Summertree Lane

I've been MIA for awhile now. Life has been busy. But more on that later.

Today is a day of celebration. To our house. Our home for the past two years. Our place to retreat, to relax, to refuel. It is where our furry babies almost always are and where our hearts are most content.

Summertree Lane, you continue to bring us joy, and you made us grown-ups. {Well sort of, because we vow to never truly grow up!} Here's to you Summertree Lane. What a great two years it has truly been.

Calling all bloggers

Hello fellow bloggers! I would love to make a book from my Italy trip posts and need your help. I am unsure of how to go about this and where to go online. I have seen many people do this for trips or even each year. Any recommendations of sites to use and/or any tips would be much appreciated.

Thanks! :)

THE CINQUE TERRE 2

After our Via Dell'Amore hike and crazy train experience, we headed back to Monterosso and spent an afternoon on the beach; we even rented our own little umbrella and sun chairs. It was very relaxing with the same gorgeous views mentioned here. 

For dinner that night, we chose a restaurant right by the coast and watched the most gorgeous sunset as we ate. 

The next morning, we moved over to Vernazza, town #4. We stayed at another great hotel, recommended to us by our good friend Rick Steves, Hotel Camere Fontana Vecchia (email: info@cinqueterrecamere.com). The hotel was inexpensive, clean, next to a little stream, and run by the nicest woman Anna Maria. 

Vernazza was without a doubt our favorite place of the entire trip. It was a gorgeous, little town, with a small little harbor and beach with sand and rocks to sun yourself on. The people were friendly, the little shops were adorable, and again, the food was to die for. We spent the day wandering around and doing a little shopping and then spent the afternoon laying out on the beach and rocks and swimming.

  olive and grape vines

 to the left is the little harbor and beach, to the right is the church with bell tower that chimed every fifteen minutes

After the beach and a siesta, we went back down to the harbor to eat dinner. We ate at a restaurant in the main area, an area where the boats in the harbor seek refuge during the winter and storms. We ate caprese, more pesto and pasta, seafood, and tiramisu. It was delicious with amazing views as the sun when down.

After dinner, we attempted the climb up to the castle, where the towns people took shelter when pirates would invade - no joke. Unfortunately, the castle was closed, but we did get a great shot of the view...

 hello Monterosso!

Then, we climbed back down, got some gelato and a beer and sat on the rocks in the harbor taking in every last bit of Vernazza knowing that the morning would bring a sad goodbye.

We finally managed to wander back to our hotel, not ready to sleep and remembering one of our earlier purchases that day, we grabbed two glasses and a bottle of limoncello. We sat on the little patio outside our hotel facing the softly, bubbling stream. The company and setting were lovely. The limoncello, not so much.

Cheers! (even though this stuff was not so tasty)

The next morning we said our goodbyes and promised Vernazza we would visit again...someday. Then we were off to Rome again where we saw the majority of its spectacular sites as mentioned here, and here. 

Thank you Italia for the most amazing adventure.

THE CINQUE TERRE

After fair Verona, we hopped on the train again and headed West. We had a quick stop in Milan which allowed us to get a quick bite to eat and allowed us to say we went to Milan - sort of. Then, we got on another train that took us straight to Monterosso, the fifth town in the Cinque Terre, where we stayed the next two nights. (Cinque Terre means five lands and is part of the Italian Riviera on the Northwest coast of Italy.) As we exited the train station in Monterosso we saw this:

 looking right

 and then left (you can almost see the four other towns too)

It may have been the most magical part of the trip.

To put it simply the Cinque Terre is beautiful. We visited four out of the five towns, and every town is unique but with amazing views, kind people, and delicious food. This was the place I had high hopes for, and it lived up to all my expectations. It is my dream to have a home here someday. Ah, a girl can dream right?

After taking in the views and picking our jaws up off the floor, we found our hotel, checked in, and then hit the beach. This town is more beach resort like with a large beach, umbrellas, and a crowd of people. However, something unexpected is the sand, or really lack there of. The "sand" is really a bunch of small rocks, and they hurt! But the clear, turquoise water and calm waves quickly make up for that.

