Sunrise, Sunset

Today began with a beautiful sunrise as we pulled into Livorno, Italy -  the port that is closest to Florence, Pisa and Tuscany.

We had decided to visit Cinque Terre which literally means Five Lands (or towns) clinging to the hills and cliffs along the west coast of the Italian Riviera .

Once only accessible by sea, even today there is no road linking these charming villages. There is, however, a walking path as well as rail service connecting one to another.

 

In all, we visited 4 of the 5 villages today. Tour busses took us to the first village; we walked to the second then took the train to the third and fourth. Bill and I would love to come back and do the entire walk some time. There isn’t enough time to do it in just one day.

Of course I have to include a photo of our lunch! We found a little wine shop that served the local white wine along with bread, salami, cheese and another local specialty, pesto. (Note the wet spot on Bill’s shoulder – we got caught in a downpour on our walk between the villages!)

For dessert, gelato!

After lunch we strolled along the beach and noticed these unusual paddle boats. We’d love to take the grandkids on one of these!

On the way back to the ship, I took this photo through the bus window. The white part of the mountain isn’t snow, it’s marble! We saw many lots filled with stacks of slabs and blocks along the highway.

We’re sorry to see this day come to an end, especially since it’s our last night onboard. As the sun sets on this day and this cruise, we are grateful to have lots of wonderful memories of the past two weeks.