diverCITY.

So here I am... back in the country where I first learned how delicious ice cream REALLY was; the country where I learned that even if you're only within a few miles of your destination at 1pm in a small town that the buses WILL NOT be running because people like their naps. The country where I could twirl in a grassy knoll & DO ABSOLUTELY NOTHING & it's ABSOLUTELY PERFECT. The country where I can eat pizza, pasta & panini ALL DAY LONG & it's all "va bene." The country where I discovered one of my PASSIONS!

I am back & hopefully this time I can do all those things above & come back speaking Italish!? Wishful thinking? Spero che no.

Anyway... although I have done the Italy thing before (oh yeah! Did I not mention that I am in Italy? Well I was hoping you got that from the part where I talked about "PIZZA, PASTA & PANINI!!"), this time it is a little bit different.

There are no "Beverage Appreciation" courses where I can drink wine & there is no "Beginning Italian" course where I can pretend there's some "study" in my "abroad." There are no friends from school with me, who will casually hop on a train to Pisa or accompany me at all hours of the day (aka there is no comfort of familiarity). There are no spoon-fed field trips to Venice & Rome. There are no 4-day weekends & student discounts at museums. There is no fancy apartment on the river with a sweet exit straight into the city center... This kinda feels like real life.

Oh wait, it is?!

I've got my tiny apartment in the outskirts. I've got the directions to the laundromat saved in my phone. I've got the blue metro line just waiting for me a few blocks away. I've got my random locations of wifi throughout the city at my disposal. I've got my 5-day a week language school. & I've got the strangest set of 47853635345 keys that leave me baffled every time I look at them... (Yes, I did stand outside my building for 20 minutes fussing with my keys, unable to unlock my door. Yes, I did feel like an idiot. Yes, I am an idiot. Any more questions? ...). So there you have it...

Wait did I forget to tell you about all the good stuff? Because there are some good things! I promise. TONS OF GOOD THINGS! & I have also learned a few things in my time here as well...

First of all, I really like Rome. I love how the streets are small & the road names change every other foot. I love the random spots of ruins that just seem to pop out of the earth to say hello. I love the street signs & the small alleys. I love the smell of pizzas cooking. I love the salamis hanging from the windows & the blocks of cheese calling my name. I love the weather during the winter!!!! I love the way the ambulances sound as they wake me from my restful slumber. I love how the people divert their eyes as much as possible from your smile, but are actually the friendliest when you force them into conversation. I love the strange looks I get when I speak my broken Italian. I love walking past everything & knowing it's older than most things ever. I love that there are random cat sanctuaries/colonies (& to be honest they live in pretty nice real estate if you ask me...). I love that a cappuccino is like the cheapest thing ever... even though their size chart differs a bit from the Starbucks scale. I love the screeching noise the metro makes as it comes to a jerky halt. I love that I can walk around aimlessly, feeling no pressure & finding the best gelato shop by accident & then casually seeing a fortress... nbd. I love that I am forced to make friends since I don't know anyone!!! & with that, I also love how almost everyone I have met in my class is foreign, but barely any are from the United States.

There is some major diverCITY going on here (see what I did there?). It's so hard to forget sometimes that I am foreign, that I have an accent & that the United States is not the center of the world. But it's true. I now have friends from Barcelona & Brazil, Milan & Croatia, Germany & Switzerland, Columbia & France, China & Peru. I walk around with these friends & we all speak Italian (in our broken ways) & are excited to learn! Everyone is at different speaking & grammatical levels, everyone has a different mother tongue, everyone is staying for different lengths of time, but we all are here for the same reason: We all just really love pizza. Just kidding... we just want to learn Italian!!! It's pretty darn cool!

It is difficult at times... knowing I have 3 months here can sound daunting when I say it loud enough for myself to hear. The idea of knowing no one from home can be kind of scary. & living in a strange city, while doing laundry in a laundromat seems kind of out of my league. But hey... I've gotta learn sometime, & now is better than never!

Ci vediamo!

bliss.

Emily, Christina, & Gianfranco

I just waned to write a short little post about how wonderful it is to have a professor who cares... or maybe who is just super Italian & loves loves loves his coffee.

