Day 9: Cinque Terre

This was maybe my favorite day of the trip. The day started off early, but it was well worth it with the heat as it was. The highlight of Cinque Terre is the 5 hour hike you can take that runs in between each of the 5 little towns. I would have loved to have done them all, but I had these ginormous blisters on my toes, so I ended up doing about 1.5 hours of the hike, which were the treks in between the first three cities. We took a bus to the last city, with the intention of later visiting the 4th, but we spent so long in that 5th town that we couldn't make the 4th town. The scenery on the hike was so gorgeous, pictures can't really capture it. The absolute highlight of the trip, however, was stopping at the beach. It was honestly the most relaxed I had ever been. I didn't have a swimsuit and didn't care to purchase a skanky bikini, so I ended up swimming in my clothes, knowing the heat would take care of drying them off in no time. Now, the waters were fabulous... not too cold, not too warm, gentle waves if any. However, there are rocks on the ground, not sand! So, if you don't have shoes conducive to water (which I didn't) it's painful! The little rocks are okay, it almost feels pumices/massages your feet. The big rocks are okay because you can balance on them. It's those pesky medium-sized rocks. Anyway, that's a fair warning. Other than that, I used the small rocks in the ocean to pumice my feet, hands, arms, and legs. People were staring at my tour mate and me rather oddly (can't blame them), but we didn't care because we'd never see them again, and it felt so nice! Afterward, I relaxed on the beach, and realized I had absolutely nothing going on in my head. It was so weird, and rare at that. Eventually, something did come into my head, but it was "I'll Never Break Your Heart" by the Backstreet Boys. Don't ask how that was the first thing in my head, because I don't know. I haven't listened to that song in ages! Anyway, enough chatter, here are the pictures:
The water really was that blue!


With every corner turned on the hike, there was always a view like this!













Convenient photo-op!








My foot hanging over a dangerously steep cliff!














Bougenvillas... pretty!












At sunset. Pretty!