The 4th of 5 Photo

Photographer’s Note

Vernazza is one of the five towns in Italy's picturesque Cinque Terre region.
Vernazza is the fourth town heading north into La Cinque Terre. Vernazza has no car traffic and remains one of the truest "fishing villages" on the Italian Riviera. From Vernazza, you can walk to any of the other four towns in the Cinque Terre. The walk to Corniglia (to the south) is the hardest and longest of the walks, taking roughly 1.5 hours.

Vernazza has the only the proper harbor in the Cinque Terre and is a charming, small fishing village. Vernazza was founded about 1000 A.D. and was ruled by the Republic of Genoa starting in 1276. Vernazza's medieval castle, Belforte, was built in the mid-1500's, primairly to protect the village from Pirates.

Vernazza's historic wealth is evidenced by the elegant style of its houses and streets, which are decorated with tower forms, open galleries, refined arcades and elaborate doorways. The Village is surrounded by very steeply-terraced Olive groves which are said to produce among the finest Olive oil in the country.
Vernazza is a quaint, tiny place, with a population of about 1,000. The entire Cinque Terre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Taking the local commuter/milk trains (they used to deliver milk and mail to the cities) to Vernazza from Genova or La Spezia is a magnificent experience. You will ride along the cliffs, overlooking turquoise waters and olive trees. Tunnel after tunnel, the air cools and heats in the sun. There is no car traffic in Vernazza, which definitely adds to the village's charms. There is a small parking lot about a quarter mile north of the village.
The milk train provides easy access to each of the five towns. Trains run very frequently. The station in Vernazza is about a 10 minute walk above the harbor. The cobble stone main street from the station to the Harbor is classically beautiful, lined with colorful buildings that house small shops, cafes, and residences.

The hike northeast from Vernazza to Monterosso creates indelible memories of incredibly beautiful cliffs and seascapes. The hike takes about 90 minutes each way, but you can hike one way and return on the train. The trail begins on the north side of the main street between the train station and the harbor. The Vernazza-Monterosso hike involes some climbing, about 250 meters total.
Not to be missed is the first part of the hike southeast from Vernazza to Corniglia. This hike literally offers postcard views (like the photo above) of the town, the castle, and more. The trail starts just above the train station (it is well marked). The most amazing views are within the first 10 minutes of walking from the station as the trail wraps around the watchtower of Veranzza's castle. You will definitely want your camera. The full hike to Corniglia, which is the greenest hike in the Cinque Terre as it meanders through Olive groves, takes about 90 minutes.

From Wikitravel

ChrisJ, aznegrao, jhm, alekpet, andante, AiresSantos, john_c, syd1946, imrek, carper, Janice, rakeshgupta, Henryk_Bilor, weswang, capthaddock, orme has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

bantonbuju (48632) 2006-03-27 5:15

ciao paolo, i love that italian architecture with the windows shutters all over the places;
interesting how you have managed to cover the whole area - also the shadowed part of the image;
good work, paolo,
have a good week,
jerzy

ChrisJ (70283) 2006-03-27 5:41

Bonjourno Paolo

Wonderful colour & repetition in this superb seaside shot. Perhaps I would dodge the shadow at right, but that is purely subjective. Good sharpness & pov. Ciao!

Graal (58039) 2006-03-27 6:05

Hi Paolo,
excellent view, very nice composition and colours. Interesting note, beautiful a place. Well done.
Rgs, Aleksander

Gerrit (35763) 2006-03-27 6:07

Hi Paolo,
Charming little beach and village. Good view of the surroundings. The laundry and the bladdered paint on the walls make the picture.
Thanks and regards, Gerrit

Modacolor51 (1309) 2006-03-27 6:09

LOVELY PICTURE IN FINE COLORS AND WITH A FINE COMPOSITION...TFS...YILMAZ.

aznegrao (10230) 2006-03-27 6:44

Ola Paolo!!
Gosto desse enquadramento e dos finos detalhes da arquitetura criando uma otima perpectiva minimalista.
Saudações.
aznegrao.

jinju (14265) 2006-03-27 7:20

No car traffic at all? How do people get around this town? is it just so small? The beauty oif Italian architecture is a fail safe bet for great photos. The colors, the aesthetic. Count yourself lucky to be able to photograph such places. Let's say that its much prettier than Seoul;)

jhm (82601) 2006-03-27 7:45

Hi Paolo,
A very love daily life photograph, real Italian, you play excellent with sun and shadows, also lovely depth and colourful image, nice contrast above between the green forest and the blue sky, I hope that we see the sun this springtime!
Thanks a lot,
John.

alekpet (4659) 2006-03-27 7:48

Hi Paolo.
Great architecture and summer time atmosphere.
Great colours and all seems so relaxed.