But anyway, today I walked to my class, & on the eve of Spring Break there were only 3 of us there (granted on a normal day there are only 5, but that's besides the point).  So... we sit down & pull out the material for the day, always hoping on a day like this your professor will surprise you with a "class is canceled, ciao ragazze!"  It just never happens...

But today it did! He turned to the 3 of us & asked us if we like coffee & he decided we would make the trek to Starbucks.  He payed for our drinks, we sat outside in the beautiful blue sky, & we just chatted about our lives (in Italian, of course)!  He took a shot of espresso in one gulp & the rest of pulled an American & sipped.  I know I mentioned this before, but it is I weird dichotomy that in Italy, people sip their alcohol & take shots of coffee, while Americans take shots of alcohol & sip their coffee... I just think that's pretty funny & Gianfranco was the perfect example!

It was just nice to have a sweet surprise!  Sometimes a day like this can trickle down to just one word: BLISS.

-Ciao 

blueberry steak.

As my going away (again) dinner, my parents wanted to give me a taste of my summer with the blueberry steak that I ate at Acqua al Due in Firenze!

Although the meal did not quite compare to that of the Florentine special, my mom as chef and me, her sous, we created a pretty delicious dinner!  The sauce was the most intensive part: filled with so many different flavors, that you seriously would not expect.  Mustard, ketchup, blueberries (obviously), thyme, molasses, & the list goes on.  It seemed like we just kept adding things.  Who thought of that... if you throw all these conflicting food items together you will create something good?

Well... I am glad they did.  Because now I can eat well! 

Anyway... tomorrow I go off to the Reitz Union for 10 days of recruitment!  Pi Chi 2013!  I will post 198558 pictures of my hat & all the Wonderful Pi Chi antics when I return!

Ciao-Ciao

my new normal.

Well, after six weeks; six perfect weeks of eating, living, smiling, and loving everything in Italy, I am back in Florida.  But don't be fooled.  Today I get back on a plane and head west to my third home in Colorado, my new normal, for about two weeks.

It is kind of cool how you accumulate homes... my "home home" will always be the house I grew up in in Stuart, Florida.  My bright orange home (Go Gators) with the bougainvillea growing up over the garage, the ridiculously long dock out back, the paw prints in the Mexican tiles, and the unmistakeable collage of windows looking out over the river.  That is my home.

My second home has become the University of Florida (again.. Go Gators).  Not even my actual apartment down 13th, but the campus.  There isn't much better than those old mossy trees, the endless fans... current and alumni, and the beautiful brick buildings spread all throughout intermingling with the students, Hare Krishnas, and bicycles (probably stolen).

My third home resides in Colorado.  To be precise, Snowmass, where we have our condo along the mountain.  The place I grew up skiing/snowboarding, the state I fell in love with the outdoors at summer camp (Sanborn Western Camps), the state I plan on moving to one day.  Even though I grew up in Stuart, my heart and soul has always been in Colorado.

And last, but most certainly not least, my fourth home became Firenze for six weeks.  Besides my stints at camp, where nothing completely felt settled, and obviously the homes I mentioned above, there has never been a place I lived longer to consider a home.  You don't describe your summer camp cabin as your house... it never takes on the possessive quality.  It's always "the cabin..." never my.  That's why this summer was something special because I actually made myself comfortable and lived.

It is already strange being back.  I still greet people with "ciao," say "grazie" when I am handed something, say "scusi/scusa" when get in the way, and still reach for the euro coins in my wallet when paying for things.

I am adjusting to my new normal again... returning to my native country where people drive more normally, where men don't come up to you with creepy greetings, where there is sales tax and tips, where there are lines in stores, where I don't have to worry about pick-pocketing, where people smile at you on the streets, where there aren't 376485456 tourists taking selfies, where there aren't creepy people selling useless trinkets, where I can run in peace, where there is customer service, where my language isn't broken, and where there isn't dog poop around every corner.

