Europa III - Cinque Terre

Cinque Terre was one of the most breathtaking hikes that we've ever been on. Five villages separated maybe 8 miles apart, these towns sit on the mountainous coast of Italy.

We started the day by arriving bright and early in Riomaggiore - the first of the five villages. Our hostel was up a hill - a nice, large, long, steep hill to boot - and we made the trek through the picturesque village to our room. Each of the towns didn't seem real, as if it was taken from a movie set. The cobblestone streets were scattered with shops, fruit stands, and cafes. You couldn't help but feel like you stepped back in time a few hundred years. The trail itself cut right across the mountain ridge, jetting up and down the landscape. At one point we were on a beach, and the next thing we knew were were so high up that people on the coast looked like ants. Needless to say, it was tough hiking.

The first stretch was fairly easy, on our way to the second town (Manarola), known throughout Italy for its olive oil and wine. You could see the vineyards and olive gardens lining the mountain ridges, and even see people working. It was real nice to be in small villages and experience the old Italian world. Not that it necessarily felt authentic - it definitely felt touristy.

To the third town! We made a stop by the water to relax for a short time - sunbathed and just say with our feet over a ledge. This part of the trail was a little steeper, especially the 300+ steps at the beginning of the third town (Corniglia). We stopped for lunch for a while and took a break from the pretty intense sun.

As we started to the 4th town, we decided on whim (aka Charlie saying "let's go!" and making a turn) to take a detour down a very steep slope and through some pretty intense trails to a secluded beach. It was about 20-25 minutes each way. The beach itself was really nice - I mean, how often can I say that you were on a secluded beach in Italy? Once. We had to walk through vineyards and an abandoned train tunnel to get there, but it was totally worth it. There was only one problem: not too far from us was a nude beach. It was weird and real awkward, mainly because the people bathing made sure to turn right at us and stare at us coming down the hill, but it was all good because we weren't all that close. We stayed at the beach for a while, then hiked back up. I felt like I was doing squats at some points of the hike up because of the steep steps and the hiking bag on my back.

We continued onward on our hike, realizing pretty quickly we were exhausted already and started to get weak from lack of food. We were saved almost immediately by a small stand that sold Snickers, Powerade, and water - just enough energy to make it to the next town, where we grabbed drinks on the water in the wealthiest town (Vernazza).

The 5th town and last town (Monterosso al Mare) was the largest of the five, and felt like a typical beach town. We grabbed some seafood dinner and more gelato (do you see a pattern?) and took the train back to our town. We crashed at 10:00 - but that's when you know it was a great day. The beautiful hike was over. Even this long after the trip, I still can't believe this place is real. If you ever go to Italy, you have to go here.