The following
day, Rick and I set out to hike the trails that link the five towns. The
trails linking the first three towns are not very difficult, but it took
about 1.5 hours to hike to the fourth town from the third as the trail
was much more rugged and the heat was stifling. Unfortunately, the trail
to the fifth town was closed due to treacherous conditions. In this picture
you can see one of the typical views along the trails. As you can see,
the town is quite literally perched on the mountain beside the ocean, and
it is comforting to see that the towns themselves will never grow larger
since it is geographically impossible. 
Here is a picture
of me on our failed attempt at swimming. The waves here (like the one that
has just crashed over my head) were pretty violent, and since everything
was rocky we were unsuccessful in our attempt at getting much farther out
than where I am pictured here. Rick will tell you that I looked like a
piece of driftwood being dashed against the rocks when we tried to go out
any further. Fortunately, we did find a much better swimming spot the next
day, and spent a long time floating in the sea surrounded by some of the
most magnificent scenery I could imagine. 
Here is a picture
of Rick sitting on a ledge above one of the trails reading. Minutes earlier
he had been attacked by the cactus directly above him. Maybe he will describe
to you what it felt like, seeing as he was covered in the little prickles
from his shoulders to his bum.
(It was not fun. The prickles in my bum were least fun. Having lost my bathing suit to the cactus for the day, I was then forced to walk around in my underwear - my alternate swimsuit).
Finally, here we
have the typical beautiful sunset in the perfect land of Cinque Terre.
We will always remember this place for its fabulous food, its unequaled
scenery, its fantastic people (like Mama Rosa) and simply the way it made
us feel. I could have easily stayed in those hills forever but we eventually
were able to tear ourselves away...