But I leave the place where I learned more than one new thing every day, where I was awed by everything, where there was gelato everywhere I looked, where there is so much history, where there are live musicians at night in the piazzas, where there are beautiful bridges and architecture, where there is so much art and love, where there are leather markets and fresh fruit and vegetable markets, where there are fresh bread shops and the "secret bakery," where I can order a glass of great red wine with no questions asked, and where I lived for six perfect weeks.  One of the best six weeks of my entire life.

I left 100% satisfied.               

amalfi coast.

GIORNO TRENTUNO

Pretty much the view from Hotel Spicy

Amalfi Coast today!  I woke up ridiculously early wide awake and ready for a nice run along the Arno!  This morning was beautiful and I loved running because the weather was cool enough.  When I got back I showered and relaxed until class.

Italian class was normal... except for the part where this fifty-six year-old guy named Bobby (already can see the problem... right?) did his oral presentation and told us that he has two kids and a girlfriend.  Wait... then why was the University of Central Florida professor out last night taking pictures with college aged students and taking shots?  WEIRD!  So creepy, and just no.

After Italian class we had an exciting day in Wine!  We went on a tour of all the places in Firenze that Livia likes to buy a good bottle or just have a glass.  Why didn't we do this weeks ago instead of the last week of our time here?  Oh well... we walked all around and took our pause at Livia's favorite gelato place called Vivoli, which is also apparently one of the oldest in Firenze.  I can't see all 100 pounds of Livia eating gelato let alone anything... We ended our tour right next to my apartment in this little family owned wine shop where we had a wine and balsamic tasting.  The wines were all so good and I especially liked a dessert wine called Moscato D'Asti with only 5.5% alcohol.  My type of wine!!!  The cover was so cute because the daughter designed it herself.  The balsamic was amazing too!  There was one super sweet one that had been aged for forty years!  That is nuts!

After I bought the bottle of dessert wine, I returned to my apartment to pack up the last few things before heading to the train station at six-thirty to go to the AmAlFi CoAsT!  A million hours later (aka 2 am) we tiredly rolled up to Hotel Spicy in Sorrento.

GIORNO TRENTADUE

Today we woke up pretty early in order to get all our tours in order!  We ate breakfast, stole some items off the buffet, and took a forty minute trek down to the Sorrento port.  We walked down the steep stairs and waited by the water until our giant carrier approached, unloaded 468737835 cars, and let us board.  It took about thirty minutes until we arrived at Marina Grande in Capri.  Once we landed, we immediately boarded the smaller ferry that took us on a tour around the island.  We quickly arrived at this tiny cave opening in the side of a rock face with several other boats, waiting our turn to enter.  We got into these tiny row boats with a guide and he paddled us over to the tiny little hole in the rock of an entrance into the Blue Grotto.  The waves would move up and down and we timed our entrance when the waves were low enough.  We still had to lay completely down so we would not hit our heads on the roof of the cave opening.  Once inside the cave was completely black except for the illuminated water in the color of sea glass blue.  It was so beautiful.  We only had a few minutes in there, so we jumped in and took a few pictures in the freezing water before returning to our boat.  Legit.

Once we returned to the ferry, we continued on the tour around the island.  Along the way we saw the Green Cave, which has rocks that appear green from the reflection of the water.  Everyone on the lower level reached out to touch it.  We continued on to what is known as the "lover's arch," where loved ones are supposed to kiss in order to get eternal love.  Some day... right?

So... we kept going, seeing the beautiful completely clear blue water, the "baby factory" beach, the single lady statue sitting on the rock waving, and the bright orange coral on the rocks.  Everything was perfect!

When we arrived back at Marina Grande, we followed the Florence for Fun tour guides to this hidden beach on Marina Piccola, where we ate a quick lunch and laid out on the beach *ahem* I mean rocks by the beautiful, cold water.  On the way there we walked down this steep path along the rock face that is known as "The Wall of Capri," a play on China's Great Wall.  They were basically the same thing except this wall was intact, along the water, and probably about 3465646 times smaller.  But other than that... pretty much the same.  We swam over to this little area on the other side of the restaurant and collected sea glass.  I love sea glass; it is so pretty... I really don't understand why we don't have as much in the US, but they have loads of it here!  There was a nice rock in the middle of the water that kids were jumping off of, so we grabbed Cole's GoPro and took jumping photos.  It was awesome.

