Hiking In Cinque Terre

Matt and I drove from Pisa to Cinque Terre on Wednesday morning.  This was my first time in one of Italy's most dramatically scenic areas.  The landscape and views were truly astounding.

The Cinque Terre are 5 villages on the Ligurian coast, up in the northwest of Italy.  The 5 towns, from north to south, are:  Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore.  The area is most famous for the crazy construction of the villages along the cliffs, and the hiking paths -- which are perched up on the cliffs -- that you can take from village to village.  There was severe damage to the Cinque Terre caused by torrential rains and floods in 2011, and not all of the hiking paths have yet reopened.  But some of them are open for business.

Matt and I spent Wednesday afternoon hiking from Monterosso to Vernazza, and then from Vernazza to Corniglia.  Glickman is not the old pro I am when it comes to hiking, so I had to take it slow from time-to-time.  But he soldiered on like a trooper.  We made it through.  No matter how much you read about the sinuous hiking paths and the unbelievable views, you have to see it to appreciate it.

[Note: OK, anyone who knows me or Matt knows that the above characterization of our skills was a joke.  Until this past week, I think I've "hiked" maybe 4 times in my life.  (I use quotation marks only because I've never really been sure what "hiking" means.  What qualifies?)  Matt, on the other hand, is seasoned.  He grew up in Cleveland, after all.]