Cinque Terre

After a three-an-a-half-hour ride on the Treno Regionale, that included a change-over in Parma, we finally arrived in Monterosso. Admittedly, the Regionale experience is quite different from the high speed trains, Le Frecce, Trenitalia (Le Frecce translates as The Arrows. ) Since train travel has been a big part of our experience on this trip, it bears elaborating somewhat on this aspect of our travels.  We have encountered two types of speed trains, Frecciarossa and Frecciargento, (Red Arrow and Silver Arrow) with the "rossa" offering slightly newer amenities. It is mandatory to reserve a seat costing 10,00 Euros per person on any of the high speed trains, even if you have a Eurail Pass, but it's worth it.  Apparently, there is a Frecciabianca as well; we haven't seen it. Le Frecce trains travel only to the larger cities and generally move North/South. The Regional trains travel east/west as well and make many more stops, hitting the smaller and more rural towns. Seating is open and for Eurail pass holders, free, which is nice. Comfort is no where near what it is on the high speed trains.  That said, they are still efficient and effective modes of transportation to move large numbers of people to a variety of locations.

As with most of our arrivals to new places, our first encounter with Monterosso was confusing.  What had been a relatively quiet train ride became more and more crowded and chaotic as we approached the Cinque Terre towns, and the Monterosso stop was teaming with people getting off and on the train, some arriving for the first time, others using the train as a mode of transportation to visit one of the remaining four towns, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore.

As part of our package, B&B Il Parco had a taxi waiting for us, a tremendous relief. A short ride to the hotel and we knew we had a winner.  Thanks, Les for helping us locate this fantastic spot. They even have a decent breakfast that includes scrambled eggs that Charles loves :) The peace and quiet comes at a bit of a price. The descent to the town centre where the action is, i.e. restaurants, beach, stores, espresso and gelato bars, etc. requires about a 15 minute walk to the shortcut ...a set of stairs, we counted 135, so not bad compared to the Praiano stairs experience.  The walk back is more rigorous, since the climb does't end with the stairs. The road is uphill all the way, a good workout after a meal or snack of gelato which is to die for anywhere in Italy. I've developed a fondness for nocciola and chocolate, yum! We've noted that somehow all this exercise doesn't seem to translate into weight management.  We can both feel out waists expanding by the day.  Home time will also be diet time...big time!

B&B Il Parco has great views and beautifully manicured gardens with quiet spaces to sit and gather your thoughts

Having already experienced incredible meals in Bologna, it was an unexpected surprise to find equally amazing food at Miky's in Monterosso.

Tuna steak with capers and sun dried tomato 

Sea bass with really good potatoes

And le piece de resistance, tiramisu ...delicious!

The hiking trail from Monterosso to Vernazza was much safer yet, in some ways more strenuous than the Path of the Gods along the Amalfi Coast, beautiful in it's own way, but very different.  We found it hard to put our finger on just what the difference was.  The best we could come up with is that the vistas along the Amalfi coast were somehow more majestic.  Cinque Terre, however is very pretty and extremely photogenic.

Vernazza seen from the hiking trail

Beautiful vistas from the hiking path

Vernazza from a closer perspective along the trail

Today, we took the boat ride along the coast and had the opportunity to see each of the towns from the water, all stunningly beautiful from afar. The only town we actually explored was Vernazza.  By the time we got to Riomaggiore, we were both tired and starting to get a little seasick from the rocking of the boat so we decided to pack it in and head back for an afternoon of sunning and swimming at the beach. By the way, 10,00 Euros each for an umbrella and two chairs. They get you coming and going in these tourist areas!

We learned that Vernazza and Monterosso were the hardest hit during the awful mud slide that happened in October of 2011.  Once again we are amazed at the resilience of Italian villagers.  Walking through the towns today, one would never believe that three years ago the main roads were six feet deep in mud! Mirella, the proprietress of B&B Il Parco, explained that the towns folk, young and old, of Monterosso and Vernazza worked night and day to get things back in shape for the following tourist season and, for the most part, they succeeded.  She mentioned that some relief also came from other parts of Italy and Europe as well, which was nice to hear.

Street in Vernazza that was buried in mud after the mud slide of October, 2011

Loved this shot of the water Charles took as we were leaving the Vernazza harbour

And finally, I just had to include this photo of an amazing seafood pasta dish I had at La Tortuga Ristorante. As we sat eating, I watched a huge Mediterranean storm from a window right in front of me.  It was awesome!  Come to think of it, that's probably why the boat was rocking so much...the waves were higher than usual, probably due to the storm the night before.