Allora, one of my main goals of this summer was to get a great Chaco tan for camp.  I left my shoes on pretty much the entire weekend attempting to get some good tan lines going.  So far so good... you can definitely see where my shoes were!

We stayed at the beach until about four-thirty when we rode a bus up to the city center for our limoncello tasting.  All I have to say is ew.  I didn't like it at all.  It is so strong, and so unsatisfying, and so gross. No... not for me.  We walked around a little longer, until we reached this fruit stand where we bought these amazing drinks called granitas.  They were basically lemon slush with freshly squeezed orange juice mixed together.  I have never drank something so refreshing in my life.  I was  a happy camper, especially because I was outside in the hot sun, looking at a ridiculous view, drinking a citrus drink.  Nothing could have been better!

After the granitas, we caught the cable car back down to the port, where we headed back to Sorrento for dinner, which was average, but eatable.  We were so exhausted from our day in the sun for pretty much the first time in the last six weeks, that we fell asleep immediately after dinner; all five of us in the one small room, with one bathroom, and five little single beds.  It was a tight squeeze.  

GIORNO TRENTATRE: "The Naked Truth"
Today we woke up a little later and stole a little bit more from the buffet for our lunches and beautiful day in Positano.  We took the bus forty minutes to Positano, where we entered the city and walked around until we arrived at the beach.  Along the way we passed all these shops that started to look very familiar to me.  It all started with this stairwell with these giant lemons hanging from the railings, a restaurant above that said, "Delikatessen," and the bougainvillea hanging from the roof.  I had this gut feeling that there would be a store around the corner with my name on it and guess what?  I was right!  My name was everywhere!  I thought my name was French, but I have seen it twice now in Italy, so I am starting to think that it is Italian.  They call me "Rah-kelle."  It has a nice ring to it.   

 

When we reached the beach, we walked to this cover-up store, where I found the most beautiful homemade white lace vest ever!  It was so perfect and Ihad to get it.  Everyone else bought super cute cover-ups and it was already a good day!

Allora... we REALLY wanted to go cliff jumping because we heard that the best place to do it was in Positano, so we rented a boat for an hour and drove on over to a thirty(ish) foot cliff to jump into the water.  It was so awesome!  The water felt perfect and we met up with some other Florence for Fun people along the way who told us about this cave where you could swim.  We followed them and wound up at this awesome cave that you could enter on one side and exit on the other. We found some fun nooks and crannies, and afterward left for the beach feeling refeshed and satisfied that the day was already perfect.

 At the beach I relaxed with Erika, Cole, Savannah, Danielle, Tarah, and Christina for a few hours, bought fresh roasted/candied hazelnuts, ate my lunch that I stole from breakfast, and swam in the refreshing water until about three when we decided to meet back up to look at the homemade sandals.  They were beautiful, but far too expensive, so we ended up just walking around the tiny city and admiring all its cute qualities.  I could have totally stayed there forever...  

Positano... you can see the 1999 hotel in the background

At the meeting time, we all walked back to the bus and returned to Hotel Spicy for showers and dinner.  Dinner was way better tonight!  We decided after that we would walk over to Sorrento "beach," which was just a short walk down to this cliffside to watch the sunset.  IT WAS SO BEAUTIFUL!  I practically, meaning I totally sprinted, to the cliffside to make the sunset in time.  It turned out I didn't need to run, but I got a few solo sunset shots in the mean time and stared at how wonderful this weekend already was.  I was in a state of pure perfection.  So happy.

As we were walking back down to leave the cliffside, we noticed this small cover of turquoise water below.  In the corner we saw the sketchy staircase leading to the small beach, so we went down there and there was a tiny cave opening at the other end.  It was sompletely surrounded by cliffs with teh small beach and crystal clear water.  It wasn't real.  It felt like a mirage.  But it didn't feel like one... we decided to jump in.  And yes, we were wearing clothes, so of course, the "Naked Truth..." we went skinny dipping.  We only had one scare when we heard a man's voice yell something.  We all literally freezed and just stood there for a few moments unable to do anything.  The coast was clear.  It was so worth it!  It was so much fun, and it was too funny.  This had to be one of the most fun days of the trip so far... I just didn't know how it could get much better.  We thought about how it would be funny if we heard that there is some ridiculous fine for skinny dipping.  Leave it to Italy to have the strangest fines... we haven't heard anything yet.

