Saturday May 9, 2009
Cinque Terre is the place that everyone told us we MUST VISIT while we were in Italy. It’s a series of 5 small villages along the western coast of Italy connected by coastal hiking trails. We set aside our last weekend before finals to go there and stay for a night. We woke up early this morning to catch the train so we could take full advantage of the day.
We changed trains in La Spezia and then got off at the first town of Riomaggiore where we were staying. A tunnel connected the train station with the village followed by a steep hike up to the check-in office for our hostel. We had booked a dorm style room but due to a cancelation we were upgraded to a private villa. A young boy led us up and down lots of stairs and down a long path through beautiful flowers and plants to one of the farthest villas on the edge of town. It was a tiny little home with an incredible view of the ocean…we had VIP status for sure! After a semester of many less-than-glamorous hostels we were excited out of minds for a chance to stay in a place with charm that seemed only appropriate for honeymooners.
We tore ourselves away from the villa and set out for a day of hiking between the 5 villages. The first hike between Riomaggiore and Manarola was more of nice 20 minute stroll along a cliffside sidewalk called Via Amore. Since it was the easiest of the hikes it was packed with people starting out there day. Lots of people or not, we still enjoyed the beautiful Mediterranean views.
The trail took us right into the village of Manarola. The main piazza overlooked the colorful town lined with fishing boats leading down to the harbor. It’s hard to explain the charm of all of these villages but hopefully the pictures help give a little hint of their character. Knowing we had a long day ahead of us we continued onto the next trail that started down by the harbor. Some of the best views of the town are seen a few hundred meters out along the trails.
The trail between Manarola and Corniglia was also an easy one but not a paved sidewalk at least. The vegetation along these trails is absolutely incredible…giant succulents, wild dragon snaps and calla lilies, palms…all set next to the acqua colored sea. We were leisurely taking it all in until ahead of us we saw the town of Corniglia and the giant switchback stairway to reach it. Rick Steves did NOT warn us about this in his book. The trails are full of elderly people so we figured if they could do it so could we. The climb ended up being a lot easier than it looked with some convenient stops for “pictures” to rest. We still got hot and sticky from the warm sun (of course not from being out of shape).
It was around that time for lunch so we walked through the village to find a spot to stop for paninis. The village is the smallest of the five so we only had a few to pick from. After grabbing lunch we walked around a bit more and checked out the scenic overlook area since Cornelia is also the only town not located on the sea. From there we headed on to find the next trail to Vernazza.
This trail was set back away from the ocean for the majority of the time therefore lacking in cool sea breezes. It was a much longer hike than the first two coming in at around 2 hours including our quick pit stop to eat the paninis we bought in Corniglia. It also was more challenging with a lot of ups and downs during the heat of the day. By the time we arrived in Vernazza it was a very welcome site.
Vernazza is considered by many to be the “gem” of Cinque Terre. Hot and sweaty we headed in the direction of the water but along our way, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a man wearing a bright blue KU polo. Excited to see signs of Kansas in a far off land, we awkwardly stared at him for a minute then decided to go over and share my love of Jayhawks. As I walked over I could tell the other man he was standing with recognized me so I panicked not being able to place him. Thankfully it quickly came to me…it was Brianna Moore’s dad…a girl that I was friends with and walked to class with in middle school every day. SMALL WORLD!!!! His wife, Shawn, came over from the other side of the street as soon as she saw me and we all chit chatted for a bit. They both live in Milan now as part of his job and were in Cinque Terre showing friends around from Kansas. My mom had been in contact with them getting Italy advice recently and Shawn said, “Patsy is just going to die when she finds out we ran into you!”.
We parted ways and continued heading to the water. The harbor featured a sandy beach and giant sunning rocks littered with people. We jumped at the chance to relax and cool down on an open rock. We learned our lesson about pre-summer cold water in Santorini and stuck to sticking out feet in instead. The people watching was fabulous…kids playing, honeymooners, too many men in Speedos, and groups of friends just hanging out.
