Travel For Two

Pesto, anyone?

Posted on October 18th, 2009 by k.
Categories: Europe, Travel.

We’re back from Vernazza with G’s Parents. We had a great time eating our weight in pesto (yum!), anchovies, and drinking cheap (yet ever-solid) Italian wine… And to work it all off, we fit in a few hikes, too.

It was the perfect low-key destination for catching up with A&V and also having a bit of autumnal sunshine before the winter sets in for good. Thank you A&V–we had a great weekend! May the pesto pride live on…do share the wealth if you figure out the recipe

Some friends may remember our first trip to the Cinque Terre back in 2004. We loved it so much the first go-round that we couldn’t resist the opportunity to go back when A&V were going to be in the ‘rough vicinity’. And it didn’t disappoint. For those of you who have also been and would like an update, here’s a quick compare/contrast…

What’s the same? 2004-2009

• The same two Sicilian brothers have a quaint pastry shoppe at the top of the hill.
• One of the brothers still flatters every female below the age of 40
• The path from Vernazza to Monterosso is still unpaved
• The pesto
• It’s still a stunning, charming town

What’s Changed? 2004-2009

• Just about everyone in town has an American accent…tourism is booming, even in the off-season
• The prices are MUCH higher (no doubt in thanks to the Euro’s recent strength…)
• The shopkeepers have their own personal copies of the Rick Steves guidebook and quote from it…
• More upscale tourist shoppes in town (rather than just the ‘local’ grocers when we were last there)
• There are now wooden guardrails along much of the trail from Vernazza to Monterosso
• The locals aren’t quite so friendly…still very approachable, but they’re more ‘businesslike’ now

Vernazza’s still on our ‘favourites’ list and we had an incredible time, but it was a bit of a disappointment to see the impact tourism has had on the region since our last visit in 2004.

For more photos from our most recent trip to Vernazza, click here.

And for a few from 2004, click here.

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