So... it was now time for shower number two since I got wet at the cove.  Per usual, the second we hit the pillows we fell asleep since we were outside in the sun all day.  Another perfect ending for the day.  It marked the "one week left" of our trip... it is a scary thing, but hey, it will be nice to be home and see my family, have a dryer for my crunchy clothes, and go hiking in Colorado.  Summer isn't over yet!

GIORNO TRENTAQUATRO

Today we visited Pompeii and Mt. Vesuvius.  We woke up and checked out of the hotel to drive the forty-five minutes north to Pompeii.  It was a sweltering kind of day in the ruins of Pompeii, but it is definitely a really cool place because this town, which is about ten miles from the volcano, was competely destroyed by the explosion.  There were places in the rocky streets where you could still see the remnants of where hot objects left impressions in the rock.  There were human bodies still twisted as if writhing in pain from the heat of the lava displayed in glass cases.  You could even see the bone fibers in teh foot.  It is crazy how quickly these people lost everything, but it is equally amazing how they were able to create this town in such an ancient town.  It never ceases to amaze me how much humans can do...

We walked along with the tour group... unfortunately.  I would rather walk around myself because I just fail to listen.  I just want to explore, not stand around.  I mean I love history, but when I'm in it... all I want to do is see it for myself.

After the tour, we had about an hour to hang out and get lunch before we left for Vesuvius.  I bought another delicious granita and ate my stolen breakfast sandwiches again until we walked around at all the crappy souvenirs in the desert-like heat.

We then drove about thirty minutes almost to the top of Mt. Vesuvius, where we exited the bus, got our tickets, and started hiking up the trail to the top of the active volcano.  It only took about fifteen minutes to get to the top, but once there the views were absolutely gorgeous.  You could look down into the deep crater and out into the distance across Pompeii and the ocean. 

After the climb, we headed back down to the bus for our six hour adventure back to Firenze (home) with the dirtiest feet ever.  The ash from the volcano was caked onto my feet because I was only wearing my Chacos and it was so hot, so I was covered in sweat (yay).  Not my preferred choice of travel conditions...  We were about halfway there when the bus stopped and we coasted to the edge of the highway. Dead.  The bus ran out of gas... what?  That doesn't just happen.  In fact that isn't even allowed to happen.  But it did.  And we sat there for (luckily) only an hour before one of the other buses came to our rescue with gallons of gas for us to make it to the next rest stop.  We were only five kilometers away... -___- *sigh*

Anyway... at least it was only the gas and not anything else.  After stopping at the MOST EXPENSIVE EVER IN THE HISTORY OF THE ENTIRE WORLD rest stop for a quick dinner, we continued on and arrived in Firenze before midnight.

I was never so excited to shower off my ashy Mt. Vesuvius feet and go to sleep!

Ciao-Ciao!

la città eterna.

GIORNO VENTICINQUE

Entrance to the Vatican... this wall is older than the US

PI CHIS do the Vatican!

St. Peter's Basilica

Today we woke up early to bus to "La Città Eterna" ("the Eternal City... Didn't anyone read the info packet?"- Lizzie Maguire Movie... of course).  The bus took about six hours, but it went by fairly quickly!  We first arrived and got off the bus right outside The Vatican City, where they gave us some time to eat before our tour. 

After our break, we walked to the entrance of the Vatican Museum and got our headsets. On the way, a man on the streets, attempting a pick up line, told us that the Vatican wall was older than the United States... I mean I do like history, but no!  The inside of the museum was mostly paintings, sculptures, tapestries, and of course it included the most famous part, the Sistine Chapel.

