Yesterday we packed it up in Florence and took the one hour train ride to Pisa.  Our driver, Norman, picked us up at the train station and drove us to Camp Darby  to pick up our car.  After a quick stop at the commissary to pick up a few supplies and lunch at the Italian workers dining facility, we hit the road to Levanto.  Levanto is technically not part of the Cinque Terre but, it’s just one town north and connected by the same little train and boats that serve the other towns.  We had reserved a campsite so we checked in and set up our tents.  It’s really quite comfy and it’s only a short walk to the train station.  After pasta for the last few days, we were all hungry for an American style meal.  We threw four rib eyes on the grill and feasted on steak, potatoes and salad.

After a good night’s sleep we got up this morning and hit the trail.  Literally.  The Cinque Terre towns are linked by train, boat and hiking trails.  No cars allowed. The trails are varying in length and difficulty.  It turns out that the two moderately difficult trails that Jean had picked out for us to hike were closed so we decided to take the more strenuous and difficult trail between Montorosso and Varnazza.  About an hour in, we wondered if we had bitten off more than we could chew, so to speak.  We sent Lance and Anais on ahead so we could adopt a more leisurely “grandparent pace”.  Well, we huffed and we puffed but, by golly, we made it to the end!  Of course the kids had been there for 45 minutes, had a cold drink and done some shopping.

After some recovery, and a lot of water and gelato, we took the train on down the line to Riomaggiori.  We  strolled the streets, Lance and Anais took a swim and we caught the boat back to Montorroso.  The kids wanted to go to the beach in Montorosso so Jean and I took the train back to Levanto and the campsite for a very long, cool shower.  Did I mention that it’s 90 degrees and humid???  Al in, the pedometer on my phone says we walked 6.7 miles today.  I believe the phone.

Great day!  The Cinque Terre is one of our favorite places and we wanted to experience it again and share it with Lance and Anais.  They love it too.