This is Jessica's favorite picture from the trip I think. We strapped her camera to a small tripod and velcroed that to something up on this overlook. We're above Vernazza. 
Jess standing on the breakwater in Vernazza. Our hotel is in the red building behind her. Of the five cities, Vernazza has the closest thing to a natural harbor.
Jessica and I ate at this restaurant below the castle in Vernazza. I had pesto lasagna. This region of Italy is where pesto comes from. This was probably one of my favorite meals. Focaccia, a flat bread that you usually get at Italian restaurants in the states also was born in this region. A little slice of gastronomic heaven. 
Ok - the next day (our 4th anniversary actually) we caught the train to the "first" town - Riomaggiore. This is where we started our 7 km hike. We explored Riomaggiore a bit and then headed out on Sentiero #2.
The first part of the trail goes between Riomaggiore (town #1) and Manarola (town #2). The paved path clings to the cliffs and is nicknamed the "Via del'Amore" (Pathway of Love). Along the trail are cacti that have been carved with lover's names. There's graffiti everywhere too. Nothing says love like engraving an agave. 
Jessica on the via del amore. You can see the path behind her.
Manarola. (Town #2) Just perched atop some rocks. The path from here to Riomaggiore was paved and flat. No problem.
Another shot of Manarola.
Jess - not too tired yet.
Town #3 - Corniglia. This is the only one that isn't down on the water. It's perched pretty high on the cliffs. The path was steeper getting here. In fact, our timing was perfect. Corniglia's train station is down by the water and you can either catch a shuttle bus up to town or walk up 400+ steep switchback stairs. I'll let you guess which option we took.
On the way to Vernazza - looking back at Corniglia. This was the most difficult stretch of trail.
Here you can see how high Corniglia is on the cliffs above the sea.
Here's Jessica celebrating the fact that we're heading down instead of up. Although going down may have been harder then ascending.
Vernazza -I actually took this later that day - after our hike was done.
Ah - here's the view from the trail heading down into Vernazza. You can see the castle here. In the background you can see town #5 Monterosso al Mare.
And here's a close up of Monterosso. We decided to take the train to this town. The trail between Vernazza and here is a little steep and treacherous. The train took 3 minutes.
A door in Riomaggiore.
Here's a couple videos from the Cinque Terre. The first day we were there we went to an overlook above Vernazza and took a little video (first one). The second video is from the Via del'Amore. Enjoy!
We spent two nights in Cinque Terre. It was a really neat experience - something I never did while I lived in Italy. This part of our trip was probably the most relaxed.
Jess standing on the breakwater in Vernazza. Our hotel is in the red building behind her. Of the five cities, Vernazza has the closest thing to a natural harbor.
Jessica and I ate at this restaurant below the castle in Vernazza. I had pesto lasagna. This region of Italy is where pesto comes from. This was probably one of my favorite meals. Focaccia, a flat bread that you usually get at Italian restaurants in the states also was born in this region. A little slice of gastronomic heaven. 
Ok - the next day (our 4th anniversary actually) we caught the train to the "first" town - Riomaggiore. This is where we started our 7 km hike. We explored Riomaggiore a bit and then headed out on Sentiero #2.
The first part of the trail goes between Riomaggiore (town #1) and Manarola (town #2). The paved path clings to the cliffs and is nicknamed the "Via del'Amore" (Pathway of Love). Along the trail are cacti that have been carved with lover's names. There's graffiti everywhere too. Nothing says love like engraving an agave. 
Jessica on the via del amore. You can see the path behind her.
Manarola. (Town #2) Just perched atop some rocks. The path from here to Riomaggiore was paved and flat. No problem.
Another shot of Manarola.
Jess - not too tired yet.
Town #3 - Corniglia. This is the only one that isn't down on the water. It's perched pretty high on the cliffs. The path was steeper getting here. In fact, our timing was perfect. Corniglia's train station is down by the water and you can either catch a shuttle bus up to town or walk up 400+ steep switchback stairs. I'll let you guess which option we took.
On the way to Vernazza - looking back at Corniglia. This was the most difficult stretch of trail.
Here you can see how high Corniglia is on the cliffs above the sea.
Here's Jessica celebrating the fact that we're heading down instead of up. Although going down may have been harder then ascending.
Vernazza -I actually took this later that day - after our hike was done.
Ah - here's the view from the trail heading down into Vernazza. You can see the castle here. In the background you can see town #5 Monterosso al Mare.
And here's a close up of Monterosso. We decided to take the train to this town. The trail between Vernazza and here is a little steep and treacherous. The train took 3 minutes.
A door in Riomaggiore.
Here's a couple videos from the Cinque Terre. The first day we were there we went to an overlook above Vernazza and took a little video (first one). The second video is from the Via del'Amore. Enjoy!
We spent two nights in Cinque Terre. It was a really neat experience - something I never did while I lived in Italy. This part of our trip was probably the most relaxed.
5 comments:
We visited Pisa, Venice and Cinque Terre with my parents in April 2008 (our last hurrah as a childless couple!). It's so fun to see your pictures and be reminded of our time there!
I noticed that Makayla is not with you--who did she stay with while you two were gone? Did she do okay?
So next time you guys want to go to Italy, like in 10 years or so, Angie and I want to come too.
WOW. I can't believe all the amazing sites you saw. These photos are gorgeous, pretty sure that's heaven right there. I hope to go someday, and if so, we are totally going to refer to your blog! :)
I think that is so funny that you opted for the hiking. I don't think that I had walked as much as I did while we were there, or since we have been back. But I was glad to see that you were up for the challenge of the hike and did it too. Kudos.
I love their tiered gardening, I think that is so amazing and clever, no wonder they are all so healthy and fit. (most of them)
Those pictures were fantastic. The setting is so beautiful and colorful, that they almost look unrealistic! You did such an excellent job capturing the highlights of your trip!
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