Cinque Terre Day One- Saturday, February 13th, 2010
Today we woke up around 9:00 and got ready for the next two days in Cinque Terre. We missed our train to La Spezia at 10:57 by literally 2 minutes so we had to board a train in an hour that stopped in a city about 2 hours in and board a second train to La Spezia- once we were in La Spezia, we took a train to Riomaggiore which is where we began our hike.
Cinque Terre, or “Five Cities”, is declared a patrimony of mankind by UNESCO; characterized by the extended presence of terraces and by five villages hidden in small coastal inlets between Punta Mesco at the West end and Capo Montenero at the East end. The five cities that make up Cinque Terre are Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza, and Monterosso, and we hiked and stopped at every city, which I will go into detail further on. “The Cinque Terre is noted for its beauty. Over centuries, people have carefully built terraces on the rugged, steep landscape right up to the cliffs that overlook the sea. Part of its charm is the lack of visible "modern" development. Paths, trains and boats connect the villages, and cars cannot reach it from the outside. It is a very popular tourist destination.”
When we first arrived in Riomaggiore we had to pay five euros to hike the trail- and the only pathway leading up to the cities was a stairway that lead up alongside a building right next to a small ticket booth near the train station. We were a little uneasy about what the journey entailed, as I had done little research beforehand, and we didn’t know if they were just trying to take out euro to walk down a path. Regardless, we paid and followed the steps up to the side of the mountain.
What we saw when we turned the corner was one of the most extraordinary sights of my life, and this is only the beginning. Keep in mind I am a backpacker- or at least I used to be for a couple years. I have been to New Mexico, Tennessee, WV, North and South Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Virginia on backpacking trips- I have seen many great views and hiked up many mountains and overlooked ‘7 states’ in Rock City, Tennessee, I went up Mt. Phillips in New Mexico- in a 2 week long hiking adventure to reach an altitude of over 16000 feet. An yet, this view to which I only had to climb a couple hundred feet to get to, was breath-taking in itself. The way the mountains peered out from the sea and created the many rocky shorelines, the many terraces, especially how the small villages emerged from the mountainside and base of the mountains- was what Cinque Terre was known for. Its what makes it so popular- one of the most beautiful, if not the most beautiful place in Italy. I remember telling myself that oneday I will fall in love with somebody and propose to them along the Cliffside of a mountain in Cinque Terre, overlooking a sunset in the Mediterranean Sea and the small villages that emerge from the mountains- of course, this is just a dream at this point.
Riomaggiore, the first city we went to (where the train dropped us off at) is a commune in the province of La Spezia, known for its historic character and its wine produced by the town’s vineyards. With one or two main roads where the town socializes, the city is also famous for having numerous aquariums and zoos.
The path we went on, Via dell’Amore, connected Riomaggiore to the next city: Manarola, which is the smallest town of Cinque Terre as well as the oldest. The church, San Lorenzo, dates from 1338 and the city is known for its fishing and wine-making. Most of the houses are bright and colorful and the city rests at the base of the mountain. I found this city to be my favorite amongst the five. While in the city we went to the shore and took photos of ourselves on the rocks and watched the waves hit the rocks. We weren’t in a rush to hike the trail- we knew we were going to stay the night in Corniglia and hike the whole next day. Via dell’Amore was a nice pathway- it was wide and stone, usually with a handrail on either side. Once you pasted through Manarola the path became more narrow and less user-friendly. In fact, as you continue to hike all the way to the fifth city it seemed as if the trail became more challenging- steeping, longer, and narrower. Which I thought was better- it would be a huge shock if we were climbing up a mountain on a narrow path with no handrails one step away from disaster in the very beginning of the hike.
I thought the smallest town was Corniglia. We got there right when the sun was setting- we were able to get some pictures of the sunset and it was unbelievable! Corniglia is situated along the mountainside, and it has a more rural setting than the other cities. When we arrived to Corniglia we immediately began looking for a hostel or someplace to stay. It was rather difficult- not only did we have trouble speaking or reading Italian, but almost every shop and eatery was closed- and it was a Saturday night! In fact, the way we found a place to stay was rather ironic. A man noticed we looked a little confused- trying to read a sign that actually said “Hostel- rooms available.” He told us to ring the door bell (in italian of course). So we did, and right away a lady swung open a set of shutters above us and began yelling in italian. After much “No Parlo Italiano” and much confusion we eventually walked around the building into a side door and up two flights of steps into the ladies apartment. Then, she began talking to us in Italian. I don’t think she knew one word of English in fact. We found out that she had no rooms available and she was going to call her friend. Keep in mind this lady was about 70-80 years old, very short and chubby- not to say she was ‘an old fat lady’, but she seemed pretty alarmed that a group of American Students were looking for a room in Corniglia on a Saturday night. Finally, her friend Tomma appeared on the street- another old lady who had trouble walking. The lady in the apartment directed us to her, and after a couple laughs and a little bit of confusion we left her and met up with Tomma. Tomma then took us to a hotel, or should I say cottage, about 100 meters away. We had to help her walk the way- she was very old, yet very cute to say the least. After she gave us the keys and showed us the apartment/hotel/cottage we paid her and walked her home. The experience was definetly worth the 25 euros we each paid- she made us feel at home, and spoke in a lovely Italian accent, and when she walked the town everyone greeted her with a warm welcome- just by her presence you could tell she had lived in the town for a long time, and that everyone knew her. You could really tell just how small the town was. Our room was very “homey”. Situated by a small alley in the middle of a hillside, the room was fully equipped with a kitchen and bathroom, a full bed and couch and a fold-out bed. The bathroom had towels which was a plus, and the room was very warm and comforting- something that not a lot of hostels offer in Europe. It was definitely good enough for 4 college students from the snow belt in Ohio. After we got settled in, we walked around for a little, stopped by an old café down the street and bought some chips and a coke and watch futbol before heading back to the room for the night. All in all, it was a great experience- everything from the cities we visited to the mountains we climbed- it made us feel so far away from the busy streets of Florence and the demanding semesters at Kent- a trip like this was definitely something we all needed- some time away from the city scene and developments. Tomorrow we will be hiking the two longest trails between the cities before heading back to Florence in time for school on Monday.
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