Yummy seafood pasta at La Tortuga

Window at La Tortuga.  The storm was still brewing at this point, but nature put on quite a show!

Well, tomorrow it's back to Bologna for a few days.  We'll probably hit Florence one more time and not sure what else.  Really looking forward to Greve in Chianti, Tuscany coming up at the end of the week.

Harkening Back to Praiano

This is a quick post that harkens back to our stay in Praiano.  The theme of the post is inspired by my daughter who, based on her own experiences in Praiano, advised us early on to embrace the stairs, my good friend Linda, who enjoys off-beat photos and commented on our restaurant stairs photo, Charles, who had the idea to photograph the route one day when he went up for water, and my son, who wondered what all the "stairs fuss" was about.

Below is the route we took whenever we went to town, often several times a day, during our stay in Praiano.

The gate from Casa Angelina that leads to the short cut to the town centre

The path on the other side of the gate ...looks innocent enough, yes?

At the end of the path, you could go right and down to the water...

Or, you could go left, and up toward the Praiano town centre ...this is the route we took daily

At the top, turn right

Keep going and turn right again and...

And, just when you think you've arrived...

One more time, with feeling :)

At the top of these stairs, you finally hit the road, but on evenings when we would go to our favourite restaurant in town, Ristorante La Strada...

Here's our favourite restaurant in town, but to get the patio & view ...yep...one more time with more feeling!

There would be one more set of stairs to climb...

Because even though your heart is still pounding, yet another flight of stairs awaits the seasoned and unseasoned climber!

At the end, though, this is what awaits...if you luck out and get a window by the railing, wow!  A fantastic view to accompany an even more fantastic meal with regional wine that was surprisingly lovely :)

Okay, so we need more practice with our night shots.  That's Positano nestled at the foot of the mountain. It's that smattering of lights you can see if you look really close. This became our table.  The waiter, Lorenzo, liked us :)

So that's what all the fuss was about, Joe.  Hope it all makes more sense to you now :)

We're actually currently in Cinque Terre, another marvellous spot! Just waiting until we get a few more photos before posting about this amazing place. And yes, the stairs are back.  I guess there is something about mountains and large hills that is synonymous with stairs.

Our Time in Florence

Next to Venice, Florence, Firenze to the Italians, is one of the most talked-about cities in Italy. It's difficult to say anything new about such a popular and well known city, so we'll just give an account of our experience there.  Firstly, it almost took the same amount of time to walk to the train station as it did to complete our train ride from Bologna to Florence. This meant we had more time to spend there than we did in Venice.  There were also later trains to get us back which was not the case for direct evening trips from Venice back to Bologna. So, as convenient as train travel is, it's also true that it does not provide the same freedom as a car.

Of course we visited Santa Maria del Fiore, known to most of us as Il Duomo, and as expected, it was spectacular.  I know I may have said this earlier, but it bears repeating.  How men in the past conceived of such magnificent structures is difficult to understand!  As with many of the churches built in the 13th to 15 centuries, upon entry, one is immediately struck by a sense of majesty.  The archways that make up the central nave draw the eye upward and then forward to the altar where the cupola lies almost hidden until the observer gets closer.  One surprising and unexpected element was the less ornate decor of the church.  It did have a number of stunning and important works, but was almost austere by comparison to other churches we've seen in Rome, Venice and the towns along the Amalfi.

Central nave of Santa Maria del Fiore

Copula meets the eye as the observer approaches the front of the church

Another highlight was the Uffizi Gallery, another stunning display of art and culture.  Below are some of our favourite works of art that we discovered on our self directed tour. Charles and I were constantly moved by the detail and the realism of the art. We wonder if the technical skills to produce such works is still among us today. Do we still have artisans that can work with marble in the ways that the greats of the past did, for example? If this is a lost art, it would be sad indeed, for it is obviously something that still interests young and old, at least judging by the visitors who were in attendance the same day we were.

Hercules and Nessus

Not sure what this was, but we loved the depiction of movement in these pieces

After a good two hours of wandering the halls and rooms of this incredible collection, we felt exhausted, yet edified (Charles' word) by our tour.

Of course a day in Florence wouldn't be complete without a walk along the Ponte Vecchio.

We strike a pose on Ponte Vecchio, Firenze 

And the day would also not be complete without getting lost finding a Rick Stveves recommended meal in an authentic Florentine restaurant.  In Florence we had two!  Lunch was at Trattoria Anita on a tiny street not far from the centre of the old town. We both had amazing pasta for primi and then as the waiters here say, "stop" for me.  Charles went for secondi that consisted of a bollito of meats that included beef tongue...yah...

