Thursday, March 13, 2014

Cinque Terre

Cinque Terre (pronounced as cheenkwe tehrre) is a collective of  5 beautiful villages recognized as UNESCO World Heritage Site that were built on rugged cliffs overlooking the Ligurian Sea, part of  the bigger Mediterranean Sea. These villages started as fishing villages. Over time, people from outer region discovered the beautiful landscape and soon this place became a major tourist point. Starting from the north, the five villages in order are Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore.

I started my trip from Milan by train which took slightly over 3 hours. There are many ways to get here by train from Milan, which runs frequently and hourly. Just visit trenitalia.com and input your departure and destination (any five villages) and it will return with multiple train choices. You can buy ticket in advance for super low fares from the website but I didn't know how to create an account. Therefore I bought the standard fare from the train station. You are advised to reach at least 30 minutes earlier because the queue at the ticket counter can be quite long.

The villages are quite small comprising of only few streets from the cliff top down to the sea. One day affair should be sufficient for tourists short on time. However, I recommend a night stay in any of the villages so you can take in the sights and sound. You can buy a local train ticket for just 4 euro that is valid for multiple travels for 8 hours. Then you can start hopping around the villages. Boat rides are available but only during summer period.

If you are the adventurous type, you can hike from the first to the last village. As the cliffs are very rugged, it will be quite strenuous and it will take whole day. Some paths are closed during winter so again, it is best to plan your trip there during summer.

If you find yourself left with too much time after done exploring Cinque Terre, you can consider hopping on the train down south to La Spezia which is just a stop from Riomaggiore. From this town, find a connecting train to Pisa which is just few stops away and you can visit the leaning tower of Pisa.

Click on the image for picture gallery

Tuesday, March 04, 2014

Mini Travel Log: Hamilton Gardens, New Zealand

Hamilton is a small beautiful town just 1 hour drive away from Auckland metropolitan. One of the main attraction of this town is the Hamilton Gardens. It is truly world class. It has gardens from different eras and parts of the world. The most beautiful ones I've seen are the Italian and Indian themed gardens. The best part is that entrance is free and you can also enjoy picnic on beautiful rolling hills and grass by the beautiful lake.

Click on the image for picture gallery

Baby Damien

For frequent visitors of this blog, hello again. This blog is still alive. Just that I was very busy with the arrival of a new member to the family. Here, Baby Damien would like to say hello to all visitors. Happy New Year 2014 and may you have a fruitful year ahead.