Vet Judy

Got to spend the day in Riomaggiore and then took a short train ride to Monterosso. There is a beach there which is small but nice. Took a hike up in the hills in the morning and could hardly move the legs in the afternoon. Spent some time by the ocean enjoying the sound of the waves and the cool breeze. It was cloudy today, which I was grateful for. Yesterday was brutally hot for me.

Today I ventured up the coast, from Lucca to Cinque Terre National Park. It consists of 5 villages on the rocky coastline. They can be reached by train and a lot of hill climbing. I want to stress a lot of hill climbing. It seems I have been doing nothing but climbing hills since I got here, so I gave up the suitcase in lieu of a backpack. Didn’t make the climb any less, but saves the wrenching on the back from the one side.

I am staying in Riomaggiore for the next day or two. There is beautiful coastline from here to Genoa where I am headed anyway. So I think I will hop the train, hike the hills, and basically enjoy the view. It is spectacular.

Had to ride the train for a short time in the early evening today: we were packed in like cattle and holly hot was the trip. I was grateful it was only a 20 minute train ride. I think it was the Sunday crowd going home after spending time in the national park on the weekend. I can only hope tomorrow is better for train travel, as that little work out almost resulted in fainting.

Well, this is exciting. The eve of my first post on my new blog and I am in the hotel, getting ready to go to Italy tomorrow for a month. I am very excited about this trip. There will be many sights, lots of train trips to be sure, and almost guaranteed some good food and red wine.

The trip will take me through Minneapolis, to Amsterdam, to Rome and then a train ride to Frascati. I dare say, there is a distinct possibility of exhaustion on arrival!

A friend of mine has been kind enough to put up a spare room for the first several days in Rome. As of yet, I don’t have a schedule or an exact itinerary. This shall be a go-with-the-flow type of trip. I have been learning a little Italian, but it is sparse. Could be interesting getting around my pointing crudely at the map and mumbling something in Italian mixed with English.

I am sad though, to be leaving my family for the month. I will miss them terribly.