It was a fairly long walk from Vernazza to Monterosso al Mare up and down along the Italian coastline. When I arrived the first thing I did was sit down in a small cafe above this beach to enjoy parma ham and cantaloupe with a big bottle of water. It was while eating there that I discovered that wasps are attracted to ham. This would be confirmed a couple days later as I tucked into the same lunch in a different location.
I’ve mentioned before that when we visited Ha Long Bay we actually stayed on Cat Ba island and explored the surrounding area by kayak. There was all sorts of activity on the water from small fishing boats to floating villages.
I think I actually took this photo from the tour boat that transported us to the island, but I’m not sure.
Here’s another photo from the model village near Lucerne nestled in the Swiss Alps.
This is the view from my favorite little bar in the Vernazza main square.
As you scale the citadel in Sisteron, you’re treated to views of the hamlet at the foot of the mountain across the Duran river from the town center.
Here’s another one of the buildings from my trip to the Swiss village.
Before I was able to take this photo, my friend Shannon and I, following a decision to rent a kayak, had navigated through rough waters and squeezed ourselves through a narrow gap in the rocks to find safe harbor. Following that drama, we got to glide past the floating villages that surround Cat Ba Island.
We came across this fisherman towards the end of our trip and I asked if I could take a photo. He was kind enough to slow down as he pulled his nets to pose!
You can see a loaded ferry seemingly on a collision course with the rocks in this photo of Manarola’s harbor. What’s actually happening is people are boarding as the ferry is nosed up to the “ferry dock”. I put the ferry dock in quotes because it’s less a dock than a rocky coastline with a couple of cleats on it. The ferry noses up to it, and the crew roll out a gang plank for people to climb aboard as the boat pitches and rolls with the waves.
I hope you’re not getting tired of views from this hillside in the Swiss Alps, cause I took a lot of photos up there!
