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Monday, May 21, 2007 What a difference a week makes. Last Sunday we were in Portofino.  This Sunday I was in Flint, Michigan. Comments Monday, May 14, 2007  (Vernazza)  (Corniglia and Manarola in the background) The hike from Vernazza to Monterosso was only 3 kilometers, but as a winded and sweaty couple we passed from Amsterdam eloquently put it, "there is a lot of up and down." The views were spectacular though, and was what kept us going at the end which was a near constant descent down steep sets of stairs. We stopped for a beverage at a seaside cafe and then spent about 30 minutes looking for a farmacia to procure some advil. There was NO was we were hiking back to Manarola - we inquired about when the next ferry was and were told "maybe tomorrow because the waves are crashing over the pier there." Hmm, ok. We walked back to the train station (we were tacking back and forth through town at this point) and asked about the next train to Manarola - which was departing in 10 minutes. Once on board, we were a little concerned when it didn't stop in Corniglia, and then more concerned when it didn't stop in Manarola, but it did finally stop in Riomaggiore. So we had a nice flat 15 minute walk back to Manarola - making the total trekking distance for Saturday about 7 miles - the entire Cinque Terre in one day. We had extra dessert that night. Yesterday we gave our aching legs a break and took a day trip to Santa Margherita, about an hour north of the Cinque Terre. We walked/limped around a bit and then took a 15 minute ferry to Portofino. The highlight, other than the absolutely breathtaking scenery, was having lunch at a seaside cafe and watching the beautiful people come and go - especially these two fashionista women with a pocket dog that they forgot when they left behind when they departed - not exactly the kind of tip the waiter was hoping for :) They eventually came back, but it was pretty funny. Today we returned to Genoa. We had lunch at a very local spot recommended by the hotel staff. We were the only foreigners, and there was no English menu :) Comments Saturday, May 12, 2007 Bonjourno from Cinque Terre, Italy!  The picture above is of our village, Manarola, which had a grand total of three restaurants and one hotel that we have seen. It is delightful and the weather is perfect. We have already eaten enough pesto (a regional specialty) to last a lifetime. Yesterday we hiked to Riomaggiore (20 minutes from Manarola) and today we hiked through Corniglia and are now in Vernazza which seems crowded compared to where we have been so far. The hike this am took a little over three hours, along the sea, up and down rocky cliffs, through olive groves, and past a stray Russian Blue cat. It was worth it though because this town has internet whereas ours does not - perhaps that explains the hoardes of tourists. Off to find some margherita pizza for lunch and then might tackle a 2 hour hike to Monteressoro... Comments Thursday, May 10, 2007 I'm in transit to Italy for a long weekend in the Cinque Terre region. I didn't sleep a wink on the 8 hour flight to Paris, and the in flight entertainment was strangely mid-1980's (an edited version of Dirty Dancing, and episodes of Cheers and Wings). I'm in the Paris airport now waiting for the flight to Genoa. I think the last time I was in Paris was during the heat wave of 2003. I still really enjoy the signage. 
Comments Sunday, May 06, 2007 
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 A picture every few days or so... 
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