Prevo

Right smack bang in the middle of the Cinque Terre is the small community of Prevo. Made up of mostly holiday houses, this half way point was our home for 3 nights whilst we relaxed with the breathtaking view of the Mediteranian coast beneath us. Our host Pierre, greeted us warmly at the gate and showed us into his lovely villa, which he rents out to passes by like us. With its sizable outdoor area over looking the water below and vege patch terrace out the back, we quickly realized that we made the right choice.

Waking up bright and early on the first morning we set off east, towards the rising sun, to the little town of Corniglia. With Prevo in the middle of all the towns, it was also on one of the highest points of the trail, so the walk was fairly steady with a nice down hill gradient most of the way. About an hour of walking we reach Corniglia, the small ancient fishing village was bustling with locals preparing themselves for the daily onslaught of tourist trade that would soon be apon them. After a morning tea of gelato we got back to the trail to go check out the next village. Unfortunately for us though, due to last years storm and subsequent landslides, Manarola was out of reach via the trail. Feeling a little discouraged, but happy for the extra exercise, we decided to double back and check out the town on the western side of Prevo. With the sun already high in the sky we started our 2.5 hour trek full of enthusiasm, however that soon faded as most of the walk back was all up hill and in direct sun light. With our backs heavily drenched in sweat we finally reached Vernazza, possibly the 'truest' fishing village left in the Italian Rivera. As we entered the small town from the track above we were treated to an impressive view of the whole village, with its terricotta roofed buildings and winding cobblestone streets. Entering the town was a little different though, just like most places in Italy in the heart of summer it was packed to the brim with zombie like tourists, straight off the train snapping their memories with their iPads. So to escape the hassle and busses of the crowds, and because we had only had ice-cream so far that day, we headed to a small cafe to order the speciality of the region toasted panini's made from chickpea flour. Of course we followed our panini up with some more gelato, we are in Italy after all. With our bellies full and legs well rested we headed back to our accommodation for an afternoon martini, we still have some Portabello Road Gin left from the Ginstitute, and to watch the sun set out over the Mediteranian.

As we spent the pervious day trekking through the Cinque Terre in the 38+ degree heat, we thought that we would treat ourselves on our last day and just stay in, this is meant to be a holiday you know! So with our deck chairs stragically placed so we wouldn't get too sunburnt, we both set ourselves up for a relaxing day filled with reading, eating some home cooked food and getting our lobster on. Of course I got a little carried away on the last one and ended up a bit more fried than I would of liked, but hey what's a holiday without a little sun burn? So having recharged our batteries in one of the most beautiful places in the world we were then ready to head off to our next adventure.

- Ryan -