Day 17 A Vacation from our Vacation - A day in the Cinque Terre

Buon giorno! Allora (Well) on a day as lovely as today where does one start? I awoke to the sounds of birds chirping. Due to the warmth we had dared to leave our window open last night so that we could feel the cool air enter the room. Today is our free day in the Cinque Terre - our vacation from our vacation, which might have meant sleeping in if it weren't for close quarters and early risers. Eventually all three of us were awake and ready to venture out. Before doing so we had to stop and get a hearty breakfast to see us on our way. The very sweet and smily gentleman at the reception desk yesterday was there and he was just as cheerful and sweet as ever!
​
At breakfast we feasted on fresh fruit, a variety of breads, juices, and yogurt. My favorite item was the croissant drizzled with chocolate, yum! Here is a photo Emily got of our breakfast.

After breakfast we gathered up our day bags and headed for the train station. As we walked toward the station we gazed out at the incredibly blue sea and listened to the lapping of the waves. It was early enough that many tourists were not up and moving quite yet. We made our way easily to the station where we purchased our day passes. While purchasing our tickets I saw the signs located below. While serious they gave me a smile. We went back to the tracks to wait for the first train that would take us south on down the line to the other towns that make up the Cinque Terre. The first town that we went to visit was the lovely Vernazza.

---

Vernazza ("Native Wine")

Vernazza was our first stop of the day. This is a charming town whose name literally means "Native Wine". This village has no car traffic and this town has also remained one of the true fishing villages of Italy. We walked out to the edge of the town where we could look back at the hills, vineyards and at the brightly colored buildings of the town. We also enjoyed looking into the water where we could see small fish swimming around. The water was as clear as could be. Gorgeous! The sun beating against the water, casting small diamonds over the surface, was also reason enough for awe. 

Emily had been through this town before and she wanted to take us up to the Doria Castle, a 15th century castle which was used as a watchtower to keep the town safe from pirates, located at the southern side of the town. I, however, wanted to take it easy (aka not climb a mountain). The three of us then went into the Church of Santa Margherita d'Antiochia, which Emily also had wanted to show us. However, due to our inability to agree on what we each wanted to do we decided that for now it might be best to split up and meet back in an hour or so. Happy with that plan we agreed and split up. Emily and Mom went up to the Doria Castle. Meanwhile I took a low road which took me around to an outside view of the town from the north. There were several individuals hanging out on the rocks, relaxing in the sunshine. It was a nice, relaxing spot. I was curious about some of the other places in the town and so I made my way back to the square of the town. From here I followed some streets until I saw a sign mentioning the road between the cities. I began to climb.

I had gone up a flight of stairs when I came to a T in the road. From there I decided to go left. Soon the beautiful Church of Santa Margherita d'Antiochia came into view. At that time the clock struck the hour. The sound of the bells, being this close to the church and looking right into the tower, was deafening! I walked back down the path to escape the thunderous sound. Finally, when the chime was done, I went back up. I followed this path higher and higher up until I came up to the toll hut and the entry to the trail. I snapped a few shots before walking up to the hut. The price to pass was too hefty to get just a couple of photos. "You just want photo?" The man at the booth asked. I nodded, telling him I just wanted to go a little way to get some photos. He waved me on and I thanked him gratefully and hurried on before he changed his mind. I went just a little way around the bend so that I could get some pictures from the ideal spot. It was glorious and beautiful! After I took my pics I snatched just a couple of minutes to enjoy the view before I headed back. As I passed I once again thanked the man in the stand. How sweet of him!

From there I proceeded back down the way I had come. When I came back to the square I quickly realized that life had returned to the square as it was now filled with tourists. I still had some time to spare before meeting up with Mom and Emily so I decided to go into one of the nearby gift shops. Inside I purchased a deck of playing cards displaying 52 different photos of the Cinque Terre. That is one of my favorite souvenirs! It is small, compact, and holds lots of wonderful memories!

I went back toward the square to go and wait by the water. However, on my way over I passed by a stairway leading up. At that time Emily and Mom were coming down. That made finding them really easy! So once we were together again we shared what we had seen while we walked back up the hill to the train so that we could be carried off to the next town on our agenda, Riomaggiore.

Riomaggiore

Riomaggiore is the most southern of the 5 cities. To get from the train station to the town you have to walk though a very long tunnel. Finally you can either exit out into the upper part of the town or continue down another tunnel to the right which led down to the waterfront town. We took the path down to the water to investigate that area. Here we saw several boats set up just above the boat launch. We walked through these and down the side where we could follow it up and around the town so we could get a better view looking back at the town. A small uphill climb (and some VERY steep steps) led us to this rocky area with some broken down stone stairs leading out onto the rock. We continued on a path down onto the rock where we could get another view of the town. It was lovely, meanwhile quite warm.

After gazing out at the sea, and the sky, and the nearby quaint and colorful town, we finally agreed that it was time to go and get something to eat. We walked back up the hill to the path we had previously taken. We came to a fork in the road where we could go up into the unknown, or else we could go back the way we had gone. Still feeling tired I did not want to venture into the unknown with the potential for more steep stairs. So I opted to go back the way we had come while Emily and Mom decided to continue up. 

