Goodbye Delicious Food

We spent our last few hours in Paris eating everything in sight. It was a good choice to end our trip.

Tiny House

Our place in Corniglia was this peach little house pictured above, two tiny stories with a bathroom, kitchen, and dining area downstairs and bedroom upstairs. This is the second time on the trip where the original room we booked wasn't ready so they upgraded us to something even better.

We just checked out and are on our way back to France.

Last Meal in Italy

On saturday night, we decided to go back to our town for our final meal and found it the most "crowded" we had seen yet which meant about twenty people total. The area is known for its pesto, and beef oddly enough, as it is just south of Genoa so we had to try some.

Into the Vineyards, pt. 2

An old stone staircase. The bridge. Fog over the vineyards.

In the Vineyards, pt. 1

We had been hearing the sound of frogs in the vineyard every night in Corniglia and decided to finally find them. After sneaking through a vineyard and down an old flight of stairs past a farmhouse we found a river that ran all the way to the ocean. We followed it as it snaked through the rows of vineyards and under an old bridge, then we broke off into an abandoned stone house and decided it was the end of the line for tonight as the sun was going down. I guess we'll have to come back someday soon and find out where the pathway ends.

Monterosso

This was our favorite town to visit as it was the largest and had a great beach. Unfortunately, as you can see in the photos, the fog rolled in on us and it was quite cold so we didn't go in the water. Instead, we hiked on a rocky trail away from town that looked like something out of The Two Towers. The trail dead ended into a nude beach (not the reason it was our favorite town).

Vernazza

Today we went to the next town north called Vernazza. It is much bigger than the previous three towns with a larger commercial district, more restaurants and Americans. At lunch, we lucked out and saw a wedding at the church pictured in the photo. Originally the plan was to walk between all the towns but one of the trails was washed out in a rockslide and the other hikes are well over two hours long. We decided to take the train.

Super Cinque Terre Brothers

Apparently Mario and Luigi live across from us. I really want this to be true.

A Cantina de Mananan

We ended up back in Corniglia for the night at a very highly recommended and reviewed restaurant tucked away in a nearby alley. The food was so good, it was gone before we could take any pictures of it. As per usual, Lindsey drew on the placemat which the locals and owner liked so much he added it to the restaurant's collection in a big book by the door.

Manarola

This town was built very similarly to the last but at its base emptied into a protected lagoon. After running around all day, and two weeks prior, we finally decided to just sit by the water and watch the fishes. And drink.

Via Dell'Amore

Known as the "Lovers Walk", this pathway carved out of the mountain connects Riomaggiore to Manarola and is filled with various signs of love along the way. Initials carved into stone, names written on walls, and locks attached to railings and fences. Being nerds, Lindsey and I kept remarking that the pathway reminded us of the videogame Myst.

Riomaggiore

This is the first town we visited, the southernmost one of Cinque Terre called Riomaggiore. It's built within a valley that channels down the mountainside to a harbor. Lots of good seafood here as you would imagine. Also lots of cats.

Sunset

Corniglia

This is Corniglia, the middle-most city in the Cinque Terre chain, a group of five small towns built along the northwest coast of Italy. As you can see it sits high up on the mountainside but is linked to the other cities via a pathway which we're going to walk the entire length of as it's only 10k total between all five. We hiked several hundred stairs down to get to this private lagoon which was very worth it even though the trek back up was painful.

Genius.

The best part of our meal was discovering that they make sprayable balsamic vinegar that you spray directly onto your bread.

1 Drawing = 1 Meal

While waiting for a nearby pizza place to open, we grabbed a snack at a small cafe tucked away in an alley. The waiter's eye was caught by this drawing Lindsey did in her sketchbook. In exchange for the bill, Lindsey gave him the drawing. Instant free lunch.

Lindsey <3 Florence

Lindsey loves pizza and gelato. She's happy.

Mercato Centrale

This is Florence's central market which is filled with the freshest food selection I've ever seen. Meats, fishes, cheese, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and a wide variety of olive oil, vinegar and wine. We bought a little of everything and quickly ate it all.