Another early morning for me for cash and coffee. Michelle came with me and we checked out a cafe I saw the day before called Il Pirata – a Sicilian bakery/cafe with incredible ricotta pastries and smoothies. We made reservations to come for dinner later.

We went to Monterosso and spent the day at the beach there. The beach was made of small, but annoying stones and was hot to the feet. The water was beautifully clear and a wonderful temperature but the people managing the first set of chairs we went to were a pain in the ass. We didn’t get what we wanted, got our money back and went to a different set of chairs which was much more to our liking.

At the end of the day, Michelle and I hiked the ~2 miles or so back to Vernazza along the Cinque Terra trail. It was still very hot and a major climb up stairs to reach altitude. I guess we gained 1,500 – 2,000 feet in a pretty short time (see the pictures). This was the hardest stretch of the trail between the five towns on the coast due to length and vertical climb. However, it was also the most beautiful with incredible vistas, structures and a lemonade stand in the middle run by the grower of the lemons – Fantastic!

Dinner was as Il Pirata and was magnificent in it’s simplicity and flavor. Another winner!