fire and wait for the sunset views from the balcony. So beautiful.
A big day tomorrow...off to Firenze (Florence) and 6 nights in the centre of the city.
