Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Ka-"Cinque" Terra

When the $$ signs roll up, there is a common reaction called, "ka-ching" reminding us of the sound the cash register makes when you rack up a big bill.  Often times, it is an expression associated with one of amazement or surprise, but clearly, it is not one that you would like to experience if you are on a reasonable budget.  Well, sometimes mishaps occur, and ka-ching, the savings go by the wayside.  We had one such slight miscalculation today, and it cost us a few extra euros.

After a delightful day of loitering around Monterosso and then having a lovely dinner, we arrived at the train station to make our way back to Manarola where we were planning to to take the moonlight hike up the hill to Volostra.  However, in our haste to catch the earliest train back to Manarola, we boarded the wrong train and were off to La Spezia instead.  Our Italian conductor rewarded us with the bad news that we were indeed headed to a different destination than we had in mind.  Once in La Spezia, we checked for the next train heading back to Manorola which wasn't until 11 pm.  As we considered our options: 1. wait for the next train or 2. find out how much the cab ride to Volostra would be.  After haggling with the taxi driver over the price of 40 euro, about $55-60, we opted for the cab ride back to our hotel.  Ah, the sound of those clinking nickels going out of our pockets, "ka-ching" with a capital E for euros.

Yes, this little mishap cost us a pocket of change, but in the end, we didn't have to walk up the hill which would have added dearly to the long day.  What's a few euro among friends and
 when you are on vacation?  The reality it's still a few euro, but we had a great time talking about it.  Ciao!

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