I had forgotten the steep stairs we took to get up. They were no more fun going down. Once I was back at the boat launch I had to go and walk up the hill to the tunnel, and  through the tunnel to the other side. There I entered into the shopping district of the town. There was a grocery store I noticed right away. I hopped inside and went to the back of the store where I found nice, cool sodas. I grabbed a Sprite and went back outside to find Emily and Mom. 

I found both Emily and Mom standing just outside the "Mamma Mia" restaurant. We decided to purchased two orders of fried sea food and one order of french fries. Meanwhile Emily and I went to get drinks. We waited as patiently as we could for the food to be prepared. Meanwhile we tried to find somewhere in the town where we could sit to enjoy it. All of the seats in front of the restaurant were taken. There were some open seats down the way but they belonged to another restaurant. Finally we found a little cement bench jutting out from a building. Emily and I waited here until the food was ready. Mom carried the three items over and we passed her her drink. Together we ate the food. It was really good! I was not sure what to think about fried sea critters, but it was actually pretty good! Some of the critters in the mix were tiny squids, calamari, and sardines. There were also a couple onion rings in the mix. They were quite delicious! We each got to try a little bit of everything! What a meal!

After our lunch we walked back down the long tunnel to the train station. We hopped on a train to take us back to Monterosso. It was getting to be pretty warm at this time. Upon arriving we went back to drop off some items in our hotel room before Mom and I wandered back across the "New Town" and to the tunnel that would lead to the "Old Town". The "Old Town" holds the shopping district, which is what we were looking for. They had many different shops and places to go. Meanwhile Emily took the train back to Levanto where she had stayed with her Italian group. 
​
In the "Old Town" Mom and I did some shop hopping. They had wonderful ceramics and other souvenir items. Mom was on the search for lemon soaps which she had seen in one of the other towns. I purchased a Cinque Terre purse and a couple of ceramic wall tiles. I also found some of the lemon soap mom was looking for. She ended up wandering near the shop I was in so she saw them and got them. In one of the shops, where I got the ceramic tiles, the walls were filled with little trinkets. I was trying to look at a few items. Every time I touched something it seemed like things began to fall. Of course when falling they would hit several other items and make some dreadful noises. Eventually the shop keeper snapped at me saying, "No touch!". Oops. When I finally decided upon what I wanted I asked her to get them for me. She was quite pleasant then. I still apologized again. 

The shopping area seemed to be growing more and more crowded so Mom and I returned to the hotel room. Thankfully it was cooler in the room, however it was still pretty warm. I turned on my computer and started working on a few things. Meanwhile Mom went out for a swim in the sea.

Eventually Emily returned to the room, bearing gifts. She had found more of the lemon soap that Mom had wanted. She also got me a pretty bracelet that was blue and white with a shell in the middle. Very pretty! Once Mom returned Emily and I had heated up enough so we decided to go and try out the water ourselves. I brought my watch along with me so I could know what time it was so that we would not be late for our dinner. 

The water was surprisingly cool, but it was lovely. Dimitri told us that this water has a higher salt content and because of that we should float easier. I did not want to get my hair wet, but I did not feel any more or less buoyant than usual. I did feel like the ebb and flow of the waves pulled me a little stronger than water I have been in before. Emily and I had fun goofing off and enjoying the water. Due to my stunningly (and blindingly) white skin Mom said I could be in the water for no more than 30 minutes. Aww, Mom, you're no fun! 

I honored Mom's wishes and around 30 minutes later I got out of the water to walk back to the hotel. Emily and I staggered our returns so that I could hop in the shower and wash the salty brine off my skin before dinner (time for dinner already!?). 

Freshly bathed I went down to the lobby with Mom while Emily cleaned herself off as well. Down in the lobby they were having a "Happy Hour" featuring the most DELICIOUS pizza I have had on this trip. I had to snag a couple of slices despite Mom's nervous urging me not to take too much and to save room for our special dinner. 

A little while later Emily joined us and together we walked back to the restaurant we had eaten at the night before, the Ristorante Belvedere. It was pretty full, but we still got the choice of whether we wanted to eat inside or outside. We immediately opted for outside since it was now around 7 and the air was beginning to cool slightly. We each ordered a soda and waited for the much anticipated Amphora Belvedere (named after the restaurant and the earthenware dish it is cooked in) to be served. First they brought out the various tools (straight out of a book of torture devices I swear) meant to be used upon the items in the dish. We had mini tridents (meant for grabbing and removing), finger loppers (for lobster), as well as a couple other items that were rather intimidating. Next they placed this beautiful and very large pot in the middle of our table as well as a basket of bread. Finally the much awaited meal was delivered. 

