Cinque Terre

After we got our culture fix in Florence and Tuscany, we took the train to Cinque Terre for some quaint, coastal life. We stayed for two nights in Vernazza, the second to last town on the Cinque Terre Trail, and it was the perfect spot because it was my favorite town of the five. We stayed in an airbnb at the top of the town, which was only a five minute walk since it was such a small place, and we spent the first night sitting out in the main square drinking wine, watching the sun set, the waves splash onto the breakwater, and watching the local kids play soccer in the church square next to us. I loved staying in Vernazza beacuse even though it was very touristy and crowded during the day, everyone cleared out during the evenings and it was just locals and a few tourists staying in the town. 

The next day we took the train to the first town, Riomaggiore, and joined the million other tourists trying to get that perfect picture of the town. It was pretty outragious how many people there were and how overrun the place seemed. We spent about 20 minutes in the town, then headed out for the next one. Unfortunately the trails between Riomaggiore, Monarola and Corniglia were closed for renovation, so we had to take the train to these three towns. They were all so colorful with stunning views of the ocean and the towns themselves. From Corniglia we were able to start walking the trail, and I have to admit, it was way more intense that I imagined. I thought it would be nice walking path based off how many tourists walk it each year, but there were some crazy uphills, and rocky, narrow pathways. But it was worth the sweat to see the views of the towns from the pathways. When we finally made it to the final town, Monterosso Al Mare, we collapsed on the beach with gelato. 

We finally made it back to Vernazza, where we ate dinner out on the patio, watched the most beautiful sunset, made friends with some local fishermen, and soaked up our last few hours in beautiful Italy. It was the perfect end to our trip and a beautiful place to see!