Cinque Terre
The train from Milan to the Cinque Terre (Five Lands) is three hours. The climate changes dramatically as soon as you reach the coast in Genoa. There are palm, orange and lemon trees everywhere!
We left the regional train at Monterosso to catch the Cinque Terre "milk run" to Vernazza, where we are staying. Vernazza is the second of the five towns from the north.
At the TI, we got directions to our hotel. This was totally unnecessary since the town has one main street and one piazza (square). We checked in along with another couple from DC. The receptionist/barmaid said "follow me". She led is outside and up two flights of stone stairs. She handed us the keys and a map and pointed up. I later counted a total of 80 steps to our building and then up another 2 flights to our room!
Our room looks out over the main square. But across the hall is a passage to a private cliffside garden overlooking the Ligurian Sea. I'll say more about the garden later. After we caught our breath, we explored the small but picturesque harbor. We had dinner that night at the trattoria associated with the hotel. Vino Bianco is a local specialty. I had that along with the catch of the day. I have no idea what the fish was, but it was grilled perfectly and tasted wonderful! Of course, all meals come with excellent bread served with local olive oil. It was a meal to remember.
Thursday morning we took the train (10 minutes) to Monterosso, the farthest north town. Thursday is market day. It's like Walmart on wheels. We picked up some fruit and focaccia for a snack during our hike of the first leg of the coastal trail which runs from Monterosso to Vernazza. Don't let the word coastal fool you. This two hour hike gives you an excellent view of the coast from a ridge high above.
The hike was spectacular! The Cinque Terre is among the top five most beautiful places we've ever been. The hike would have been strenuous except we stopped so often to gawk or take pictures. The vegetation is very interesting with olive, orange and lemon trees and grape arbors throughout the vastly terraced hillsides. The steep terraced hills reminded us a bit of the Yangtze River in China. There are wild flowers galore (including wild snapdragons). There are numerous varieties of blooming succulents including huge agave cactus. I know there's lots I'm forgetting. You'll just have to wait for the pictures. We took plenty!
We ended our first leg back in Vernazza just in time for lunch. We pulled up a step in the square
and ate our focaccia and fruit. We rewarded our morning's work with a gelati. It was yummy!!! I don't know how they get it so creamy!
Since the next leg of the hike was another two hours, we decided to skip ahead by taking the train to the third town and hiking on from there. (All five towns are connected by rail, bus and hiking trail. It's about 7 miles total. The first two legs (from the north) are about two hours each. The final two legs are 45 and 20 minutes respectively.)
So we hiked from Corneglia to Monterosa and then from Monterosa to Riomaggiore. Each town is very quaint and has its own flavor. We poked around the shops in each town and decided to buy local specialties for a picnic dinner. We got olives, pesto, anchovies, cheese, tomatos, focaccia and, of course, a bottle of the local vino bianco. Remember that private garden I told you about. Well, we got there just before sunset. It was perfect!
Today was an equally amazing day. But I'm too tired to write more. Perhaps I'll have some time on the train to Pisa tomorrow.
Buna Sera (sp?),
Barb
We left the regional train at Monterosso to catch the Cinque Terre "milk run" to Vernazza, where we are staying. Vernazza is the second of the five towns from the north.
At the TI, we got directions to our hotel. This was totally unnecessary since the town has one main street and one piazza (square). We checked in along with another couple from DC. The receptionist/barmaid said "follow me". She led is outside and up two flights of stone stairs. She handed us the keys and a map and pointed up. I later counted a total of 80 steps to our building and then up another 2 flights to our room!
Our room looks out over the main square. But across the hall is a passage to a private cliffside garden overlooking the Ligurian Sea. I'll say more about the garden later. After we caught our breath, we explored the small but picturesque harbor. We had dinner that night at the trattoria associated with the hotel. Vino Bianco is a local specialty. I had that along with the catch of the day. I have no idea what the fish was, but it was grilled perfectly and tasted wonderful! Of course, all meals come with excellent bread served with local olive oil. It was a meal to remember.
Thursday morning we took the train (10 minutes) to Monterosso, the farthest north town. Thursday is market day. It's like Walmart on wheels. We picked up some fruit and focaccia for a snack during our hike of the first leg of the coastal trail which runs from Monterosso to Vernazza. Don't let the word coastal fool you. This two hour hike gives you an excellent view of the coast from a ridge high above.
The hike was spectacular! The Cinque Terre is among the top five most beautiful places we've ever been. The hike would have been strenuous except we stopped so often to gawk or take pictures. The vegetation is very interesting with olive, orange and lemon trees and grape arbors throughout the vastly terraced hillsides. The steep terraced hills reminded us a bit of the Yangtze River in China. There are wild flowers galore (including wild snapdragons). There are numerous varieties of blooming succulents including huge agave cactus. I know there's lots I'm forgetting. You'll just have to wait for the pictures. We took plenty!
We ended our first leg back in Vernazza just in time for lunch. We pulled up a step in the square
and ate our focaccia and fruit. We rewarded our morning's work with a gelati. It was yummy!!! I don't know how they get it so creamy!
Since the next leg of the hike was another two hours, we decided to skip ahead by taking the train to the third town and hiking on from there. (All five towns are connected by rail, bus and hiking trail. It's about 7 miles total. The first two legs (from the north) are about two hours each. The final two legs are 45 and 20 minutes respectively.)
So we hiked from Corneglia to Monterosa and then from Monterosa to Riomaggiore. Each town is very quaint and has its own flavor. We poked around the shops in each town and decided to buy local specialties for a picnic dinner. We got olives, pesto, anchovies, cheese, tomatos, focaccia and, of course, a bottle of the local vino bianco. Remember that private garden I told you about. Well, we got there just before sunset. It was perfect!
Today was an equally amazing day. But I'm too tired to write more. Perhaps I'll have some time on the train to Pisa tomorrow.
Buna Sera (sp?),
Barb
posted by Barb Ardell at 12:00 PM
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