This Sunday was pretty eventful…
The day prior, we had journeyed out to Siena for the day to just do some sightseeing and explore the city. It was fun, but you could tell that everyone was longing for the opportunity to venture out to Cinque Terre. A group of five villages outside of Tuscany in the Liguria region overlooking the Mediterranean, Cinque Terre is a sight to be seen! After a two hour drive from Firenze, we arrived by train to the first town, Riomaggiore. Although we were yet to reach our final destination, Monterosso, home to Cinque Terre’s beautiful beachfront and also its most tourist-infested, by just staring at the warm colors of the beach houses, the turquoise blue water, and the luscious tropical mountains above, you could tell we were in for a once-in-a-lifetime experience. As it turns out, we were.
The hike to Monterosso was definitely not for the weak of heart, yet the opportunity to traverse through the tropic jungles of Italy seemed like an experience one must grasp in their life. Thankfully, I took the offer, but I was met with a two-hour hike packed with a glaring sun, occasional unbearable heat, and constant uphill trekking. Thankfully, the view of Monterosso the closer and closer I got to it made up for the torturous weather and road conditions.
By the time I had arrived at Monterosso (I must add I was the first of the group), my plain white tee and fashionable but handy headscarf had been soaked top to bottom. Once more of the group had arrived, we all promptly dove into the salty dense waters. Unfortunately, my feet were met with tens of sea urchin spines that at first were unbearable, but henceforth I have decided to keep as a physical trophy of my time in Cinque Terre.
After the scare over the sea urchins, the day was pretty much relaxed from then on. I sat at the beach and soaked in some rays but also took the time to test out my watercolors with the beautiful scenery of Monterosso. Later on, I joined a couple of my friends out for dinner, where I was treated to a delicious dish of Spaghetti alla Pesto that was outta this world!
All in all, it was a day full of memorable experiences, and I was glad I had the chance to take it. I would strongly recommend all you readers to hike Cinque Terre at least once in your life, for past all the turmoil of hiking and weather, you really will never see a view like that in your life.
I hope this blog serves you all well. I kinda didn’t know what to write about originally, so I decided I would write my first entry just dedicated to our weekend excursions. By next time, we will be winding down to the end of our last week in Firenze and preparing to head off for Roma. It’s a little bit disheartening but at the same time exciting to see what the Eternal City has to offer.
Until next time, -Ethan