Day 5: Port of Livorno, Italy. Day Trip to Cinque Terre
Cinque Terre had been one of my top places in Europe I couldn't wait to visit since moving here last year. We were finally able to check it off our list and it definitely lived up to everything I had hoped from seeing pictures prior to going, it was gorgeous! Cinque Terre (pronounced Chink-A-Terra) means "five lands" and it is comprised of 5 small villages built along the coastal cliffs just to the west of La Spezia, Italy.
We booked a tour to Cinque Terre through the cruise ship which lasted all day from about 7:00AM until 5:00PM. We were picked up that morning at the port of Livorno and rode a coach bus for about an hour and a half to get to there. We had a tour guide who was great and provided us with tons of history throughout the day. The picture below is one of the first views we had of the area as we were driving right along the cliffs when we arrived...
As we continued driving lower between
the mountains to the first village the views only got better...
The hills were covered in vineyards and olive & lemon trees.
A local was picking his tomatoes as we walked down into the first village we visited, Manarola. The pace there definitely had a slow and quiet feel.
The tiny houses are nestled between the hills along the cliffs...
The village is made up of just a few tiny narrow streets...
We hiked up a hill nearby to get a beautiful view of Manarola
It was so exciting to finally be there after seeing many pictures like these. Just as I had imagined it was even more breathtaking in real life!
Looking down the coast in the direction of the other villages we were going to visit next...
We did our best to bottle this place up with pictures!
There are some hiking trails between the villages that are still used today. However since Cinque Terre has many landslides due to rainfall that comes down the mountains some of these are now closed permanently. In October, 2011 there were torrential rains that caused a landslide and resulted in 9 deaths. Below you can see that there is a train that goes through the mountains between the villages...
We were very lucky to have been there on a perfect day which meant we got to travel by boat between the villages. The sea has to be basically completely flat with wind no more than 2 knots since there is absolutely no pier for the boats to dock at. Since Cinque Terre is a World Heritage Site there are no plans to put any in to preserve it's beauty.
Being able to see Cinque Terre from the water was truly icing on the cake from what we had already seen on land, incredible...
Below is the village of Corniglia which we didn't stop at but admired from the water with this view...
The second village we arrived at by boat was Vernazza.
We walked through a tiny rock passage to the beach...
Below is back near where we came in on the boat. After walking the colored streets for awhile we found a place in the sun to relax for a bit and just enjoy the surroundings. I couldn't justify looking in the busy shops (and you know Brian didn't want to) when these views were so unique and we didn't have much time there.
We enjoyed watching a local Italian fisherman working on untangling a very knotted up rope...
Eventually it was time to get back on the boat to bring us to the final village. As mentioned earlier here is what it looked like boarding when the boat just pulled up to the rocks...
Coming into our last stop, Monterosso...
At this village we were brought to a small restaurant to try some local wine and pesto (pesto was invented near this area). Then we had a few hours on our own and we had lunch, gelato and enjoyed the views again.
It was very warm and we wished we had brought our swim suits along to jump in the turquoise blue waters.
On the bus ride back to Livorno we passed the Carrara marble quarries in Tuscany. This is very expensive white marble and is also where the marble for the Statue of David that Michelangelo carved came from. The white on the mountains isn't actually snow but is the white marble that has been exposed and is being excavated. It is a very dangerous job and just 2 weeks prior a truck with a chunk of marble loaded on it fell killing the driver.
Also in the same area we saw many distribution centers with chunks of the marble sitting around, it was pretty interesting.
Back at the port before getting back on we walked out to the end of the pier for this picture with the front of the ship, impossible to get it all in...
Day 6: Port of Cannes, France
At this port we had to tender in, meaning ride one of the lifeboats to a small pier.
Driving around the back of the boat...
Once we got into the marina we walked around looking at some huge sailboats that were docked for a sailing regatta that was going on.
On the other side of the marina we saw some yachts...
Then it was time to find a beach and relax.
And soon we found ourselves like this...
We had a perfect view of the sailing regatta once it started...
After soaking up a few hours in the sun it was time to tender back out to the ship.
Back on board we had a great view of the sailboats.
Then we got cleaned up and Brian and I headed off to see Blue Man Group which was a complimentary show playing on board. After the show we met Dan and Laura for dinner.
Day 7: Port of Palma de Mallorca, Spain
We arrived in Palma which is an island off of Spain in the afternoon and got off the ship to explore for a few hours.
We found a horse carriage to take us on a tour of the city which was a fun way to get around and cover more ground in a shorter amount of time.
There was some unique buildings and architecture to see...
After the carriage ride Dan and Laura did a little wandering around the city center while Brian and I set out to walk to the beach, had some drinks and a quick swim.
Later that night back on the ship we were at our normal hangout, Spice H2O at the back of the ship before our departure and we saw this beautiful sunset...
Our last dinner...
Just like the name of the ship we all had an "Epic" time and Brian and I loved our first cruise experience. Thanks to Dan and Laura for such a wonderful time and introducing us to this way of travel...We certainly will be planning future cruises, next on our list is the Caribbean!
