July Part 2: Cinque Terre, Verdun, and Brussels

Cinque Terre

Cinque Terre is a national park on the Italian Riviera; it literally means “five lands,” and it’s comprised of five towns that are all connected by walking trails. We spent 4 nights (travel day, 3 full days, then another travel day) there, and it was my own personal heaven.

We took the train from Geneva and stayed at an Airbnb in Riomaggiore, which is the easternmost town of the five. There are plenty of places to stay in all five towns, but I was happy with our decision to stay in Riomaggiore - plenty of restaurants, very walkable, and easy access to the harbor.

We spent our three days hiking between the towns, soaking up the sun, and consuming as much Italian food as humanly possible. There is an extensive trail network with many different routes to all of the towns, but the main trail is called the “Blue Trail.” It’s a gorgeous hike/walk with constant views of the coastline and the ocean. Some sections are more difficult than others - there are pretty steep stairs going into and coming out of each of the towns - but overall, just a very enjoyable hike. The portions connecting Riomaggiore and Manarola and Manarola and Corniglia are currently closed for repairs, but we hiked from Corniglia to the other 2 towns and loved it.

When we weren’t hiking, we were sleeping in, laying out reading on some giant rocks near the water, or eating calamari and gelato. Overall, an extremely relaxing and wonderful trip. I highly recommend Cinque Terre!

Verdun, France and Brussels, Belgium

Andy is a bit of a history nerd (specifically military), so it was important to him that we see some of the many significant historical sites while we were in Europe. Conversely, I’m an avid Beyonce fan (opposites attract, right?) so we decided to kill two birds with one stone. Brussels is about a 7-hour drive from Geneva, and Verdun, France is right along the way, so we took a roadtrip.

For those of you (like me) who don’t know much about the Battle of Verdun, it was fought from February 21 to December 18, 1916 and was one of the largest battles of World War I between the German and the French. Casualties are estimated between 976,000 - 1,250,000, making it one of the longest and most costly battles in human history. If you’re interested, this page is a good summary of facts about the battle: http://www.history.com/news/10-things-you-may-not-know-about-the-battle-of-verdun

We spent the drive to Verdun listening to 4 hours of podcasts on the subject - one of Andy’s favorites, Hardcore History with Dan Carlin - which I found a bit excessive, but whatever.

We visited several of the memorials and museums in Verdun, including:

The Douaumont Ossuary - basically a Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, this is where the remains of unidentified French and German soldiers are kept. Designated a national cemetery, the memorial houses the bones of approximately 130,000 unidentified bodies.

Memorial de Verdun - a great museum on the battle and World War I in general.

Several of the still-standing forts;

Montfaucon American Monument - commemorating the American victory during the Meuse-Argonne offensive in the Fall of 1918; and

Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery - the largest American cemetery in Europe, approximately 14,000 American soldiers are buried here.

American Monument

American cemetery

I can’t say that I loved our day in Verdun, but I also didn’t hate it. It was very educational - and eye-opening to think about just how many lives were senselessly lost during World War I.

From Verdun, we continued on to Brussels, Belgium. Andy had to work his last shifts this weekend, so I spent Saturday with some of my work friends taking a day trip to Bruge, a charming little town about an hour’s train ride away. It was a rainy day, but we had a nice time walking around, eating frites and poking our heads into shops.

Bruge

The next day was the main event, and I have to say - Queen Bey did not disappoint. This was the best concert I’ve ever been to, hands down. She’s a world-class entertainer, but on top of that, the production value of this show is just amazing - the lights, fireworks, dancers, videography - the whole package makes for an incredible concert experience. If you have a chance to see the Formation Tour somewhere before it ends, DO IT. You will not regret it!

We drove back to Geneva the next day, which commenced a 7-day waiting period; we had shipped all of our things back to the US, both of us had finished our jobs, and we had 7 days to kill before our final European trip. We tried to spend the week doing things we knew we would miss: going to our favorite pizza restaurant, getting a coffee and croissant at our local place, and hanging out with Shannon and Nick; I also had a handful of preliminary job interviews. Finally, we left on August 10 for our last adventure: Bosnia, Montenegro, and Croatia!