TFS, Aleks

andante (7092) 2006-03-27 9:00

Very pintoresque village. It looks like it has a lot of character. Hard to accept the fact that in this modern times there is somewhere in the world that doesn't have traffic! Thanks for sharing!

AiresSantos (42194) 2006-03-27 10:27

Hi Paolo, Beautiful daily life picture. I like the perspective and the details. The summer is comming... Interesting light, excellent colors and very good note.
TFS and greetings,
Aires

Luan (15935) 2006-03-27 10:44

I'm gathering information for my next visit here. I think in June. It looks really nice, the photo is colorful the contrast with light and shadow is excellent.
Nice one
Luan

john_c (24635) 2006-03-27 11:49

Hi Paolo,
What a quaint and colourful village scene. The colours are rich without being oversaturated. The hill rises above like a guardian. I especially like the fine lighting and shadow effects. I might have cropped very slightly on the right but this is very minor. Overall, a very pleasing, almost euphoric shot that makes one cry for the warmth and verdance of spring.
John

Fis2 (45873) 2006-03-27 12:05

Witaj Paolo!
Interesting photo. Curious place. I like the colours, light and contrast. Well done.
Regards
Krzysztof

syd1946 (17913) 2006-03-27 12:32

Hello Paolo,
Excellent compossition for this wonderful view.
Nice sunny colors and archictural interesting
around the scene.Very good work!

Best wishes,

Thomas

imrek (4) 2006-03-27 13:44

Hi Paolo,
excellent point of view, good composition and colours. An interesting note. Good job!. I had never seen your gallery, it is splendid stuff, congratulations
imre

devimeuxbe (55865) 2006-03-27 14:24

Hi Paolo
beautifull picture with nice colors on the houses. I like the hollidays atmosphere with the poeple swimming.
Bertrand

gaby (19793) 2006-03-27 14:47

Paolo bonsoir - superbe photo comme d'habitude - la compo est remarquable et permet à l'oeil de découvrir tous les plans les uns après les autres - les couleurs des maisons sont fastueuses
Merci et bonne soirée
Gaby

carper (64936) 2006-03-28 11:53

very nice shot Paolo,
very nice coutryside-seaside, a very nice composition with good details, very nice light and a nice shadowparty, good job.
gr. jaap

Janice (4386) 2006-03-29 5:54

Hi Paolo, we went to Manarola and Riomaggiorre in 1999, and had such an interesting time. We tried to get accomodation, but no luck (school holidays). If we had stayed we would have visited all these 5 fishing villages of Cinque Terre.

What we found amusing was a little truck went down as far as it could go and the locals were buying fish...

Super places to go and see, I can really recommend visiting them. TFS
Janice

rakeshgupta (2670) 2006-03-29 11:45

Hello Paolo,
This is great view showing daily life and architecture of Vernazza. The straight-up buildings and beautiful green hill in the background is looking great. Colors and sharpness is very good. Your picture is well balanced in terms of light and shadows.
Thanks for sharing and showing this view of Vernazza.
- Rakesh

Henryk_Bilor (20367) 2006-03-29 12:13

Hello Paolo
Very interesting place. With own beach ;). I like such views of buildings with the mountain in the background. I wouldn`t like to live there, but to see - why not ;).
Regards

weswang (18223) 2006-03-29 15:46

Hi Paolo, I like this well composed picture with the clear red-green-blue prime colors. You have managed to show the contrast of the light and the shadows. Good daily life shot to show that people well made use of the beach to enjoy themselves there. Good contrast and nice sharpness. Well done.

fayeulle (26543) 2006-03-30 2:57

Ciao Paolo
A very nice village with typical colors from Italia. I would like to have a drink in the bar afront of this small beach ! Vey informative not as usual.
Cheers
JP

capthaddock (28640) 2006-04-01 15:04

Hi Paolo - what a beautiful place, the pastel façades look great under the bright green hillside, the clothes drying add a special mediterranean charm

PixelTerror (86146) 2006-04-02 17:52

Ciao Paolo, looks like summer already lovely view of this village that thanks to the light presents an attractive array of Med colors, greetings from Kyoto, JY

orme (6746) 2008-12-10 18:53

Hello Paolo,
This is a great shot of Vernazza. I like how you show us a combination of both 'daily life' - the residents enjoying their beach - and the beautiful architecture of this World Heritage Site.
Best regards,
Andrew