The Amphora was delivered in a large pot/vase. The first thing to come was the sauce, the juicy, red, herby, fishy sauce which was perfect for dipping the bread in! Next a variety of muscles, clams, shrimp, swordfish, and finally an octopus and a lobster. It was art how the pot emptied, landing the large, red lobster on top of the pot. It was almost too pretty to touch, however our missed "happy hour" left us all with a gentle rumble in our empty bellies. With that we dug in. I tried a little bit of everything. Where else would I get the opportunity to try many of these foods? My favorite parts of the meal had to be the bread dipped in the broth and the octopus. The octopus was surprisingly tender. The most disturbing thing about eating the octopus was when the little suckers stuck to your tongue. While strange, the experience was very worth it. This was a long anticipated meal and it was fantastic! I am so glad that I tried everything without fear or hesitation. There was not a thing in the pot that I did not like. 

As we were part way through our fishy meal Dimitri, Richard, Lisa and Lanny arrived and got a seat near us. I think that Richard and Dimitri got the Amphora as well. Dimitri has told us several times that the Amphora is his favorite dish and that he gets it every time he is in the Cinque Terre. 

Once we were done with our meal and everything edible had been consumed we headed out. Once again we split up. Mom and I, still wanting to see Manarola, went back to the train station whereas Emily headed back to the room. At the train station Mom and I were trying to find the correct train to get us to Manarola. Meanwhile we were also trying to ensure that we would not be hopping on the last train to our destination and unable to get back. We were about to board one train but found out that it was the wrong one... oops! So we waited for the next, which was thankfully the right one. At this time in the evening all train employees were off for the day so we could not get our questions answered. However, based on the information we could gather we figured that we could spend half an hour in the town. It looks like it is going to be another sample of the town, much as we did in Venice with Burano. 

Manarola 

Based upon pictures I had looked at in preparation for this trip this was one of the towns that I most wanted to visit. More than that I most wanted to visit it in the evening or after dark. I had seen so many amazing photos of the town that I just had to see it in the evening light. So once the train dropped us off and we assured ourselves that there was at least one more train ride back to Monterosso we booked it down another long tunnel. We emerged at the head of the town meaning we had to climb some stairs to get over this platformed street and climb back down the other side. We walked on down the town, passing buildings whose florescent lights were coming on. In my rush I quickly located a large hill and, with Mom in toe, booked it up the hill (all tiredness gone?). By the time I reached the top Mom had fallen behind. Wow! First time this trip! The view from here was beautiful. We spotted a group of photographers on a lower trail (haha, oops!). However I was feeling pretty good that I was standing higher were the photographers were not as prevalent. 

At the top of the hill we found a cemetery. What a lovely place to be put to rest. The view was to die for (hahaha, sorry).

The sun was setting over the sea. This caught the city in its warm glow. It was lovely and just as I had pictured. I snapped all of the photos I could in the short amount of time that we had. At this town, in this location, I stopped to catch my breath and enjoy the beauty of the view, the perfect temperature of the air, the all over feeling as it soaked into me. I was sad when it was time to start heading back. However we really did not want to get left behind by the last train going back if that was the case. I took one more deep breath and gazed over the view once more before turning to lead the way back down the hill, through the town, up and down the stairs and up the long tunnel. When traveling you get use to the concept of "hurry, hurry, and wait". That is what happened to us. However while we were waiting we thankfully had a beautiful view of the sea before us. The more that we looked at one of the rocky cliffs the more an image appeared to us. In the rocky cliff face we could see a dog sitting alert and waiting. It reminded us of our lovely Bella waiting patiently for us to come home. It was comforting in a way. 

Bella Rock

Our Bella!

Finally the train arrived. We hopped on once we were sure it was the right train. We sat quietly as we returned back to Monterosso, praying that we had selected the right train. We were so relieved when the train stopped at our station. We hopped out, thankful that it had all worked out. By this time it was getting quite dark out. Mom and I split. She returned to the room and I wandered around the "New Town" taking pictures of the night lights. It was lovely out. The cool night air was coming in. The ocean was lapping quietly at the shore. Finally, before too long, I was heading back to the room. Along the way I walked into Lisa who was in her swim suit. She was determined to get in the water so that she could say that she had swam in the Ligurian Sea. I stopped to watch as she walked across the beach toward the water. I could feel the excitement of the long but wonderful day crashing down on me. I felt torn like I should have waited for her to get in and get out before heading back, just in case she was grabbed by a wave. Shortly thereafter I saw another group member, Pat, go out onto the beach. At least she was not alone now. I was then able to return to my room feeling better about leaving her behind. 

Mom and Emily were settled into the room by the time I returned. I turned on my computer to work through a couple photos, and to upload photos from my memory card to my computer. Very soon I found myself nodding. I put everything away and lay down for the night. It may not have been the most relaxing day, but it was really a great day. We were so blessed to see so much! If only we had time to spend another day in the towns. Ah well. Next stop is Switzerland. I am very excited about this if not a little nervous. Last night at dinner Richard was showing us a picture on his phone of the tour group ahead of us. He reported that they had woken up to a foot of snow covering everything! Yikes! I am not ready to go back to snow just yet! I guess we'll just have to see how it all goes. I am, however, looking forward to a cooler climate. For now, arrivederci! Grazi!

Day 18 Drive to Switzerland

Switzerland Information Page