Now I know that Roma and the Vatican are two of the most visited cities in Italy, but seriously, I had never seen so many people. I felt so claustrophobic... I absolutely love history and "old stuff," but the Sistine Chapel was almost painful to be in because of all the people.  Unfortunately that number a people takes away from the experience a little (and we had already been up for more than fifteen hours...).  But I still appreciated Michelangelo's work in there and the humor he added to the paintings to spite the Pope and others who questioned his paintings.  Michelangelo didn't consider himself a painter, rather he was a sculptor, but Pope Sixtus IV asked him to paint the ceiling of the chapel and he could not refuse.  Within some of the panels on the ceiling, Michelangelo painted God's back, symbolizing (disrespectfully) that God was turning his back on the Pope.  He also painted important men that he didn't like being attacked by snakes and depicted them in Hell.  It is amazing how he painted that ceiling for four straight years, looking straight up from a scaffolding, under candlelight.  Wow!  Apparently he almost went blind from the lack of natural light.

Anyway, after the Sistine Chapel, we practically sprinted to the outside world where we could actually breathe, haha, JOKE.  We couldn't escape the people!  They were everywhere!!!  They were sitting on every available ledge, they stood in every lookout area, and they also stood in every inconvenient, "I want to block every entrance/exit" location.

By this point we were so tired, but we still had to see St. Peter's Basilica.  It was truly beautiful and HUGE!  We were told that the letters that encircled the inside of the basilica on a banner were three meters tall... they look about a foot at most.  Everything from the ancient world just seems so big!  I don't understand how they built all these magnificent things... it is truly incredible.

A cool fact about St. Peter's is that you can take pictures inside of it because none of the paintings are actually painted.  Everything is mosaic.  It was crazy cool because you couldn't tell that every single dot of color was a piece of individual tile until you creeped really close.

Also, Pope John XXIII's body was beatified in 2000 and they moved the body into the altar of Saint Jerome where you can openly view him.  His body was preserved oddly well and the tour guide told us that parts of his body are even original... YIKES!

After the Basilica, we had some free time before we rolled up to the hotel to relax for dinner.  I took a shower, feeling so refreshed, and got ready for our fun night out in Roma!  Dinner was pretty good considering the trip included the meal, so we just assumed it would be average.  We ate at this little place called La Gallina Bianca, which was strangely southern for Roma.  There was a great salami antipasti and a combination of chicken and French fries.  Dopo, we all decided to walk to this cool piazza where there is apparently decent night life.  On the way during our two(ish) mile trek, we stopped at the Trevi Fountain for a nighttime viewing.  It was packed, but so beautiful.  Nothing is the United States is as old or cool as anything in Europe... You can't just walk through a city in the US and walk past some famous fountain where xyz happened like ten thousand million decades ago. BECAUSE EVERYTHING IN THE UNITED STATES IS ONLY LIKE 300 YEARS OLD!

So after our side trip to the fountain, we found our way to the piazza, as did EVERYONE else.  We found this classy classy place called... here it goes, "The Drunken Ship" and set up camp at a table.  They brought out these pitchers of mixed drinks that they precariously placed straws in.  It was interesting... but all in all the evening was a lot of fun!  I was able to speak to some Italian to people before we went back to the hotel.  I guess with a little bit of liquid courage I can actually get over my fear of making mistakes and I was non-stop talking in ONLY Italian.  I actually do know things!

The Trevi Fountain!

           
We stupidly, but healthily decided to walk back to the hotel from the piazza.  Forty-five minutes later we got back to the hotel and after the best shower ever fell asleep for only five hours... oops!

CIAO!

cinque terre.

GIORNO VENTI

Today was a Cinque Terre kind of day!  Christina, Erika, and I woke up early and headed to the Santa Novella train station with Cole!  We took a bus from the station and two hours later we emerged onto the vast Mediterranean Sea.  After weeks of landlocked cities, seeing the sea was a perfect weekend getaway!  It was beautiful!  Although the sun wasn't out and it was a bit overcast, the water was a deep blue and the cities along the coast were so colorful and perfect.

The first city we visited was Riomaggiore, we didn't stay there long because apparently there isn't anything to do there, so we rolled outta there and headed by train to Manarola.  We had so much to do and so little time to do it, but there was a beautiful rock in the water that overlooked the city.  I love the colors of all the buildings... they complimented each other so well on the rocky coast, just like Christina and I do... we PI CHIS know how to stick together when the going gets going.

