Day 14 & 15: The Cinque Terre
Daily Briefing
Reid said we would go to the Cinque Terre to rest. It would be our "vacation from our vacation”. Heaven knows at this point we could use it. But this is Italy and there's so much to do, you can't just rest. You can't waste those precious minutes. Pam and I decided we would rest when we got home, we'll savor all the flavors, smells, colors and scenery that the Cinque Terre can throw at us. Bring it on.
We left Rome early, regretting that there was so much to see and we sampled so little. We could easily spend a month in Rome, then maybe we'd feel satisfied. We stopped in a little Tuscan village called Massa Marittima for wine and cheese tasting. Before the tasting, I climbed a bell tower and made a great panoramic of the Tuscan countryside. We walked through the town where there were some great photo ops. Pam and I both loved an overgrown clock tower that made some beautiful pictures. As we drove to the Cinque Terre, we viewed marble quarries that have been in use since Roman times. After we arrived in Monterosso, we had time for a tour of the town and then for a grand seafood dinner. I thought the dinner was the best of the tour. The rest of the time here was free time to use as we wished. I got up early on Day 15 to catch the sunrise. After breakfast, we took the train to Vernazza and Corniglia and climbed to the top of both cities where the views were spectacular. We headed back to our hotel and later back to Vernazza for some sunset photos. It turned out our ”vacation from our vacation” was an exciting experience. Our pursuit of the perfect photos took us quite a distance. We walked over 12 miles and climbed 180 flights of stairs. It was a spectacular day! This was our second laundry day. Clean clothes again!! Yes!! Cinque Terre Treno |
Image of the Day
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Daily Photo Gallery
Few Words About: Local Guides
At almost every major stop there is a tour of the area given by a local guide. These guides are hand picked by Rick Steves' Tours and are recognized experts in history, language, customs and local culture. Without exception, these guides were interesting and pleasant. Here's a summary of the guides on our tour. Click on a picture to enlarge or view as a slideshow.