i was gone for a month and in that month, the finest place, the one that calmed us and awed us both, here: Vernazza, the view from our room.
Hiking the mountains above town. 
Emily's fingers crushing Vernazza. We were on a hike that took us away from everyone to the peak of the mountains and would eventually lead to another coastal town. 
Not quite so high up. it's impossible to explain how beautiful and how new we felt here. the bell chimed every half hour and for a long time in the morning, at 7, waking the town. the water was so clear, you could easily see the rocky bottom, fifty or sixty feet, at all times. we snorkled and there wasn't another soul near us, not a boat or body, only waves and water and fish and rock. we saw people having public sex, twice. we hiked to a monastery and sat and drank cold spring water. we spent 8 days in Vernazza, which was the right amount of time, somehow. england was lovely, france was fun to see, but Vernazza was the place. ate very good italian food, the pictures i won't post. i didn't write for a month, but came back and wrote two new stories and feel all fresh to write more.