A few years ago, a mudslide ravaged some of the cities, leaving them in a sort of disarray and with a few of the hiking trails closed from city to city.  Therefore, we also took the train to the third city, Corniglia.  There we had about two hours to find lunch in this small city.  We didn't walk long because we smelled the pesto through the door and it called us in.  Christina and I ate together to let the Benefields enjoy their lunch together.  We both ordered a bowl of pesto gnochi and a little pear and ricotta cheese tort for dessert.  One annoying thing about money in Italy is that ALL they want are COINS!  Every place you go to wants, not only for you to pay in cash, but for it to be in coins.  We split a twenty-eight euro lunch and the man couldn't break a fifty!  The problem is, vendors always want coins, so I use coins, so I don't have them for the next vendor... it is truly a vicious cycle.

Corniglia

After lunch, Christina and I walked around the town and into the church at the top of the hill.  It is cool to see the way other people live.  Old ladies casually do laundry on their porches in front of one of the most gorgeous views I have ever seen... just folding laundry as if it were a normal day here.  No big deal.  The sad thing about the Cinque Terre is the decline in population.  The majority of the people that remain are elderly individuals who have lived there their entire lives, who farm on the terraced land above the cities.  They still remain on the Mediterranean diet and are in great shape, while their children move off to an easier lifestyle.  The towns will one day be a ghost town...           

From Corniglia to Vernazza, we hiked the 1.5 km trail right on the cliff.  It was a beautiful hike, that I have apparently trekked before, but my memory has failed me once again!  It was more difficult than I expected it to be, but in a good way, if that makes sense!  I was pleased at the level of challenge and enjoyed talking with everyone as if back at Adventure Treks, hiking along a mountainous trail.  The weather was perfect for a quick, but gradient hike.  It was rocky and I liked it a lot!  Besides the waiting around for the group at certain points in the day, the trip had been a really awesome experience!  It took about an hour and a half to hike along from the one city to the next, but by the time we got to Vernazza, I was a sweaty mess!  It wasn't even that far of a hike, but the warm(ish) temperature and the up and down of the trail made me sweat for the FIRST time since I have been in Italy since it has been abnormally cold here!  This is a good sign I hope?  

The Benefields holding up the cave

Corniglia from the hiking path

Anyway, at Vernazza, we treated ourselves to some gelato (duh) before walking underneath some cool cave-tunnel to the water!  It was the first time I had had the chance to touch the water so far and I was so excited!  We didn't have enough time to swim until the next city, but I was already getting pumped!  The water was cold, but nothing I couldn't handle... if I did it at seven, I could do it at twenty!  We headed back to the meeting area to take the ferry to the last city, Monterosso al Mare, where we could actually SWIM!!  We waited by the dock until our boat arrived to take us to the next city... when we go onto the boat we immediately went to the back so we could take pictures of Vernazza from the water.  Good decision!  Next to us was the most adorable sleeping dog ever.  The lady was just holding him like a baby and he was sleeping with a huge smile on his little scrunched up face.  It didn't even look real it was so cute!

Vernazza from the water!

When the boat docked in our final city, I was so excited because it was the beach... well not the beaches I am used to in Florida with the soft sand and warm water, but you know what I mean.  The beach was a pile of colorful, hard rocks with a deep greenish aqua tone.  I don't know what type of landscape I prefer, but it was gorgeous! 

The girls decided they wanted to nom at a bar by the sea, but my child within drew me to the water and I immediately jumped in by myself!  I skipped some rocks on the surf and collected lots of pretty rocks that I will probably regret lugging with me... oh well, I like them!  The others all watched me from the restaurant above, probably thinking I was crazy... it was, you guessed, WORTH IT!  It was definitely one of my happiest moments on the trip and I don't regret it even though I lost my breath for a minute or two in the cold water.  I adapted to it really quick though and luckily right after I got out, the sun started shining, keeping me warm!  It was a good day and I smiled a lot!  Don't miss out on the water, it is perfect! :)

The bus ride home was slightly chilly because my hair was still wet, but at least Tarah is nice enough to do the sleeping shoulder thing that Daniel and Scott never let me do!!  Brothers...

Ciao-Ciao