CinqueTerre

Tuesday - Kayak trip, or a lazy relaxing day on the beach

Tired from our hot days in Florence, and the long day of travel, everyone wanted to have an easy day, and just relax on the beach. I, wanting to do a little more, had made plans to go kayaking with a local guide.

After a morning stroll for Coffee with Purni, I made my way to the beach near new-town and checked in with Chiara. Being just early enough let me sample some local baked goods, before setting off for an almost hour-long paddle to the nearby town of Vernazza. With us were 2 other couples (from Spain, and Belgium if I recall correctly). Our journey there gave us a chance to check out some sea caves and admire the coasts. Chiara was a great guide and answered our questions about the local history with some interesting details.

In Vernazza, we were given 15 minutes or so to “Get a Coffee” and walk around the town. A quick tour of the narrow streets and a coffee later, we got back in the kayaks and paddled back to just shy of Monterosso, to a protected cove, where we had a chance to go snorkeling in the ocean.

About 30 minutes of snorkeling later, we paddled our way back to the beach where we set off from and said goodbye to each other.

After scarfing down a few delicious foccacias, I made my way down to the beach, where Purni, the boys, Suba and Family had rented out beach chairs for the day, and we spent the afternoon playing in the water, and lazing around in the shade of the beach umbrellas.

I got Tejas some snorkeling gear, and he had great fun trying to snorkel underwater, and trying to find fish in the nearby reefs.

After we had our fill of the beach, we all returned to our rooms, to clean up before dinner. Mahesh and Suba had made dinner reservations, so we spent a hour or so wandering the streets of Monterosso, taking in the sights, and enjoying the cool of the evening.

After dinner, we took a stroll down to the end of the pier, and enjoyed the cool evening ocean air.

Wednesday - Trainhopping our way through some of the other villages.

On Wednesday, our plan was to take the local train to go see the other villages that were part of the “Cinque” in “Cinque Terre”.

After breakfast, we took the train to the southernmost town on Riomaggiore. We walked through a long tunnel from the station leading to the main street of Riomaggiore, and were enticed by the feesh fruit available at a local grocers. After buying some fruit and snack, we walked the narrow streets to the harbor, where we took in the colorful sights of the town, and fishing boasts that were anchored there.

After a brief stop for deep-fried snacks, we boarded the train and headed to the second town of Manarola.

Along with some meandaring exploring of a increasingly crowding main thoroughfare, and people watching, we did some touristy shopping as well as watched people continuosly jump off the rocks into the ocean.

As the heat of the day was rising, and sapping the energy that even ice-cream could not overcome, we made the collective call to return back to Monterosso and call it a day. Corniglia remained unvisited, and only I had stepped foot in Vernazza on my kayak day.

After some rest and dinner, we ended the day with our feet in the ocean, something that I doubt any of us would ever tire of, with how amazingly pleasant that water felt.

Thursday - A hike up Punta Mesco, and we say arrivaderci to Cinque Terre

On Thursday, wanting a little more adventure, I chose to hike up to the top of Punta Mesco to capture the sunrise there. Everyone else was too tired, so this would be a solo trip once again.

I managed to make good time, and climb the 1000 ft or so to capture pictures of the sunrise as well as a timelapse of it.

I found a herd of goats scrounging through the scrub and took some time to explore the ruins of a monastery built at the peak of mountain as well.

Thoroughly satisfied, I walked back to the hotel, stopping for some freshly baked pastries as a reward for my climb, and helped the families pack and head to the station to catch the train to Venice