A Touch of Cinque Terre

We took the train to Riomaggiore and walked the Lover's Walk (Via dell' Amore.) Cinque Terre has changed. When we were here in 1999, it had just been made a National Park. Now you have to buy a park pass to walk on the trails. Although the sea was quiet and the sun was bright, it was still off season and there were few tourists. Only saw one large Asian tour group. Since talking to Anna, we cannot automatically assume that they are Japanese, as she was traveling by herself to avoid the high costs and togetherness of a tour group. Worked for her since she was quite the linguist. For our future trip to China, although we will try to avoid a group, we will still have to hire a guide, I am sure. No tables in the sun outside restaurants on the square at Vernazza--not until Easter. So we had lunch inside. And no Valerio. After lunch we sat near the sea in the sun.