That evening we ate at a little restaurant just around the corner from our hotel. Being on the water, the Cinque Terre is known for it's seafood. It is also known for its pesto, so Mat ordered jumbo shrimp, and I ordered pesto spaghetti. We also ordered lemon and balsamic swordfish for an appetizer and tiramisu for dessert. YUM!

 notice the whole shrimp - eyes and all

 we also ordered Cinque Terre wine as the hills surrounding the five towns are filled with olive and grape vineyards

The next morning, we took the train to Riomaggiore, town number one, to take the Via Dell'Amore hike which runs along the coast to the second town Manarola. Many people come to the Cinque Terre just to hike along the five towns. As for us, the simplest, and lucky for us most famous, hike would do. This hike is known as a lover's hike so it included many locks along railings and graffiti on the walls through an enclosed section of the hike.

 people swimming in the gorgeous water below

 Mat & Lauren 12-28-07 (with a heart around it, duh)

 drink break (it was toasty out)

 almost to Manarola

 we found my sister's hairband she left the week before

 our lock - M+L (carved with the hotel key :)

 <3

 here's where we put our lock

 tossing the key into the sea and true love it shall be (OK I made that last part up)

In Manarola we had one of the best lunches - pesto ravioli for Mat and pesto and mozzarella pizza for me. Oh so yummy.

After lunch we wandered down to the harbor. In part of the harbor there is a swimming area that looked like so much fun. Just look at that clear water!

Next, we headed back to Monterosso to hit up the beach again and on the way got to experience the true danger of the trains that we had been warned about. People literally stand next to this tunnel, and bullet trains that take this line too come flying out of the tunnel with powerful wind that nearly takes your breath away; people have actually been killed in years past, so I'm not entirely being a sissy. Thankfully there is a warning that comes on the speaker (in Italian and English) to stay behind the yellow line (which is probably two feet from the track). You also start to feel cold wind coming out of the tunnel. After the first time this happened Mat turned to me saying how cool that was. I told him I wasn't so sure as I had grabbed him and closed my eyes. Haha.

As you can tell by my ramblings and many pictures, we were in love with the Cinque Terre. And guess what? I'm only half way done. Come back later for the Cinque Terre part 2, and I will tell you about the rest of our day in Monterosso and our stay in Vernazza.

VERONA

After Venice, which I told you about here, here, and here, we took a quick train ride over to Verona. Verona is actually just as old as Rome, and there is a lot of history within this city. From the train station, a quick bus trip into the heart of Verona drops you off in Piazza Bra, a giant circular area with a park in the middle and restaurants around it. Verona still has surrounding walls that once protected the city and an arena that is still used today for opera productions. 

 Piazza Bra

little park within the piazza

 

part of the city wall

 arena

setting up the stage for the evening opera production

Verona is also known as the setting for a little story you may have heard of by Mr. Shakespeare himself called Romeo and Juliet.

“Two households, both alike in dignity, 

In fair Verona, where we lay our scene, 

From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, 

Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.”

Though fictional, the story of Romeo and Juliet brings a lot of tourism to this city. There is even a fake Juliet's house.

 the famous balcony

 statue of Juliet (it is considered good luck to rub her right breast..)

  lover's graffiti 

There is a giant square called Piazza Erbe which has market and souvenir stands along with restaurants, a few fountains, and a giant clock and tower. We stopped here for a sandwich and fresh fruit during the day and gelato that night.

As we continued through Piazza Erbe on our little walking tour, we went to the beautiful church Sant'Anastasia. The man handing out brochures to read about the church thought I was German. It was fun.

 the ceiling was amazing

Just around the corner from the church is the Adige river. We walked along the river wall twice taking in the great views during the day and as the sun set and soft lights along the river and bridge came on at night.

One last unique site we stumbled upon was the original city walk way and ruins.

Verona was nice, but it definitely wasn't our favorite. To be fair it was very hot and humid, and we were a sweaty mess. That's what we get for going in July I guess. However, that made us even more excited for the gorgeous and refreshing beaches we had heard so much about in the Cinque Terre...

I am glad I was able to visit Verona though, if only for the fact that it is very old with a lot of history. And that I can tell my students I went to the setting of Romeo and Juliet - it always helps to have pictures and real life stories to lure them in. :)

Goodbye fair Verona.