Day 5- Castello del Trebbio and Monterosso (Cinque Terre)
We left Volterra on our bus in the morning and stopped at Castello del Trebbio. We had a marvelous tour of the castle followed by an olive oil tasting and luncheon. The views were unbelievably gorgeous.
Once our bus arrived in Levanto, we took the train to Monterosso. Our group was given the layout of the area by Anna and helped us get our bearings. When we got off the train we were met by Roberto, a very friendly local whom Anna had known for a long time, who took our luggage on his little truck up to our hotel. Which was great because it was quite a little hike to our hotel, but oh, so gorgeous. At the hotel I gathered my dirty laundry together to have it cleaned. Our group had an aperitivo at the top of our hotel where we saw panoramic views of Cinque Terre! We headed to Ristorante il Belvedere where we had a fabulous seafood stew bowl with every kind of seafood you would want. I left with my belly full. They also had the most amazing pesto pasta I've had! |
Day 6- Cinque Terre |
Day 6 was our “vacation from our vacation” day. Cinque Terre means “five lands” which includes the 5 coastal cities Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso. You can get to all of them by train, but you can also hike from one to another. A few of the trails were in construction and closed, but Ashley and I decided we would conquer the day together, hiking as much as possible. We walked over 30,000 steps and 138 flights of stairs. Later Anna confirmed we had beaten a record! There was a chance of rain, but thankfully it stayed away and it was a perfect 75 degrees and mostly cloudy.
We had the Cinque Terre card which allowed us to go on the trains, hiking trails, and use the public bathrooms. It was helpful to use this card throughout the day of our adventure. When we started, Ashley and I took the train from Montorosso to Cornaglia. We then hiked from Cornaglia to Vernazza. We stopped in Vernazza to get a fresh spremute (orange juice) and I grabbed a gatorade since we were hiking so much. We then hiked from Vernazza to Monterosso which was a little more difficult with a lot of steps, but the views were worth it. We stopped for lunch and I had an amazing Focaccia with pesto and cheese. We were close to our hotel so I took a quick shower and was ready for more adventure! We then took the train to Riomaggiore, Manarola, and then hiked back up the very steep hill of Cornaglia. It was beautiful to see each town and look in the shops and churches. The views were fabulous and I was so thankful for this day in nature. When I come back to Italy I would want to stay at least 4 days in Cinque Terre to see all there is and have time to sit and enjoy an espresso while looking at the gorgeous sea. Toward the end of our adventures my young and fit roommate was still running up stairs to see what was around the bend, while I stayed on the bottom waiting for her to tell me if it was worth it. Needless to say, I was very tired by the end of the day, but happy! We returned to Monterosso to find dinner. We passed by some very busy restaurants with a lot of tourists. We turned a corner down a less busy street and saw several locals eating in front of this one restaurant. From the tips of Rick Steves, we knew that a restaurant is excellent if locals are eating there. We were not disappointed. I had some more fabulous pesto pasta with wine and a caprese salad. We decided we had earned all the pasta we wanted for all the steps we walked that day. |