Cinque Terre

Driving north again on 18^th June, we made our way to the coastal village of Riomaggiore.

The Cinque Terre is a 10km stretch of very rocky and rather steep coastline in Northern Italy in which five villages ( Monterosso al Mare, Venazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore ) are linked by an ancient footpath, train and / or a small ferry boat.

The day after we arrived we caught the 10am train to Monterosso and spent the day walking back to Riomaggiore ( getting back around 6pm ) – it was very hot sunny day with a nice cooling sea breeze but a rough sea ( so the boats weren’t operating ) – the track to Venazza + Corniglia was very rugged + climbed a lot into the hills ( an exceptionally good cardiovascular work-out ) – so the views up + down the coast were spectacular + well earned - each village was different ( one at sea level with long sandy beaches / others with perched high on the cliffs above the sea / all had small harbours, but some had to crane there boats back up to the village - so there streets in all the villages were filled with small fishing boats parked up on trolleys + and wily old men sitting around waiting for the sea conditions to improve ) - all were very colourful fishing villages that were invaded each day by hordes of tourists, so each village was well set up to feed, water and cater for all the weary walkers or the trainloads of beach-goers that turned up from urban areas far + wide – the land between each village has been terrace farmed for hundreds of years by the inhabitants growing grapes, olives, fruit + vegetables.

The second day we took it easy / travelled by train + spent time on the beach, swimming, reading + walking around a couple of the villages.

The area was stunningly beautiful and we had the most wonderful time

R

Montorosso al Mare - Beaches

Cinque Terre - Walkway

Vernazza

Endless steps !!!

Corniglia

Manarola

Manarola Harbour - Boat retrieval

Riomaggiore