The trip got off to a bad start. I went to the meeting place at least 10 minutes before the indicated time, that is 7:35 for 7:45. The guide did not see me and the bus left without me. Fortunately, there was another group leaving for the Cinque Terre. I asked the guide who was Spanish speaking if I could go with his group. He accepted and contacted the people responsible so that I could join my group. Arriving in La Spezzia with the group of the Spanish-speaking guide, I met 2 Italian guides (Sabrina and another whose first name I forgot). They contacted the guide of my group and I finally joined her in Manarolla at 11:00. I could not visit Manarolla but I visited Monterosso, Vernazza and Riomaggiore. The guide was kind and dedicated. They came to take me back to Montecatini, my starting point. Finally, thanks to the Spanish-speaking guide, I didn't completely miss my excursion to the Cinque Terre.

We enjoyed the beauty of this place. It was just very hot for early June and crowded with a lot of tour groups, including ours. The lunch wasn’t the best. It was a seafood salad, plain pasta with pesto, and ice cream with fruit for dessert. It felt rushed. We could have just gone to Manarola and Monterosso and been just fine with those two villages. The tour guide was very good and explained where to meet, etc. She didn’t really teach us anything about the locations. She was there to accompany us and make sure we got to each destination and answer any questions we had. But she did a great job. If we did this again, we would probably book a boat tour of the villages and just stop at the two mentioned above.