Kilometres Walked : Saturday – 7.3km, Sunday – 4.8 km.

Sunday 30th April, 2023.

Aah yes I can smell the ocean. And what a sweet smell it is. I can also smell lemons which are everywhere here. Big fat juicy ripe fruit just beckons to be picked straight from the trees dotted all up and down the terraces and of course turned into Limoncello.

Yesterday we said arrivederci to lovely Lucca and hopped on the train to our next destination. Buon pomeriggio to Manarola in The Cinque Terre. Tucked away on the Italian Riviera. The Cinque Terre comprises of five (cinque) rugged, remote and romantic coastal villages interconnected by kilometres of old mule tracks and footpaths up and down all the terraced hills, which is of course why we are here.

After three train changes with one million other tourists we finally made it to our destination. Not without a little stress trying to understand exactly which platform to go to and how delayed things may be, but hey its all part of the adventure. Meeting some fellow Aussies who are temporarily living in the Uk definitely eased our stress as we all worked together to figure out the crazy Italian train system. But as I said, its all part of the fun of travel. Now we thought Florence had been busy. Holy Moly, when we departed the train at Manarola it was with a sea of other tourists. Mmm nobody mentioned the Italian long weekend or the English long weekend. Obviously everyone decided to spend it at The Cinque Terre!

And who could blame them. We had arrived in paradise. Bright candy coloured houses weave their way up the hill. Lemon trees are dotted throughout the terraces that head high up on the hill and surround the village. As are grapevines, olive trees, fruit trees and veggie gardens. It’s quite fascinating to see how they have built this amazing place and filled every available space with produce.

Arriving at our apartment up othe top of the hill away from the busyness we were delighted by the views from our balconies and roof top terrace. And even more delighted at our kitsch Italian style apartment complete with terrazzo tiles and shutters.

Still recovering from head colds we decided to take it easy today and just wander about the village and admire the views. The ocean looked very inviting. We didn’t brave it today but will see what tomorrow brings!