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Yes, it's true.... all roads lead to Roma. I fly out back to the States tomorrow from Roma, so I guess I have to get there.
But first!!!
Waking up and checking out early in the morning of my room was a little sad, I loved the morning view! I stored my bag at the Riomaggiore train station, and began my hike. The Cinque Terre National park was fantastic! I did a 10km hike all along a wonderful sea cliff. I am glad I had plenty of memory card left in my camera, because now, it is all gone (the pictures here only shows a few of the pics, trust me, I have many more). Every corner was another breath-taking view of water, shoreline, waves, boats, birds, sun, blue sky, and me. I was a little surprised how alone I was on most of the trails. It made for a very wonderful experience. I hiked all 5 towns, Riomaggoire, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso. The hike got progressively harder and I became more and more tired, which made for a bad combination. After town #4 (Vernazza), I had a lunch of pesto pizza and some much needed rest. I
am glad I did as the Vernazza and Monterosso hikes had some very 'interesting' pathways on the edge of the cliffs, and the wonderful railings that I had back in Riomaggiore, were now gone, leaving me with a wall to my right, and a 100 ft drop on the left of the rocky path. I had to take turns looking from the views, to the pathway of rocks, to the views, and back to the path. The final town of Monterosso was much more touristy than my home base of Riomaggiore, and it actually had a 'sandy' beach. The sand was very grainy, with the grains larger than our American sandy beaches, but compared to the pebbles, it was wonderful. I waded out in the Mediterranean letting the waves hit my legs for a bit, and then I took a deep breath, and realized that it was time to hit the train for Roma. I fly out of Roma in the morning, so with a bit of apprehension, I took the train back to Riomaggiore, retrieved my bag, and took the train to Roma. Getting off the train in Roma was strangely familiar. I was starved when I got to
Roma, so I searched the familiar neighborhood for a pesto dish and had linguini de pesto. I walked down to a gelato shop I loved a month ago and had my last dish of gelato for this trip. I sat down on their patio, enjoying my gelato, and savoring every bite as I thought about my trip. I look back at my journal, at the first days of the trip, remembering what I did, what I thought about the future, and what I have seen. It is a bit overwhelming...
A lot of you asked a lot of questions that I just haven't had the time to answer. After I fly back tomorrow, and after a much needed long night's sleep, I will finalize this blog Friday with some best pictures and answers to your questions. I can say right now that I can't believe I did all that I have done. I figured I would poop out somewhere, but I never did. After a few hours sleep each day, I jumped up with the excitement of a new day, and new adventures. I can only hope that every day is as exciting for the rest of my life.
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