And thiiiiis is the most beautiful place I have ever been. Cinque Terre is on the west coast of Italy, made up of five different towns separated by beautiful green mountains and a view of an ocean that looks like it goes on forever. Each town is unique in it's own way but I loved them all.
Town #1: Riomaggiore - This is where we stayed for the weekend and our room was an adorable (and oddly very pink) little hostel up about 20,000 flights of stairs (only a slight exaggeration). This town is possibly the smallest but it has a lot of character and is a great place to stay because it's less touristy. Anywhere you stay is literally 5 minutes walking distance from the ocean and the sunsets are unbeatable here. We woke up late every morning and had orzo (imitation coffee... I think I would be a big coffee drinker if I wasn't LDS because I am addicted to this orzo stuff and it doesn't even have caffeine) at a cute little cafe up the street. Paradise. Just sayin.
Town #2: Corniglia - In order to get to this town you have to hike up the side of the mountain on a switchback trail for about 15 minutes and arrive sweaty and exhausted when... hold up! It's the most adorable little town you've ever seen in your life! This town was the best for little alleyways and hidden paths. It had some great hole-the-wall shops but more importantly, an incredible view.
Town #3: Vernazza - The main thing you gotta know about Vernazza: cinnamon gelato. 'Nuff said. That stuff is probably the best thing I've ever tasted in my life. It tastes exactly like a cinnabon...except in gelato form. The rest of the town is cool. But honestly this delicious treat pretty much dominates my perception of Vernazza.
Town #4: Monterosso al Mare - This is the town with the beach. Need I say more? There is a really good pizzeria shack right on the shoreline and the water is beautiful. We got to take out kayaks for an hour too for only 5 euro. We paddled out in the middle of the ocean and looking back you could see all five towns, each one a cluster of color among all the green. It was great... until the boys flipped our kayak. But I knew it was coming. There will be revenge of course. Perfect way to spend the day!
Town #5: Manarola - This town is between Riomaggiore and Corniglia and it's the one town we didn't hit. I heard it was the least spectacular out of all of them. But WHEN i go back to Cinque Terre, I won't miss it.
This little piece of heaven will never get out of my head.
Fun, fun, fun...you lucky!
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