I woke up to an incredible view from my hostel in Framura. This hostel is more like a hotel. It puts any other hostel to shame. It's just amazing, so much to rave about. If you ever decide to visit Cinque Terre I highly advise to stay here. I got up at 7am because I knew I wanted to try and knock out all of Cinque Terre today. I got ready in my little hiking outfit and headed downstairs for breakfast. Breakfast is included with the hostel and the owner whips up an authentic Italian breakfast for everyone. It included salami, bread, boiled eggs, cookies, apples, oranges, corn flakes, toast with jam or Nutella, OJ, apple juice, coffee or water. Best free breakfast by far! I sat outside to admire the view then headed towards the train station.
The hostel is a little walk from the train station, about 10 minutes going down so it wasn't so bad. I got to the train and met up with two Middle Eastern girls I had talked to yesterday at the train station. They said they did the two first villages of Cinque Terre yesterday and were now heading to Florence with a quick stop in Pisa. They got off two spots later at Levanto to switch trains and I headed south for one more stop to Monterosso, the first of Cinque Terre's Villages.
When I arrived I saw several tourists along the street and panoramic views of sandy beaches. I walked along the trail that lead up to the beginning of the hiking trail that connected all of Cinque Terre's villages. I had to pay €7,50 to hike the trail and only one of the four were open but the one from Monterosso al Mare to Vernazza was said to be the best so I decided to still do it. The hike lasted about 2 hours but I took my time. It was much more difficult than I expected and several elderly people were hiking it. I felt bad though because some were definitely struggling at times. I met two Canadian ladies about half way through my hike and hiked the rest of the way with them. They were so cool, reminded me of myself and probably what I'll be like when I'm 50. The views were just breathtaking the whole way. I stopped to stare and take pictures several times which is probably what took me so long. These views took work but were well worth every step.
About 2 hours later we finally made it to the second village, Vernazza. It was less touristy but still filled with people. There were no roads only boats that lined the coast. I said goodbye to Karen and Janet and wished them well on their travels. I then walked around the center and towards the water to take a look around. I saw a sign that said Corniglia with an arrow pointing to the right where the beginning of some stairs were and saw a group of people walking down. I asked if the trail was open and they said yes that it would take about an hour and a half so I went for it. I had read that this trail was not as difficult and still offered some great views. This trail was basically stairs, and more stairs, then even more stairs. So being the clumsy person I am, I kinda fell. I bruised my leg by hitting this rock and two boys saw me. ::straight face:: They were nice and asked if I was ok, and I was so I thanked them then kept going.
After about an hour and a half I came to Corniglia, the third village of Cinque Terre. The village on the hilltop. I decided to take a break and grab some wine and something to eat. I got a glass of wine and some anchovies on bread and butter. It was supposed to be a traditional meal here. The wine was delicious and pretty strong. The anchovies not so much. It was my first time trying them but they're too salty for my liking. I then headed to the train station since the next hike was going to be close to 3 hours because the 40 minute path was closed. I waited at the train station, bought my postcards, mailed some to my family like I had done in every city before and grabbed some for my own collection. The train ride was about 2-3 minutes. All the villages were so close to each other.
When I arrived in Manarola I was excited because it was one of the most beautiful villages in pictures but I didn't see what I had seen in so many pictures. I walked around a bit then found my view. Eye candy all day. It was breathtaking, just amazing! It was my favorite view of the entire day. I was so in love with Manarola. There were also people swimming in the water below and some even jumping off cliffs. The houses were so beautiful with all their different colors. I read that the reason they were painted different colors was because the fishermen who lived there wanted to see their homes while working off shore and they wanted to make sure their wives were doing their house work. Pretty funny and interesting but I'm glad they did. It made for perfect views.
I got on the next train to the fifth and last village of Cinque Terre, Riomaggiore. This seemed to be a bigger village so I walked around to explore it a bit. I climbed even more stairs and found a great shot of Riomaggiore. I also found a church with the choir practicing. I walked inside, kneeled and prayed. It had been such an amazing day with views I thought I could only dream about but I was definitely blessed to now experience them. I continued wandering around and found a path that gave me the view of Riomaggiore that I had seen so many times in pictures. I took a couple shots then headed to find a gelato shop because it was about that time!
At this point I was exhausted so I decided to head back to my hostel. I was surprised that I was able to complete all of Cinque Terre in about 11 hours. I couldn't wait to blog and share this amazing day with my readers. I hope you all are having an amazing start to your week! Ciao!