Cinque Terre, Italy

Wikipaedia tells me "The Cinque Terre  is a rugged portion of coast on the Italian Riviera. It is in the Liguria region of Italy, to the west of the city of La Spezia, and comprises five villages: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore. The coastline, the five villages, and the surrounding hillsides are all part of the Cinque Terre National Park and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Over the centuries, people have carefully built terraces on the rugged, steep landscape right up to the cliffs that overlook the sea. Part of its charm is the lack of visible corporate development. Paths, trains and boats connect the villages, and cars cannot reach them from the outside. The Cinque Terre area is a very popular tourist destination."

We went here as a day trip from Florence, so only spent a few hours at one village, Vernazza.  But what a wonderful few hours in such an amazing place!

Vernazza, Cinque de Terre

The view from the train platform.

A breakwater has made a safe harbour, and the sea was really this colour green.

I only had time for a brief walk up to a viewpoint.  The walkway connects all five villages and I would love to walk the whole way.  Another time perhaps.