Riomaggiore - Cinque Terre

Not very well known by many yet, Cinque Terre is a place you should not neglect when you visit Italy. Cinque Terre literally means five lands. It is in fact composed of five fishing villages, each of them sitting on rocky sea side. Five of them are Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso. Early this August, my family and I visited Riomaggiorre. The scenery was just breathtaking. It was the most picturesque site I have ever been. It was a shame that we only have time to visit one among five of them.

I actually discovered this place when I took a train from Pisa to Genova a few years ago. From the train, I got a few glimpses on Cinque Terre, and I immediately felt in love with all of them. The railway hugs the coastline tightly, and the train passing on the railway, through tunnels after tunnels, with cliffs of dozen meters drop sitting closely beside it. Not to mention the crystal-clear Mediterranean sea. So clear that you can see the bottom of the sea floor. It is quite an experience by just sitting inside the train.    

We did go to sea side and had a bath in the sea. The rocky seaside allowed us to do some cliff jumping but the it is very hard to walk on. The slippery mosses on the rock surface made the task even tougher. All of us got a few scratches of the feet. Many people slipped trying to walk, and there was this unlucky guy slipped and his head knocked on a rock and bled. The upside was that the wound wasn't very serious and the guy was fine. 

This is a place I would certainly go back. May be do a hiking trip, trekking to all five villages. But this time, it is just Riomaggiore. Our cameras are just not good enough to capture the beauty of Riomaggiore. If you google Cinque Terre, then you will understand my feeling towards Cinque Terre.

Outside Riomaggiore train station.

Riomaggiore train station.

The tunnel connecting the train station and the town center.

Town of Riomaggiore

Climbing up the stairs to get a better view.

Posing for picture :)

The ultimate spot to enjoy the view. Here, under the shade, on a high ground,
with almost undisturbed view on the Mediterranean sea, and the cold breeze
constantly blowing on you. With a cold beer, it would be perfect. 

Riomaggiore train station

Video recorded by my mom.

Video recorded by my mom.