ST. TRAVELS

Relaxing and energizing are the words for Cinque Terra here in the town of Vernazza.  Our four days here included:

• exploring all five towns
• sunset boat ride along the coast
• swimming in the Mediterranean
• hiking the Cinque Terra trails
• breakfast and dinner at Il Pirata cafe,
• lunch in the hilltop town, Corniglio, at La Posada, and
• dinner at Ristorante Belforte.

We arrived in this “5-Terra” town via the train, TrenItalia, carried our baggage through the tunnel of the station, down the steps, and across  cobblestone streets for 200 yards.  At our hotel, right on the harbor, we had to carry our luggage up four flights of stairs, as most places here do not have elevators.      

One of our days we took a boat ride from Monterosso to Manorala (four of the five towns), had dinner in Manorala, then enjoyed a beautiful sunset on the way back to Monterosso.  Here is a picture of Sue and I just before we went ashore for dinner.

Hiking the Cinque Terra trail was our goal for at least one of the days, but upon arriving we found that four of the five trails are closed due to landslides.  On day three we hiked from Vernazza to Corniglia (Dave reminds you:  the G, it is silent!)  We left early in the morning on this two-mile hike because the weather was much hotter than usual.  We saw beautiful vistas of the Mediterranean Sea, the rows of grapes growing on the terrances of these steep cliffs, and wonderful views of towns from much higher elevations.  Here’s a pic of Ted and Dave near the beginning of the trail at a lower elevation.  

Our final dinner of our four days in Vernazza was at Ristorante Belforte, located at the top of a building on the edge of the harbor and sea.  We enjoyed an amazing view and the food was fabulous, which included a lot of seafood.  With the sun low in the sky just before sunset, it was easily over 90 degrees at 7:45 pm, but by the time the main course arrived, the sun had left and we were much more comfortable here.    

People eat dinner at very late times.  Some restaurants do not open until 7:30 pm, and business does not pick up until 8:30 or 9:00 pm.  This is so different than some parts of Wales and Engand where some restaurants closed at 8 pm, although pubs keep going after that.

We are fortunate to be able to visit Italy, and hope hyou enjoy this story and our pictures.