Cinque Terre from the sea

Today we caught the ferry from La Spezia to Monterosso. It took about two hours, but well worth the money to see the coastline from the boat. There were sheer cliff faces, evidence of Roman fortifications and the water was turquoise and much calmer than yesterday!! We could see the tracks we had walked on Monday and Wednesday and marvelled at our athletic prowess! We loved having the opportunity to stroll through Monterosso and if we came back to Cinque Terre, this is where we'd stay. It's gorgeous. After a lovely lunch we caught the ferry back to Riomaggiore. It's the one village we hadn't been to at all due to the track being closed. Riomaggiore is literally built into the side of the cliff, so from the moment you get off the ferry, you have to walk uphill to get to the main part of the village. When we did get into the village, it was quite disappointing. There were lots of souvenir shops selling tacky Cinque Terre crap and of course, plenty of ice cream shops and bars. Having said this, it still has the charm of the colourful houses, the magnificent ocean and the locals hanging out of their windows! 

View of La Spezia as we were ferried away

Monterosso

Our lunch view

Vernazza from the boat

The wharf at Riomagiorre

Riomaggiore

View on the trip home

Castle at Porto Venere

Claudia's lunch! She was most impressed!