Imagine yourself surrounded by a rainbow of pastel colored Italian homes, creating a picturesque Italian hill town. Imagine the feel of the warm Italian sun on your skin, and the smell of freshly made Italian food filling the air. Imagine hearing the sounds of the Italian language rolling off the tongues of the locals that live in this Italian hill town. Imagine this hill town terraced above by a vast expanse of green hillsides, covered with vineyards and olive trees. And imagine above the terraces, more shades of green in the form of a forest of trees. And finally imagine this Italian hill town bordered below by an inviting, warm, blue sea.
Vernazza
Now picture all of this, not just in one Italian hill town, but in five pastel colored hill towns, linked to each other in a variety of ways. First, by coastal footpaths allowing you to walk from one town to the next, while close to the water. Second, by trails up in the green terraces allowing you to wander from town to town amongst the olive trees and vineyards, where you can almost taste the wine from the green grapes that hang off their vines. Third, by more trails allowing you to hike up higher in the forest amongst the trees, looking down upon the green vineyards, looking down further upon the rainbow of homes, and looking down even further to the expanse of the blue sea.
Manarola and Pastel Colored Homes
As you walk amongst the greenery of the hillsides, envision a splash of colorful wildflowers growing around. See the stillness of the greenery put into motion from colorful bugs and butterflies fluttering around. Listen to the sounds of birds chirping and singing. Smell the fresh, clean air. Look at the blue sea below speckled with the color of boats floating on the waters.
And as you walk from town to town, peach trees, lemon trees, and cactus plants offer their fresh fruit to sample. And after a hot day of walking, visualize going into a town to quench thirst, satisfy hunger, or cool off from the heat of the sun by swimming in the warm blue sea, or relaxing on a beach.
Boats on the Sea and Grapes on their Vines
These are my impressions of the Cinque Terre part of Italy: a series of five quaint coastal hill towns on the northwest coast of Italy, each with a slightly different character than the next, and one of my favorite places on this Earth. The entire Cinque Terre (literally translated as “five lands”) is actually a national park, including the coastline along the Ligurian Sea, the hill towns, and the surrounding green hillsides. To me, the whole area is a breathtakingly beautiful place. During my five-month solo European journey, I spent almost four days walking from town to town, wandering through the vineyards and olive trees, and hiking in the forests. And for variety, I even walked around the side streets of each of the hill towns just to see how the locals live.
The Scenery
What made my time in the Cinque Terre even more memorable was the place I stayed at, my own one bedroom apartment. The best part about this place was that it had a rooftop terrace offering a wonderful view of the colorful hill town, the green above, and the blue below. From the terrace, I could watch the sunset over the sea, followed by the moon reflecting on the water. I even slept on lounge chairs out on the terrace with the warm Italian air of the night.
Some of the food that I experienced in the Cinque Terre included some local specialties, including spaghetti with anchovies that were freshly caught the night before out on the sea, and pasta with a locally made pesto. For dessert, I ate tarts with blueberries, or my favorite Italian desserts, gelato. I would accompany my meals with a glass of wine made from the grapes in the vineyards from the hillsides. Most of the restaurants in the Cinque Terre offer the scenery to view while eating.
My Rooftop Terrace and Corniglia
If you find yourself in the Cinque Terre, know that all of the paths and trails vary in length and difficulty, so the area gives ample and various opportunities to all who might want to spend some time there. And if you don’t feel like walking from hill town to hill town, there are other transportation options, such as buses, trains, and boats. Or alternatively, other activities include mountain biking, kayaking, and snorkeling.
I enjoyed my time at the Cinque Terre so much, that two months after I went there alone, my mother and sister came out to Italy, and I took them to this fabulous place, to one of my favorite places on this Earth.
I would recommend this place to all. Just imagine!
Sweet Travels!