Finally, dinner was completely off the wall.  We took a cab (enough of getting lost in Florence) to a place called Trattoria da Tito on Via San Gallo.  Here, as we waited for the restaurant to open we found an excellent little bar that served a great espresso for only one Euro, best price we've paid since we got to Italy.  Tip of the day...that's what happens when you move away from the touristy centre!
Food at da Tito was fabulous, I had an asparagus risotto and Charles an excellent steak. Although the  the atmosphere was a little strange we're glad we went.  Why strange?  Well, for one, very casual staff, also we enjoyed the music from the 80's at first and had assumed that the sign "warning, loud music may occur in this place" was a joke, but as the evening progressed and it got louder and louder, we realized it really was a warning.

Our Time in Venezia

Using Bologna as a home base for our day trips has turned out very well. Our train left the Bologna Centrale train station at 9:20 a.m. and by 10:30 we were already purchasing a day pass for the vaporetto in Venice, which came in handy for sight seeing as well as transporting us around town. Rick Steves" guide was right on, directing us to turn right as we exited the train station in order to locate the booth with vaporettos that offered a longer and more scenic route to Piazza S. Marco.

Ride on the vaporetto is surprisingly smooth, given the turbulence caused by maritime traffic and the narrowness of the waterways

Gorgeous scenery surrounds the traveller on Venice's waterways

Having last seen Venice from afar when on a cruise four years ago, it was a treat getting up close and personal with the life of the city. On the vaporetto, it was easy to discern the tourists from the native inhabitants. We couldn't imagine what it must be like to live permanently in a city where travel by boat is an every day occurrence. One might go to work, have dinner at a friend's home, or shop for groceries, all requiring some form of travel by water; such a different way to live than what we're used to.

After a forty-five minute vaporetto ride to Piazza S. Marco, we hit the reality of the crowds! It felt like CN Exhibition on Labour Day.  We were expecting this, true, but perhaps not to the extreme extent that presented itself . The day was cool enough that the warmth of the sun was most welcome as we sat with a cappuccino and map to orient ourselves to the insanity of the maze that is Venice. As we began our walk, Charles went nuts taking photos of the amazing statues, sculptures and structures in this gorgeous piazza.  He was particularly enthralled with the winged lions :)

The winged lion, understood to be a traditional symbol of Venetian power

Another representation, they are all over the place!

The beauty and magnitude of Piazza S. Marco is difficult to portray in photographs!

The experience of taking in the incredible art, history and culture of a city like Venice is impossible to describe and surely leaves a permanent impression on the soul. However, also memorable was the fun of getting lost in the back streets of Venice as we searched for a restaurant called Trattoria de Bepi where we wanted to have lunch (also a Rick Steves" recommendation -Charles is really sold on this guy and I must admit, if grudgingly, that his guide has come in handy on numerous occasions).

More food porn :) yummy eats and great atmosphere at Trattoria Bepi on Salizada de Pistor, Venice

Although we opted not to take a ride on a gondola, we were most impressed with the strength and balance of the gondoliers. We must have watched with mouths open for fifteen minutes, completely bemused at their skill for moving gondolas filled with passengers through the canals with one oar.

Venetian canals are teaming with gondoliers who labour to provide entertainment for tourists ...it's their job

At the end of the day, we tried S. Marco one more time, hoping that the crowds might have dissipated.  No such luck!  Although somewhat better, it was still insane at 6:30 p.m.

One final memory, we got a taste of Italian stormy weather just as we were making our way to the train station.  Strong winds, rain, thunder, lightening, you name it. We heard the next day there was a huge storm that caused damage in the north of Italy.  Luckily, we were not at the centre of it.

Next post, Florence.

Bologna

We arrived in Bologna yesterday afternoon and spent our first hours here reminiscing about the the amazing experience we had on the Amalfi coast.  Most of today was spent acquainting ourselves with the city.  The location of Bologna suits our needs very well, as it provides easy access to places we will be visiting for the remainder of our trip.  Also, not being a major tourist city, the hotel prices are very reasonable, so it makes sense to use the hotel as a home base, allowing us to pack overnight bags if we wish to stay in other locations in Northern Italy. That's the plan for our upcoming stays in Monterosso,  Cinque Terre and Greve, Chianti.

After our spectacular experience on the Amalfi coast, city life has been a bit of an adjustment...totally expected and all part of the experience as we see it, so not a let down in that way, but the Amalfi...ah, the Amalfi!!!

