Cinque Terre 3

Hello, today it was back to the Cinque Terrre and to the last of the five villages I hadn't visited yet: Manarola. I caught the train to there and then took a high level trail (as the lower one is closed) to Corniglia. It was only a two hour walk but the first hour up to Volastra (a newer village near the road - only about 300m up) was steep amongst the terraced vineyards. They are sure tough up here and it's so steep they have metal rails up the side of the hill which they run little motorised trolleys on to haul, people, grapes, and other stuff (you can see one running across the bottom of a picture). The steep climb sorted out the racers as they were puffed by Volastra. Again lots of French speakers on the trail. The strategically placed shop, at the intersection of the trails, was doing a brisk business. The trail featured spectacular views back to Manarola and ahead to Corniglia as it followed terraced paths across the hills. It's probably the best section I have been on for consistent views. When I got down to Corniglia, I caught the train to Monterosso for lunch. I found a place that served a good portion at a reasonable price. While I was eating a Dutch group marched in and allocated themselves a table. They stayed five minutes, then marched out. I am not sure why. Perhaps there was too much Italian food on the menu. One of the Australians on the next table was a bit creative in his selection; he ordered ravioli and chips.

Back to Cinque Terre tomorrow for my last day here...