Cinque Terre

I finished wrestling my luggage up and down the flights of stairs at the Monterosso train station and was then blown away by everything I laid eyes on. It was a totally different vibe from the laid back family friendly crowd at Lake Como. Monterosso was all hustle and bustle. There were people everywhere and apparently swimsuit tops are not required and the more butt cheek the better! Holy Speedos! After a very quiet stay in Bellagio I was ready for some prime people watching and this place did not disappoint. We checked into our room at the Hotel Baia after rolling our suitcases down the crowded streets, weaving in between bronzed bikini clad bodies and hairy men wearing teeny tiny speedos, apparently cover-ups are not in style this season.

Our hotel.

We didn’t have much of a view (just a stone wall) but thank goodness for the AC! After we changed into our suits we went to the front desk to rent beach towels and lawn chairs for the day which was only 7 euro. Once I got to the beach I couldn’t contain myself and went straight for the crystal blue water.  Not so clean! My friend and I actually ended up getting rashes on our necks and arms from what we are certain was the pollution/trash in the water. It was beautiful to look at but kind of gross to swim in.

After a few hours of bronzing and a cat nap here and there we went back to our room to get cleaned up for dinner. The woman at the front desk recommended a nice little spot on the cliff just near the tunnel into the old town and I was very impressed with my pumpkin and mushroom lasagna.  We probably should have skipped the desert sampler because it really didn’t do anything for either of us but hey, when in Rome right?

I woke up early the next morning and went for a little jog around town, it felt so nice to stretch my legs and see some of the hidden little side streets. We spent that whole day on the beach reading books and people watching. There must be some unwritten rule that no matter how old or out of shape you are that all women are required to wear a bikini and never mind how good the coverage is. There were so many different kinds of people to observe I felt like I could have stared at them endlessly. Cute old folks strolling in the surf hand in hand. Little babies in bonnets and kiddies in water wings, couples tangled up with each other on beach towels and of course hairy speedo-clad men with the signature gold chain and moustache. 

That night we went to a Rick Steves recommended place in old town called Belvedere. The mussels I had were amazing and I usually am not wild about that particular varietal of shellfish, that being said my shredded taco lettuce salad left a lot to be desired. I can already tell that this whole DIY salad dressing with only oil and vinegar is going to get really old really fast, especially since my favorite dressing is 1000 Island. After dinner we ventured over to a square where a DJ had a variety of beats spinning and both locals and tourists were drinking beers and dancing in the streets. Again phenomenal people watching including a male ballerina who just was too much for words.

The next morning we woke up early to do the much talked about hike between Monterosso and Vernazza. I have done some light hiking before, including Mount Philchuck but whoa whoa wee whoa I was not prepared for this. Granted I am completely out of shape but it is my belief that the trail we were on belonged in the Jungle Book and I was not feeling the 200 plus stairs we had to go up. 90 minutes later we reached beautiful Vernazza. Unfortunately my memory card was not in my camera when I was snapping the best photos but I did get a few. 

When we bought our tickets to hike (even though I felt like someone should have paid me to go through that) I added the treno pass so we just hoped on the train at Vernazza and in less than five minutes we were back in Monterosso and checked out of the hotel, which graciously held our bags while we caught a few more afternoon rays before boarding the train to Florence. I really enjoyed Cinque Terre and I would love to go back and visit some of the other towns and maybe complete the whole hike, but I don't want to get ahead of myself.