We departed Casa Angelina for Naples by taxi (yep, the ride in the Mercedes Benz, beat the Circumvezuviano hands down!)  The train stopped briefly in Rome and Florence before arriving in Bologna.  The stop in Rome brought back fond memories of the time we had spent there only a week before.  We have already noted that although only a few hours away from Rome by Frecciarossa, Bologna and Rome are completely different cities. Bologna has a much quieter aura and seems to be less down to earth than Rome. The main roads are wider, shops in many areas close daily from 12:30 to 3:30 and then remain open until 7:30; on Thursdays, they close at 1:00 p.m. for the day. So the traditional siesta schedule is alive and well Bologna's city centre. We didn't find this to be the case in the places we visited in Rome. Also, Bologna's town centre is closed to traffic on weekdays from 7:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. and all weekend throughout the year, which makes it a dream for pedestrians! We are quite taken with the terrazzo and marble sidewalks that are lined by wonderful shops and covered by archways.  Great city for shopping, by the way.

Typical sidewalk in downtown Bologna

We have read that Bologna is the gastronomical centre of Northern Italy. So far the food has been amazing. Not that we've had a bad meal in any part of Italy, but as far as pasta, cheese and salumi go, Bologna has it in spades.  Yes, it's where pasta Bolognese was invented! Our hotel is not far from Eataly, a concept that had it's inception in Bologna. It's kind of like a mini marketplace where one can sit and eat a meal or simply have a coffee or glass of wine or purchase specialty foods such as artisan breads, jarred olives, wines, cold cuts and more.  Of course the Parma prosciutto and mortadella is excellent and can be found in abundance. Eataly is in the centre of the greater Mercato where one can purchase fresh produce. Today we bought figs, apricots and peaches that were as tasty as they looked.

Shop in the market square just 10 minutes from our hotel

Antipastos and cheeses galore

Prosciutto anyone?

We've learned that in Bologna, you show a certain ignorance about food if you refer to spaghetti, rather the correct word is tagliatelli.  We were also advised by Palma, a tour agent who hails from California and frequent visitor to the area and this hotel in particular, that we must try the spinach lasagne with Bolognese sauce at Il Bagio, a restaurant just around the corner from our hotel.  Ah, why not? She says it's to die for :)

Off to Venice tomorrow and Florence on Wednesday. One down side to the city so far is that the train station in Bologna is humongous and not very efficient for reserving seats. Apparently with our pass, we can ride without reservations.  In fact, Friday, when we travel to Monterosso, we must travel on a regular train and cannot reserve seats even if we wanted to. Given the lineup, frustration and total waste of time to reserve seats for Venice and Florence, we might try riding without reservations on Thursday.  Not sure what we want to do that day yet. We'll see where our whims take us.

Final Days in Amalfi

Yesterday Charles and I hiked Il Sentiere Degli Dei, which was spectacular! The name of the path  translates as "The Path of the Gods".  Our guide, Nino Aversa, is a local history buff so right up Charles' alley.  Some people just go on their own, but we were very grateful we had a guide.  The path was quite rugged in parts and some of those parts were precariously close to the edge with no safety barrier.  Just having Nino say "the road is flat for a while just around the bend" or "in a few more minutes we will be in the woods where it is cool," provided much needed relief and reassurance at many points along the way. He also advised us that it would be best if he drove us to the point most people finish and actually start there and go back to Praiano so we would encounter better shade and it just made better sense to end close to the hotel. Our hike started in Nocelle where we met a lovely B&B Hostess by the name of Amalia.  She has an incredible recently renovated home whose foundations are eight hundred years old, with a vista from her terrace to absolutely die for! She was very kind and generous, inviting us for a tour of her garden and of course offering us coffee and a dolce, but we had to decline the sugar, given the physical ordeal we had ahead of us.  It would be a three-and-a-half-hours stint before we arrived back in Praiano.  But, we did, however, partake of some delicious plums plucked fresh from her great grandfather's tree that is still providing fruit today.

View from Amalia's terrace

Worthy of note is the story behind Nocelle's inception.  When pirates invaded parts of the Amalfi way back in the early centuries, the inhabitants of Positano moved literally north, as in up the mountain to Nocelle, where they had uninhibited views of traffic from the sea in order to defend themselves against invasion, and also built a town with narrow winding roads where the villagers could run, barricade themselves and hide.  It would have been very difficult if not impossible to carry large guns and equipment up to the heights where Nocelle is located. Smart thinking for would be survivors!

On our hike we saw remains of farms and stone ovens where limestone was baked down into powder for making cement, and land that was terraced for grazing cows, sheep and other domestic animals as well as for growing wheat and other produce. Absolutely incredible in terms of the labour involved in these constructions by the locals!

