Getting charmed by the Cinque Terre!

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Our room with a view!

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This place was a highlight for us.  Wow... what a great place to stay and lose track of how much money you are spending :-)!  We ate a lot of good food here.  Our pictures show the rustic beauty and quaintness of the town of Vernazza, and some of its neighbouring cliff towns and coastline. We took the train which runs between the 5 towns which make up the Cinque Terre (Five lands) We stayed in Vernazza 3 nights, in a third story room, overlooking clothes drying on clotheslines, with the sidewalks below, listening to the hub of the town and the footsteps of other tourists finding their way through the alleys. On our first evening we hiked up one of the trails to overlook the town—and marveled at the dusk light on this aging, unique and charming town. We spent the 2^nd day hiking to nearby Monterosso, the up and down trail which takes us along the cliff lined coast overlooking the water, passing by ‘old’ gardens, lemon trees and stray cats. Many other ‘tourist’ hikers too—all of us struggling and smiling in the heat. We hung out at the beach in the sun, and swam a little. There was a small amount of small jellyfish, so we were wary. But it was our first swim in the Meditterenean. We were informed of a good restaurant in Vernazza, not situated in the harbour like many of the others. It is called “Il Pirate del 5 Terre” run by 2 Sicilian brothers. They put on such a show, with their very good English, jokes and antics. They bragged about not having a view, but good service. That was very true. We went there for 2 dinners and 2 breakfasts. One of the brothers was a professional pastry chef, and he made incredible cream filled croissants and pastries, which they served for breakfast and desserts. Of course, we always had a cappuccino to go with them. They also made a tasty bruschetta. The brothers’ names are Massimo and Lucca, and it was hard not to feel like good friends by the time we left! The 2^nd day we walked from Vernazza to Riomaggiore, through the towns of Corneglia and Manarola. Saw olive tree groves and again wide views of the ocean and the towns in the distance. Swam again in Manarola; Crystal survived some not too serious jellyfish stings. She’s tough. We would definitely recommend the charming Cinque Terre to anyone who asks!