As usual, bangun lambat today. ahahaha what else is new right? Went to the tourist info center at the train station to purchase my Parco Nazionale delle Cinque Terre day pass. Siot lah...in the Rough Guide 2007 edition, it says that the day pass costs 5 euros. it now costs 8.5 euros oredi! But it allows you access to the park, and also the trains traversing through the 5 towns of Cinque Terre.
So began my journey. I first took the train from La Spezia to Riomaggiore, the eastern most town out of the five. Cantik gila!!! Oh ya, from east to west, the towns are; Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso. I decided to take the No. 2 path, which popularly known as the Blue Trail, since the map said that it was the easiest, and would only take an average of 5 hours (9 kilometers). It was a fairly short walk from Riomaggiore to Manarola, about 20 minuti, and it was beautiful..! The houses on the cliff are so colorful, I stayed there for a few minutes to enjoy it.
Then i was off to Corniglia. The path got tougher here (or maybe I wasn't tough enough for it). It had little climbs and such, but it wasn't too bad. When I got to Corniglia, shit, I saw this long steps before me, and my only choice was to go up! So up i went, all 320 steps to reach Corniglia. The view from up there really made the climb up worthwhile.
I then continued my hike to Vernazza. It took me almost 2.5 hours, despite the guide saying that it would be a "leisurely stroll," penipu betul!! hehehe...nice view of the sea, but mostly I walked through vineyards and wildflowers. Beautiful nevertheless. This portion of the journey I found to be most difficult. And hour into it, i saw a sign that said Vernazza, and I thought, "yay!! i made it!!" I walked for another hour plus, thinking i was heading for Monterosso, imagine my disappointment when the next town showed Vernazza. hahahahaa
In Vernazza I stopped to get something to eat while contemplating whether I should continue my walk to Monterosso. The Rough Guide says that this will be the most difficult leg, 2 hours to cover 3 kilometres, which will probably mean 4 hours and a broken leg for me. The quality of light had deteriorated since it was already 5pm, and I didn't want to be walking in the dark, so I decided to cheat the last bit and take the train instead to Monterosso. Thank god for the Cinque Terre pass!
I'm now in Monterosso, finishing my hot chocolate on a terrace by the beach. Pekat nye hot choc ni..ada pulak manusia stopped by and said that I am a good subject to be photographed, alone, with my gadgets, on the beach. As if I didn't see him typing away on his notebook before that. hahaaaa..he looked like that dude on the cooking channel, the one with the long messy hair and lives out in the country.
All in all, I think anybody who visits Liguria should do this hike i did. It was a wonderful experience for me, and think about all the calories you will burn!!! Best thing is to make it the last bit of your itinerary, so all the fat from the gelati you had will go away. hehehe. I saw so many elderly hikers there, and by god, were they all much fitter than me! Thank goodness for my big ass SLR, I would pretend to check my photos when I got tired and felt the need to stop for a rest. heheee.
Hot choc finished. Going to take the train back to La Spezia. bye!