Note Nino, the experienced hiker, stands perilously close to the edge, while Charles, hiker poser, stands well back :)

                         

Charles listens intently as Nino regales him with stories of pirates and the industry of men determined to be survivors!

Ancient furnace that made limestone used to make cement for building

Nature's air conditioning...gorgeous woods encountered along the way

The rugged beauty of the geography is overwhelming

View from the highest point of our hike. We only wish the camera could capture the magnitude of this vista.

One final impression: this hike with Nino and his historical detailed commentary left us with this overwhelming sense of awe for the strength and tenacity of the people of the Amalfi coast and their superhuman ability to tame the mountain and create a thriving, bountiful culture. 

Today, we visited the historic cities of Amalfi and Ravello.  We had no idea that Amalfi was one of the four great Maritime republics of the world, in company with Venice, Genoa and Pisa.  Nino's knowledge of this aspect of the history and culture left us feeling much better acquainted with the essence of the Amalfi region.  

Ravello was stunning and not so touristy.  A major highlight was the Ravello Music Festival that occurs in July.  The setting is impossible to describe.  Imagine hearing great orchestral music from unfathomable heights as the sun rises on the Imalfi coast of 5:00 a.m.  This happens once a year, but the orchestra plays many times throughout the season.

Ravello from a park where we had a picnic lunch of panini with cherry tomatoes and olive oil, hand made by Nino

Nino preparing lunch for us

Outdoor stage for orchestra and audience overlooking the Amalfi coast

So much more to say, but dinner awaits.  Off to Bologna tomorrow.  This part of the trip has been one fantastic piece added to another.  Stay tuned for more.

Amalfi

So, where to begin?  Firstly, the fast trains in Europe are amazing.  We rode the Frecciarossa (translates as red arrow) from Rome (Roma Termini) to Naples (Napoli Centrale) with comfort and ease.  It took just over an hour.  Although, prior to boarding in Rome, there was an incident with a young man, who assisted us with our luggage and then demanded 10 Euros each for his trouble.  Ah... a' rivederci Roma!

Once in Naples, we purchased tickets for the Circumvesuviano...wrong move!  We thought it would be a scenic train, not so much...try more like an antiquated above ground subway.  After finally figuring out where to purchase tickets, where to board and ultimately ending up standing and guarding our luggage for the one hour trip that included 30 or so stops, we finally arrived in Sorrento.  From there, we did NOT take a bus as suggested by the ticket agent at the train station, but rather opted for a car hired for us by the Casa Angelina staff.  The driver was lovely, giving us an interesting account of the history of the Amalfi region and stopping so we could take in the breath- taking scenes along the way.  Apparently, the Amalfi was originally populated by dairy farmers which is why the region has an abundance of cheese and other dairy products.  The Lattari Mountains derive their name from this history (late means milk in Italian, lattari loosely translated means milkmen, so mountains of those who provide milk).  The Amalfi coast is also part of the Sorrentino coastline that stretches across many miles to the north and south of the Amalfi coast.

Picture taken as we made our way to Casa Angelina

Incredible Vistas!

And it doesn't end there.  Beauty surrounds us everywhere, from the moment we get up in the morning!

View from our hotel room

We've made a few trips in to Positano.  I'm kind of glad we are in Praiano, as it's a little less crowded and touristy.  We had a great meal at La Strada in Praiano...stuffed zucchini flowers to die for!  And today, my birthday, we celebrated at La Cova dei Saracini in Positano, a restaurant with a one star Michelin chef.  The food was fabulous there too.  As a special treat for my B-day, we were escorted to the rooftop patio for desert.  The view was incredible.  How blessed am I? Oh, and the local wine?  Fabulous! And yes, we've embraced the stairs, Elaina.  Even the restaurants have stairs in this place!  The people that live in this region must be among the fittest in the world!

Even the restaurants have stairs!

To top off the day, we came back to the hotel from La Cova dei Saracini to find a lovely chocolate birthday cake that was left by the hotel staff.  Unfortunately we were too full to indulge, but hopefully tomorrow we'll find room.  It looks really yummy!

Birthday cake left by Casa Angelina Hotel Staff... a lovely touch!

Tomorrow we are thinking of taking the much touted hike along the mountain.  Today was a day of relaxation, spent mostly by the pool, hotter than it has been for a while, so we'll see.  If the humidity lets up, we'll give the hike a go.  If not, we may take a drive in to Ravello instead.  Charles and I are really looking forward to the rest of our stay here, regardless of how we decide to spend the time.  Basically, we figure we can't go wrong.