The Cinque Terra

After Karl headed back to Germany, I spent the weekend with Sara & Charlie - two of my most favourite people in the world - on what promised from the start to be a real adventure! On Friday we tried to make our way to the Cinque Terra, a collection of five small fishing villages, on the Italian coastline. The first evening we spent a few towns short of our destination as we were quite literally stranded - the national train and bus services were on strike, the boats weren't running and the taxis unavailable! It was none the less a great evening at the local La Negria bar & hotel, and early the next morning we eventually found ourselves in the small town of Corniglia.

The town of Corniglia is a nestled in the hills overlooking the Mediterranean, with every spare inch of land terraced for viticulture and food production. The Cinque Terra are part of a National Park and boast some of the most spectacular views around.

Granadilla flower, I think.

An abundance of fresh fruit, herbs and vegetables are growing in the village.

We walked the two miles along the coastline to the next town. Along the way were people swimming and sunbathing on the beaches far below. By the time we made our way down to the water, there was no where else in the world I wanted to be.

We came around the corner to the most beautiful fishing village.

Sunbathing is a national pastime.

These twins were keeping themselves busy the whole afternoon catching small fish. Judging from their crazy tans, this was something they did most afternoons.

Gelato eating and watching the ladies go by are also pretty popular activities.

Back in the main square of Corniglia that evening we came across the World Championships for Pesto Making. I am now certain that I would like to live in a place which bestows such prestige in making fine pesto.

The whole town came out to watch, and we all enjoyed a range of fresh pastries and delights with some local wine.

It was an adventure of note and one of my best weekends, ever.

PS: Sara & Charlie have been travelling around Italy for the past few weeks. Sara is an exceptionally talented photographer and her images are just incredible - check out her blog!