The Man with the Orange Stand

This week has been so exciting!

I've experienced new towns and tried new things!

(These are only going to be phone pictures because I don't have time to upload the pictures before heading to CROATIA)

So before getting into my adventures, here were some new things I cooked this past week at work!

This is called Chicken Cacciatora and it's melt in your mouth good!

 This was the apple pound cake we made.

It was a favorite among the students!

So onto my adventures.

On Friday I took an earlyyyy morning train to Florence, Italy where I spent the day. 

 I climbed to the top of the Du-woah-mo and had a breathtaking view of Florence.

This was the best sandwich I have had in my entire life.

I would take the four hour train to Florence just to eat this sandwich again.

It had salami and pecorino cheese and tomatoes and was the best.

 I also had the best gelato in the world.

 Then I took a train to La Spezia, which is the nearest train station to Cinque Terre.

Cinque Terre is a compilation of five towns that are all on the edge of these mountains.

When you see pictures of the five towns, you'd think they were fake.

 I started my hike Saturday morning in Monterosso. This was the northern most town.

The hills were covered in vineyards and olive trees.

Then I came across a man selling oranges and lemons so I asked for one and he gave me this flower as well. 

Also, there were cats because this is Italy and there are cats everywhere.

I started on this leg of the trip because I had heard it was the hardest, but also the one with the most rewarding views.

I could see the picture-esque town getting closer and closer.

There it was, Vernazza. The town of my dreams!

So, I began on my hike again and was confronted by the stairs that haunted me on my way to Vernazza. 

These are not your average size steps.

You basically had to do knee highs to get up these things. 

Pure torture.

Corniglia was next!

Then Manarola

Finally, the end was near. Riomaggiore was just down the mountain.

This was me hiking up that last hill and turning around, marveling at what I'd accomplished so far.

The mountain that is furthest away is where I started.

This was the last set of stairs I had to climb. 

My legs were so happy

In this picture, I am standing in the heart of Riomaggiore. 

You can see where I started and where I ended.

31,000 steps and 314 approximated flights of stairs climbed according to my FitBit!

 This beautiful view was on my way home that night.

This puppy perfectly captured how I was feeling on the tram to my apartment

Well I am off to Croatia in about an hour.

I am taking a train to Ancona, Italy, then an overnight ferry to Split, Croatia.

I can't wait to tell y'all all about it!

Ciao!!