Livorno is the port most used for visits to Florence and Pisa. Since it is Monday and museums are closed, we opted to skip Florence and catch it next time. We considered going to Pisa for a short excursion, but the best use of our time was booking an all-day ship’s excursion to Cinque Terre and Portovenere. Who doesn’t want to see these five cities embedded into the sides of the hills?
We traveled by motor coach to Portovenere (port o vee ner ee), wandered the cobblestone streets, and snapped photo upon photo while trying to keep up with our guide and listen to her commentary on headphones.
Then we entered the mass of other tour groups all trying to board the same ferry. This ferry provided our view of three of the towns from the water. The ferry was crowded with tourists, so as we stopped at each town and some people got off, the others would worm their way to better seats for the best views possible. 
We were allowed off the ferry at Monterosso. Vacationers filled the beaches. We were given almost an hour to wander the town. We chose to have lunch at a wonderful restaurant and took advantage of the free wifi and restrooms. The server tossed our pasta at table side.
The sun is terribly hot, but there always seems to be a nice breeze, and the shade on this 80 degree day is quite comfortable.
Our guide warned us to be back on time because we would be boarding a train for our return to the motor coach. A couple of stragglers had her somewhat worried, but she kept looking back for them and sure enough, they came running up just as the train was nearing the station.
Back to the cruise terminal by motor coach and back to the ship.
In Livorno, we docked at an industrial port. A cargo ship is being loaded directly behind our cruise ship. It’s amazing how many railcars can fit on a cargo ship.
Next post: Naples.