Cinque Terre - 5 Lands

Five beautiful fishing villages along Italy's northwest coast that have somehow preserved their Mediterranean charm despite the influence of heavy tourism - that is Cinque Terre (Five Lands).

Our home base was the northernmost - and most touristy - town of Monteroso al Mare. Bus traffic is not allowed (or even possible) in these towns, so we took a train in from Levanto, with some frantic shoving of the group's suitcases off the train at Monteroso when the people on the platform were pushing in while we were pushing out. Dimitri had warned us this would happen, so we were all prepared for a speedy exit, including Josh shouting "permesso!" the second the door opened, which may have scared a few tourists long enough for us to get the jump on them. We all felt very accomplished standing on the platform together, missing no people or belongings, when the train pulled away.

Arriving at our Monterosso hotel, Mary was looking forward to a full day of doing whatever we wanted on the beautiful Mediterranean coast. Vacation within a vacation!

Monterosso was the only town of the five in Cinque Terre with beach umbrellas ⛱️ to rent, and by far the longest beach. 

The first night in a new town calls for a group dinner to sample the best of the local cuisine. Dimitri kept telling us how much we were going to love the "amphora" dish. See the amphora (jar) the chef is holding? He just poured a seafood stew - including mussels, langoustines, lobster and octopus (!) - into the large bowl for several people to share, quickly chopping the lobster into smaller pieces with a large set of shears.

The raucous dinner party was lubricated by plenty of the delicious, inexpensive local wine.

Strolling back to the hotel from the old town side, we enjoyed warm breezes, stunning views, and a piano man.

Most European tourist towns have a well-preserved "old town," which in Cinque Terre is often separated from the newer parts of town (including the train station) by a long tunnel. These tunnels aren't especially well lit, but their walls are decorated with interesting art, including this jellyfish.

Day 2 in Cinque Terre - time to explore the other 4 towns! Mary and I started by taking the train to the farthest town, Riomaggiore.

RIOMAGGIORE

Adorable! Lovely shops - far better than the tourist traps we found in Rome

One of the local artisans

Mary bought a tiny plastic Baby Yoda from these cute kids holding a toy sale along the street 😄

Alleys and byways

Every town has at least one church, lots of steep steps, possibly a castle, and fantastic views.

We hopped the train to skip to the next town over, Manarola.

MANAROLA

At this point, refreshments were necessary. Mary tried the limoncello spritz (lemons are a big thing in this area), while I continued my Aperol streak. Note the large bottle of water (3 euros!).

Heading for the harbor, we found...this!

Cool, clear water. Fascinating rock formations. People swimming. Jumping off rocks. Did I mention SWIMMING?

Mary had the first turn while I watched our stuff.

After a but more exploring/drip drying, it was time for another train/change of scenery.

This time the authorities were checking tickets when we got off in Vernazza, keeping us all in the nice, cool tunnel just a bit longer. 

By this time, we are all pros at finding small patches of shade to hide in, so a whole train tunnel feels like luxury AC.

(Full disclosure: we were too lazy to stop at Corniglia, which isn't right on the water and would have required climbing more steps.)

VERNAZZA

Another charming hillside town. Cinque Terre is unbelievable. 

For this snack, we ordered "bruschetta locale" without reading the fine print too closely. Oops. If you look closely, you may notice a salty, grayish fishy garnishing the tomatoes and peppers. I asked myself, "What would Rick Steves do?"

We explored one last church from the 1300s, picked up a few more souvenirs, congratulated ourselves on our many discoveries, and headed back to Monterosso. 

MONTEROSSO AL MARE

Before calling it a night, we climbed a pathway up to a hilltop convent.

This peaceful path, high above the bustling diners, was full of surprises: scuttling geckos, cacti, beautiful wildflowers and stunning vistas.

At the very top, we found a large and winding cemetery. Crypts and vaults lined several pathways, through arches and up yet another set of stone steps.

As dusk fell, we thought leaving the cemetery would be wise, wished peace on its denizens, and wound down the other side of the quiet mountainside to the old town. 

I can't take credit for this final photo, but borrowed it from one of our fellow tour members. Sunset at Cinque Terre.

- Christine