In the Cinque Terre it's always limoncello o'clock somewhere part 1

We woke after a great night's sleep and were excited that the forecast had been changed. They had been predicting rain for today followed by two days of sun, but as has been the way this entire trip, we were now in for three days of sun. We decided that after breakfast we would hit the trail that runs between the five towns which make up the Cinque Terre. It turned out to be a fabulous day....we took well over 300 pics, and most of them are keepers. We can only show some highlights here, but there will be plenty more on Facebook when we get home.

While waiting for breakfast we wandered around the lovely B & B that we are staying at. It is situated in the middle of an olive and lemon grove with a view down to the ocean. Here are a few pics

Garden

 

Sun deck

 

Where we eat breakfast, with the new pool in the background

 

Breakfast

 

 

After filling our bellies, and overloading on the best cappuccinos ever, we changed into our hiking clothes and prepared to hit the trail. Today we were going in search of the limoncello man.....and old guy who sells wine and limoncello on the side of the trail. First stop was the train station where you can get a pass that allows you to use the trail as well as ride the train unlimited times.

We decided to hike from north to south, starting in Monterosso where we are staying. It only took us about 15 minutes to get the the limoncello man stand.....alas, he wasn't awake yet, so we shed a little tear and vowed to come back again. Onward and upward, and upward and upward we went. There is a lot of climbing between Monterosso and Vernazza, but the views are stunning

Just leaving Monterosso

 

Stairs

 

Where the limoncello guy should be.....sigh!

 

The trail gains elevation and cuts through lemon groves, olive groves and terraced vineyards. It is steep in spots, flat in spots and you even come across some nice stone bridges

 

 

Gaining elevation and looking back to where we started

 

 

After you crest the high point you come around a bend and are treated to the first view of Vernazza....it's a view that is known around the world

 

 

Getting closer

 

 

 

 

 

 

We wandered around a bit and picked up some cold drinks......somehow I had volunteered to bring my pack and be the mule. But we would be glad we had over 5 litres of water and assorted drinks later in the day. Besides, it was time to hit the trail again to get to the next town, Corniglia

 

Continued in part 2

 

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In the Cinque Terre it's always limoncello o'clock somewhere part 2

Leaving Vernazza we climbed from sea level again....the next town, Corniglia, sits above the sea on a point of land. Here is a shot taken from a distance, it is the closer of the two towns. The fourth town, Manarola, is in the distance

 

Getting closer

 

 

Corniglia has a really nice feel....lots of little shops and places to explore. We will be back to spend more time here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next section of the lower tourist trail was closed....still heavily damaged from massive floods in 2012. From Corniglia we had to climb up to the high mountain trails if we wanted to continue. By now the temperature had climbed to 28 degrees and we were working hard. Here is a shot back, you can see where we started way in the distance

 

Climbing quickly we were soon looking back down on Corniglia

 

The next section of trail took us high up the hills and through many terraced vineyards....you can see our next stop Manarola in the distance

 

 

Eventually we had to descend.......many steps down

 

We finally arrived in Manarola. Unfortunately the very last, and shortest, part of the trail is still closed. So we hopped on the train for the short ride to Riomaggiore.

We had hiked a total of 18.4 kms with plenty of elevation change, and it was stink hot out, so we were hungry and thirsty. We found a patio in Riomaggiore and quickly devoured a few pizzas

 

 

Followed by some more tasty cappuccinos. Now the baristas at Starbucks can do hearts....but can they do hiker bums?

 

Then we hopped back onto the express train back to Monterosso where we walked back to the B & B and decided to go for a nice refreshing dip in the pool....after rinsing the stink off first of course! It's very nice being able to swim while overlooking the Mediterranean.

After a nice swim and a shower it was time to venture out for supper. We think we are adjusting to the pace and the schedule over here. We didn't even start looking until around 8:30. We ended up eating at Bar Gio which is right on the ocean front promenade in Monterosso.....it was yummy

 

 

Another wonderful day draws to a close. Jo and Delanie are both fast asleep as I write about today's adventures. Time to post, then sleep. Will see what tomorrow brings :-)

 

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If it's Thursday it must be Italy

Well we hated to leave Lauterbrunnen and the Staubbach Hotel, but the Italian Riviera was calling. We left Lauterbrunnen and it was barely showering, but as we headed east and climbed the Sustenpass the rain really started to come down. It was unfortunate that we didn't get to really enjoy the view, but at one point we actually emerged above the clouds and we were able to see the peaks that were higher that that. It was really cool seeing the lightening flashing below us!

Once we were out of the pass we got stuck in some traffic waiting to enter the St. Gotthard tunnel. We had to wait about 30 minutes for our chance to enter the tunnel....which is 17 kms long! Because of the weather, the air temp. was 13.5 degrees at the entrance, but deep I side the tunnel it climbed to 37.5 degrees.....thank goodness for air conditioning.

Eventually we made it out of the tunnel and continued south past Lake Como......both Jo and Delanie wanted to stop and see if George Clooney was hanging around, but I said no! So we crossed the border into Italy and kept going. We wondered if we were going to get stopped at the border, but someone in the back seat flirted with the border guard and we were waived through no questions asked. The rest of the drive was smooth as silk, although Jo and Delanie weren't really keen with the narrow and winding roads leading down to Monterosso al Mare....I thought it was fun :-)

We arrived, checked in to our B & B and went for a short stroll down to the waterfront to look around

 

Then it was time to find some dinner. We wandered the streets in the old part of town and settled on Ristorante L'Alta Marea....and it was a great choice. Some vino, local cheese with walnuts and honey, bruschetta, melon and prosciutto, fresh meat ravioli.....I will let the pictures do the talking

 

 

 

 

 

Then we enjoyed a tasty Italian coffee and watched the world go by. After that we wondered around enjoying the sights and sounds of the old part of town....it really comes alive at night, all the restaurants filling up. People tend to eat much later here, and supper is a real event that just goes on and on. Here are a few shots from our stroll

 

 

 

 

 

Of course we had to make a mandatory stop by the ocean

 

 

Here you can see the four other towns that make up the rest of the Cinque Terre all lit up along the coast....as well as the sun chairs and umbrellas waiting for tomorrow's beach goers.

 

A final stroll along the seaside

 

And a short stop to take in a local soccer game

 

And then it was back to rest up and be ready for tomorrow. It is so peaceful and relaxing here.....we think we can handle that.....Ciao!

 

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