Vernazza, Italy (in the Cinque Terre): Picture Perfect and More . . .

Vernazza is a small and charming town located in the Liguria region of Italy. It is one of the five villages in the Cinque Terre which along with the surrounding coastline and beautiful hillsides is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.


The Cinque Terre, made popular by travel guru, Rick Steves, is a stunningly beautiful part of Italy. And in 2005 my friend and I had the pleasure of spending three wonderful days there hiking between the villages. We chose to base ourselves in Vernazza, because of a recommendation I received from a Slow Traveler on the Slow Talk Travel Forum.

In addition to its small town charm and hiking opportunities, Vernazza has other main sights that are also interesting in their own right.

First, the Santa Margherita d'Antiochia church was constructed in 1318. It was built on a rock in front of the sea, with an impressive 40 meters belfry, three aisles and adorned by a pointed shape dome. It is said that a wooden box with the bones of Saint Margaret appeared on the beach one day which was a sign for the inhabitants to build a church. But instead of building the church where it was found (here on the beach) the residents built the church in another location but it was later destroyed by a sea storm and the relic was lost. Later, the relic appeared again in the original point and that is where the new church was built where it stands now.


Here is a closer look at the Belfry with a very handsome cat in the foreground. :)


The Doria Castle, or Castello Doria in Vernazza, was built in the mid 15th century to protect Vernazza, and the other four little Cinque Terre villages, from marauding pirates. Now it is not much more than a tower but for 1 Euro it is worth the climb to the top where there is a fantastic view of the village and coastline.


And lastly, there is the Santuario di Nostra Signora di Reggio (Our Lady of Reggio), which is located about a half hour hike up a steep hill from the town. It was built in the XI century on a pre-existing crypt. The first written mention dates back to 1248. The church has three aisles and in the XIV century was transformed to a Latin cross plant. Only the facade remains of the original Romanesque complex. The "Madonna Nera" with Child is the adored image, known as "The African" as well.

Each village of the Cinque Terre has its own sanctuary, located higher up on the hills and it would be fun to visit each of them on my next visit there. There's even a Sanctuary hiking route that can be followed.

Ever since I started reading Slow Traveler AnnieNC's Blog, Churches in Venice, I have become really interested in learning more about the many beautiful churches and shrines in Venice. And it has also made me more attentive to all the churches and shrines that I may have photographed during my travels. So while looking through my photos to find my photo of the month, I found a photo of a pretty shrine that I saw in Vernazza which I posted. I had mentioned to Annie that I have one or two more that I can post too. Well, I got so excited and enthusiastic that I turned it into a full blown post on Vernazza. :)

Here is a closer look at my August 2009 Photo of the month selection....


Here is another beautiful shrine photo I found . . . .


One more . . .


Thanks Candi and Annie for allowing me the stroll down memory lane to a wonderful time in a beautiful place...

Btw, I checked the flights from LA to Italy and they are around $680! Scotland or Italy? Hmmmm. . . :)