Cinque Terre Photo Journal (And A Few Tips), Cinque Terre, Italy

I've long been an admirer of the Italian approach to life. So much, in fact, that I'm convinced I was Italian in a past life - one I spent sunning on the pebbled beaches of the Mediterranean and following a strict diet of focaccia, gelato and vino. And it only took me 33 years in this life to finally make my way home.

The Cinque Terre, a string of five small fishing villages in the Italian Riviera, is a dream locale for hikers, foodies and wine lovers. This made it a perfect destination for a girl's trip with my London-based bestie, Tamara, who spent a week showing me around her city over the summer. From there, it was a short 2.5-hour flight to Pisa, where we hopped aboard a train bound for the paradise that is the Ligurian coast. 

Few places that I've visited live up to their hype in the way that the Cinque Terre do. The dramatic cliffs erupting from an azure sea, the ancient pastel-hued towns teetering on sun-drenched slopes, the narrow stone-paved alleyways that lead you from one trattoria to the next - all of it is even better in person. It's also a place that doesn't require an itinerary, tour group or guide book - all you need to explore is a comfortable pair of shoes and an appetite. In lieu of a full-fledged travel guide on the region, I decided to share a simple list of travel tips that Tamara and I picked up along the way - keep scrolling for our suggestions! ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).