Day 3 - Paradise Found

Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it. - Confucius

              Window of the day - It is Saturday - Wash Day!

Today was a blur!  Up early, I went to breakfast only to find thousands of young people.  (Ok I exaggerate size – but there was a bunch) Some New Hampshire college has blessed us with their students which arrived late yesterday.  The buffet table had been stripped by ravenous 19 year old males, but that was ok because all I wanted was coffee.  I had just picked up my cup when a young giggly girl said,  “this is my first cup of coffee!” and then proceed to smash the pot of coffee as she slammed back on the burner. 

Runaway!!!!!!

So I jumped on the P bus (P stands for Portovenere) with a goal of doing Cinque Terre.  The bus system is a very easy way to get around and for almost nothing you can go from point A to Paradise.  Portovenere is about a 30 minute ride for 1.90 Euro.  This town is a must and do not worry about missing your stop.  The driver turns off the engine and gets off the bus – I recommend you do the same.

I met up with my coworker in Portovenere after enjoying my long awaited cup of Cappuccino and some wonderful sweet bread.  He had caught the ferry from Lerici where he is staying, and our search for paradise was ready to begin. 

We explored this small sea side town Portovenere, while we waited for our next ferry that would take us to Village One of Cinque Terre.

The Cinque Terre, are five small villages on the "Costa Ligure of Levante". The villages from south to north are: Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso al Mare.  

We started in Riomaggiore and walked to Manarola.  The ferry does not stop in Corniglia and a recent landslide has closed the trail between Corniglia and Vernazza.  So we caught the ferry to Monterosso bypassing the stop at Vernazza. You just cannot do not the 5 of them in one day. If I was to do it again I would catch the train from La Spezia to Monterosso and then work back on the ferry.  What a day!

We enjoyed lunch in Manarola.  I had a stuffed Pesto Ravioli with gorgonzola cheese, followed by grilled calamari and both were enjoyed with local wine. 

All in all it was a day of fresh air, beautiful sights and great food!  One of my favorite expressions when I travel to the Caribbean has always been… “this is not paradise but I think you can see It from here”.  Today - I may have arrived.

And today we have a trivia question! 

Which of the following do not belong?

If you answered the lemons – you are wrong!

When I got back to La Spezia after a day of walking and fresh air, I went to see my new friend, Dominico at the enoteca, and once again the food and wine appeared from nowhere. 

I leave you tonight with a picture that I think says it all - Good Night