The Cinque Terre is a rugged portion of coast on the Italian Riviera. It is in the Liguria region of Italy, to the west of the city of La Spezia. "The Five Lands" comprises five villages: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore.

Vernazza is a charming town and everything is built on the hillside. Our hotel was once a castle which had converted the rooms on top of the hills overlooking the Mediterranean. The views were amazing and we had a private patio that was spectacular looking over the Mediterranean forever! Unfortunately, that meant I had to carry luggage up around 100 twisted, curvy, handmade steps.

We spent the day exploring Vernazza and riding the train to other villages in the Cinque Terre. As you can see from the photos this is a very special place. Our afternoon ended at the Blue Marlin with cocktails and new friends from Oregon. We had dinner at the Gianni Frazi restaurant. Melissa ordered fresh made pasta with fresh pesto sauce. Russell had fresh anchovies for an appetizer and Clams and Mussels with pasta and red sauce for a meal. All tasted incredible!

We slept with the windows open and woke up early to the sounds of the church bells ringing to drive to Civitavecchia to meet the ship. On the way out we had real Sicilian pastries at the Pirate Café. Exceptionally wonderful pasteries! We chatted a lot with the owner and as we were leaving asked him the fastest way to get to Rome. He responded in his thick Italian accent, and arms moving "You drive that way, when you see the Pope, you are there!" and then waved us goodbye with a smirk. The day was much clearer and we shot pictures on the way out of Cinque Terre.