Kevin & Amanda

May 23, 2012

Cinque Terre, Part 2

Manarola

Hey guys! I’m so excited to share the rest of the Cinque Terre photos with you today! Today I’ve got our photos from Manarola and Riomaggiore, the two southern-most villages in the Cinque Terre. If you missed Monday’s photos featuring the other three villages, here it is! Tons more Cinque Terre photos there. :) So sorry about that. I was going through a little server upgrade, but it’s all good now. :)

I am absolutely smitten with these beautiful, tiny villages.

The ocean, the fresh air, the small town charm, and of course all the fun, fun colors.

This scene in Manarola is the first thing I ever remember seeing about Cinque Terre — Rainbow colored homes sitting on a cliff above crystal clear waters.

Heaven.

So, so happy to be here.

House on a cliff.

See Monterosso way back there? :)

Riomaggiore

Riomaggiore was so colorful and fun!

This place had so much charm.

How cute are all those boats??

I loved just wandering around the cute villages, shopping, snacking on foccacia and pastries, and snapping photos.

I couldn’t put my camera down!

Laundry day in Riomaggiore :)

View from the rocks.

Hills of Riomaggiore.

Sun is starting to go down.

This is the best, best spot in Cinque Terre to watch the sunset.

Keep scrolling and I’ll show you why…

Sigh! Sunset in Riomaggiore. It sets right over the water. That’s Monterosso way back there next to the sun.

Ya’ll know I can’t resist a good sunset photo.

Colorful, clear night in Riomaggiore.

I love seeing Monterosso back there, all lit up.

Thanks so much for looking. I’ve got Tuscany photos coming up next week. :) Until next time, friends!

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Filed Under: Travel, Cinque Terre, Italy 2012, sunset
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May 21, 2012

Cinque Terre

Monterosso

What a wonderful, glorious three days we spent in Cinque Terre! The Cinque Terre — pronounced Cheen-Kwah Terra and literally translates to Five Lands — are five small fishing villages along the northern west coast of Italy on the Mediterranean Sea. And hands down, it’s one of the most beautiful, picturesque places on earth. All I can say is Wow. I cannot believe this place is real!

This is the beach on Monterosso, the northern-most village where we stayed.

Five tiny colorful, old-world villages, hidden away and unhindered by modern intrusions, are nestled on jagged cliffs and tower over sparkling teal waters below. It’s like something out of a fairytale. On a clear day, from the beach in Monterosso you can see the other four villages: Vernazza, Corniglia, (pronounced like the name Cornelia — In Italian, gli is pronounced like the ll in million, like in famiglia and Milo Ventimiglia, swoon) Manarola, and Riomaggiore.

Rocky cliffs in Monterosso.

Vernazza

The first time I saw a photo of Cinque Terre, I knew someday I had to go there. Some way, some how, I had to get there. I had to see this place in person! This was the number one place I wanted to go. I couldn’t feel humbler that we were able to turn this dream into a reality. I am already missing this beautiful place.

This is the small beach in Vernazza. In October, massive flash floods and landslides swept through the Cinque Terre, hitting Vernazza and Monterosso the hardest. Thirteen feet of mud covered the village of Vernazza as cars were literally swept into the sea. We talked with one store owner who narrowly escaped with his life, just catching the last train out. It was hard to see Vernazza in this state of devastation, but there were also signs of hope — bright colors, painted doors, and new shops opening every day. The people of Vernazza are working hard to reclaim their town. Each day we visited there was something new. I have no doubt that Vernazza will one day soon be returned to its full glory. Even the way it was… I think Vernazza was my favorite.

So happy to be in my dream place.

Vernazza at dusk.

Quiet cemetery in the hills above town.

Cliffs of Vernazza.

A simple train runs from each of the five villages and carries passengers and goods to and from the city.

Corniglia

This is the first thing you see when you step off the train in Corniglia — a perfect view of the village Manarola high on the cliffs above the sea.

The train drops you off down by the water, but to get to Corniglia, you have to take the stairs. If you remember from the first photo, Corniglia is the highest of all the villages. But at least you have this view!

About half way up!

Ahh, here we are. Foggy morning in Corniglia. Remember, we started all the way down there at the water! :)

I loved the views in Corniglia.

Colorful houses.

Foggy vineyards.

Beautiful landscapes.

Orchards on the cliffs.

Starting to clear up into a gorgeous blue day at the beach.

Tiny village, high on a hill.

Low clouds in this mountain town.

There are hiking trails between all five villages, and I would’ve loved to have hiked them, but most were closed due to the floods. Next time, though. For sure.

I’ll be back with photos from Manarola and Riomaggiore. See you soon!

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Filed Under: Travel, Cinque Terre, Italy 2012
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May 17, 2012

Florence

Hi guys! I’m skipping ahead a few days to Florence because I just love these photos. Next week will be all Cinque Terre week. Yay! Are we starting to look tired here yet, lol?? I swear this photo looks like it’s 6 am and we just rolled out of bed. But actually this is what we look like when we just roll out of bed, ride on a train for 4 hours, and then climb about eleventy billion flights of stairs. Oh, and the wind probably had something to do with our hair. Sorry about that! :)

See GPS Location on Map

This is basically the first thing we saw when we stepped off the train in Florence. Love. Little did we know, we’d end up right back here, on that bridge you see in the foreground, for a gorgeous sunset.

See GPS Location on Map

We made our way up to the Piazzale Michelangelo for this breathtaking view of Florence. I don’t know if you guys can see it, but if you look all the way to the left, you can see the wall that surrounds Florence. I can barely see it and I know it’s there, though! I loved seeing the walls around all the cities we visited.

Postcard perfect view.

Loved these little houses on the hills.

I seriously could not get over this amazing view. Click on the image above for my attempt at a panoramic photo of the view. Seriously, this small thumbnail does not even show half of what you can see in the full photo, you have to see it! :) How amazing is that?

See GPS Location on Map

We were crossing the Santa Trìnita bridge, heading back towards the train station, and caught this view just as the sun was setting over Florence. The bridge you see in the picture is the one we stood on when we first arrived.