Cinque Terre

Cinque Terre is a hidden gem that has gained attention since Rick Steves made it public to the world. This may partially be due to the fact it has limited accessibility, therefore corporate infrastructure is non-existent. I would insist taking the train into the area. From the South, La Spezia is your best bet, while from the North I would assume Genoa. The trains stop in each of the 5 towns, but there is a walking trail, Sentiero Azzurro (the blue path), for the more adventurous crowd (give yourself 5 hours).

Map of Lucca

We left for Cinque Terre from Florence in the early morning. I was told by my Uncle to check out the town of Lucca on our way. We decided to make this pit stop and grab some lunch. After 2 hours of stopping every 10 minutes, we finally made it. Lucca was very easy to spot due to the wall that encloses the old city. When fortress walls lose their military importance in Italian cities, they are typically removed. Lucca turned the fortress walls into a pedestrian walkway. The train station is positioned outside Lucca, so it took some walking to get into the city. The Guinigi Tower could be seen coming into the city.

View from top of Guinigi Tower

We decided that would be our target. It is basically in the center of town and has some amazing views… plus this climb was only 200 steps to the top. There is a little garden with some shade trees. We were in no rush. We could see some of the other attractions, such as San Michele Cathedral, San Frediano Basilica, and St. Martin’s Cathedral. We grabbed lunch down in the plaza and headed back to the station. I noticed the lack of vehicles in the city center, I’d imagine not a lot has changed over several decades.

Fortress wall a walking path

View from train looking back on Riomaggiore

Cinque Terre

After changing trains in La Spezia, we were on our way. Once the train goes in the tunnel, prepare yourself, because once the train comes out of the tunnel your breath will be taken away. Cinque Terre is comprised of 5 towns. Starting from the south: Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso. We heard Monterosso had the best beaches, so we chose that town to find a hostel. Every town is so colorful and vibrant, you can’t go wrong. We found lodging available at the La Spiaggia Hotel. They were very accommodating and if you visit their site, our room is pictured on their home page. We did lie and say it was just Becky and I, but my brother and I look very similar. We had a great view of the Sea and a nice patio to enjoy. It was late afternoon after we checked in. We immediately put on our swim suits and hit the beach. 

View from our hotel

Taylor about to jump!

Unfortunately, the beach was very crowded so we just walked on the docks admiring the sail boats. We noticed on the far side of the beach were some rugged cliffs that looked enticing. My brother and I jumped in to swim over to the cliffs. It was August and the water was freezing! Not only was it cold, the water was very salty (quite shocking!). While we were swimming over there, we noticed some kids jumping from the cliffs. We thought we would give it a shot. They were not too high, maybe 15 feet, but exhilarating. After tiring ourselves out by jumping off the cliffs several times, we headed to the beach. The beach on Monterosso is not sand, but tiny pebbles. These pebbles are not comfortable. After a nice power nap, we enjoyed a nice meal at L’Ancora della Tortuga. I tried a seafood dish, which was obviously saltier than I was used to, but still delicious! On our way home, we ran into our Canadian neighbors from Florence. Small world! We wanted to enjoy the night life, so headed to Bar Centerale for a relaxing night. There are many options to choose from, check out this site for more ideas. My Uncle told me to also try Grappa. Here is the wiki version, but it is basically a grape-based brandy.

Enjoying some grappa!

My brother and I could not stand it! It took us a solid 30 mins to finish a tiny bit. We talked to many people with different backgrounds, some other Americans, a girl from Ecuador, a Norwegian couple, and then we ran into our Canadian friends again at a wine bar. They were enjoying a 27 day honeymoon. I wish America embraced holidays the way the rest of the world does! All work and no play. Most foreigners are so eager to talk to us about politics… which I think is the last thing I want to talk to anyone about.

Colorful Riomaggiore!

Day 2

We woke up to a storm outside and a storm in our heads. The rough start to the day did not get much better anytime soon. While on vacation, it is hard to sit still when there is so much to see. After powering through breakfast, we headed to Riomaggiore to try snorkeling. The bad weather above the water shouldn’t affect what we see below, right? The 3 of us rented 2 kayaks and 3 snorkeling masks and set out. I swam next to the kayaks and saw some very colorful fish, which I was not expecting. I even spotted some sort of devil ray-type fish. It was not even 10 mins before my brother loses his mask and down, down it goes. Me being the engineer I am and not knowing the cost of losing equipment, take my snorkel and wrap it around the oar like a hook. I make some attempts to retrieve it but the pressure is too great. Meanwhile, my brother managed to accomplish more misfortune. He accumulated so much water in his kayak that is started sinking. I helped push him to the nearest solid surface, which happens to be a very jagged rock. The rain picks up, as does more misfortune. Attempting to relieve his kayak of the water, we slip and fall several times over the jagged rocks causing blood to flow. Soon I realize in all the chaos, I lost my snorkeling mask. Becky left us long before it escalated this far. But we look up to see the Sentiero Azzurro unfortunately overlooking the cliffs. By this time, a nice crowd collected watching us fail at a simple task. We bowed our heads in defeat and headed back in, only to find the masks cost us €15 in all for the lost equipment. Of course. Upon arriving back at the hotel, the sun was out.

From the beach looking back to Vernazza

We needed some brightness to our day so we headed to the beach with some pizza and laid out. Around mid-afternoon, Becky and I headed to the next town Vernazza. We did some souvenir shopping and admired the quaint town. While waiting for the train, we grabbed a bottle of wine for €1 and hung out waiting. Back in Monterosso, I wanted kayak redemption! Becky and I rented a 2 person kayak and set off for Vernazza. This is also a time when I had a non-water proof camera. Lesson learned after this trip. I quickly invested in a water proof Nikon CoolPix shortly after. Anyways, Becky and I learned that we do not have the same rhythm, making the rowing quite irritating. We came across more caves and decided to investigate. We found about a 40’ waterfall recessed

in the cliffs. I had to check it out, unlike me, Becky remembered the incident from the morning and passed. I made it past the slippery rocks to the water fall! After checking it out, I headed back to the water and, of course, slipped and fell face first. I braced the impact with my hand, which did not turn out good for my wrist. I instantly developed a huge bump protruding from the side of my wrist. Now I had to kayak back to shore. We had a very chill night eating a nice dinner – I tried the swordfish, which was worth it! Then we brought a bottle back to the hotel and sat on the balcony enjoying each other’s company. Tomorrow was back to Rome.

While in a beach setting such as this, your attire is basically chosen for you… swim suit! I took this opportunity to wash my clothes for another round of use.

Here is Becky Cliff Jumping!