It wouldn't be a Tortoise Travelling trip without at least one unseasonal swim and multiple vertical hikes. What better place for it than Cinque Terre where you can only reach said frozen waters by scrambling along the coastal path (or taking the train but shh, that's cheating).
As soon as the Easter holidays hit, I met a friend in Bologna, where we managed to consume the full spectrum of Italian cuisine in under 24 hours. The drizzly weather was a perfect excuse to switch porticoes for pizza and fuel up before pounding the pavements in Florence.
In Florence we both reminisced about previous trips to the city, visited old haunts and discovered new ones.
On our first evening, we followed the winding streets up to Piazzale Michaelangelo to catch the sunset, along with half the city. One couple announced their wedding, a school group posed for endless photos and the crowd moved like a wave up the steps as the sun dipped below the trees. A magical atmosphere if ever there was one.
From Florence we caught a train to La Spezia - a perfect base for exploring the Cinque Terre region. That first glimpse of the sea from the train made me want to up sticks, learn Italian and move to the coast. And that was before two sunny days spent beach hopping in perhaps the most beautiful place I've ever seen.
Riomaggiore - Manarola - Corniglia - Vernazza - Monterosso al Mare. These are the five towns sprinkled along the coast and connected by steep, sometimes narrow but always stunning footpaths. The first two stretches are currently closed for repairs so, after seeing Riomaggiore on day one, we walked from Corniglia to Monterosso on day two, before catching the train back via Manarola. If I had to choose, I'd say Riomaggiore was my favourite but it's impossible because they're all so epic.
Yes, the sea is dreamily blue but note the lack of tiny dots floating around in it. Icy is the word which first springs to mind. Mad, the second. But they say ice baths are healthy and I'm sure I've also heard that ice cream is a necessary followup.
As if Cinque Terre weren't enough, from La Spezia you can take a bus in the other direction to Porto Venere, a medieval town on the sea, home to the famous Byron Grotto. Lord Byron once swam the 7.5 kilometres across the gulf from this spot to Lerici. A challenge for next time perhaps.
After Cinque Terre my camera died so I have minimal photos from our final stop in Milan. But we had a great time seeing friends who live there, spending more time below ground in the metro than above it and eating apparently authentic chicken from Giannasi.
The highlight of Milan was, I must admit, the Flixbus actually turning up. And only 40 minutes delayed! In disbelief and relief at finally being able to unsaddle our rucksacks which were now heavy with biscuits, Easter eggs and pasta (yes I know you can buy pasta everywhere but it's not the same), we boarded the bus back to Austria.
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