An hour on the rocks seemed like five minutes but we had to move on in order to get in the last hike of the day. First we climbed up to the castle within the village to get a panoramic view but the scene wasn’t as good as the views on the trails coming in and out of town. It took us awhile to find the entrance to the final trail and by then Mel and Rachael decided to bail and go back to our room. Erika and I were pretty disappointed but we kept on going anyway. The last hike is known to be very challenging so we went into preparing for the worst. The first 20 minutes ended up being a cardio stairmaster workout but after that it was smooth sailing and downhill. The paths were super narrow at times…probably no more than 8 inches wide…which made it more fun. While this hike took a little more effort it was definitely the most beautiful….a little more lush and untouched than the other trails. Amazingly the vegetation differed on each trail even though we were in the same general area.
We came upon the cliffs overlooking Monterossa al Mare after about an hour and forty five minutes and took our time finishing our hike into town as the sun starting going down a little. This village is known to be a little younger and more resort-like with a popular large sandy beach. The vibe was different from the others but I still liked it a lot. We planned on coming back on Sunday to explore more so we didn’t walk around at all…..other than to grab a gelato for the train ride back to our town.
As we were waiting at the trainstation for our train to come, Erika overheard some American girls talking about a train strike. We didn’t think much of it at first but continued to inquire just in case. Turns out a train strike was scheduled to start at 9pm tonight until 9pm Sunday evening. We were devastated because we had to head home tomorrow to make it back in time for finals. Our only option was to forfeit our private room and catch the last train back to Florence leaving in less than 30 minutes. I can’t even describe how bummed I was….I’m still bummed and I’m writing this in June. I told myself I’d find a way to come back during the week by myself but it never worked out. After a high school trip and a semester in Italy I’ve made my way to most of the main tourist stops and this one was my favorite….maybe because I got such a little taste of it.
Cinque Terre is the place that everyone told us we MUST VISIT while we were in Italy. It’s a series of 5 small villages along the western coast of Italy connected by coastal hiking trails. We set aside our last weekend before finals to go there and stay for a night. We woke up early this morning to catch the train so we could take full advantage of the day.
We changed trains in La Spezia and then got off at the first town of Riomaggiore where we were staying. A tunnel connected the train station with the village followed by a steep hike up to the check-in office for our hostel. We had booked a dorm style room but due to a cancelation we were upgraded to a private villa. A young boy led us up and down lots of stairs and down a long path through beautiful flowers and plants to one of the farthest villas on the edge of town. It was a tiny little home with an incredible view of the ocean…we had VIP status for sure! After a semester of many less-than-glamorous hostels we were excited out of minds for a chance to stay in a place with charm that seemed only appropriate for honeymooners.
We tore ourselves away from the villa and set out for a day of hiking between the 5 villages. The first hike between Riomaggiore and Manarola was more of nice 20 minute stroll along a cliffside sidewalk called Via Amore. Since it was the easiest of the hikes it was packed with people starting out there day. Lots of people or not, we still enjoyed the beautiful Mediterranean views.
The trail took us right into the village of Manarola. The main piazza overlooked the colorful town lined with fishing boats leading down to the harbor. It’s hard to explain the charm of all of these villages but hopefully the pictures help give a little hint of their character. Knowing we had a long day ahead of us we continued onto the next trail that started down by the harbor. Some of the best views of the town are seen a few hundred meters out along the trails.
The trail between Manarola and Corniglia was also an easy one but not a paved sidewalk at least. The vegetation along these trails is absolutely incredible…giant succulents, wild dragon snaps and calla lilies, palms…all set next to the acqua colored sea. We were leisurely taking it all in until ahead of us we saw the town of Corniglia and the giant switchback stairway to reach it. Rick Steves did NOT warn us about this in his book. The trails are full of elderly people so we figured if they could do it so could we. The climb ended up being a lot easier than it looked with some convenient stops for “pictures” to rest. We still got hot and sticky from the warm sun (of course not from being out of shape).
It was around that time for lunch so we walked through the village to find a spot to stop for paninis. The village is the smallest of the five so we only had a few to pick from. After grabbing lunch we walked around a bit more and checked out the scenic overlook area since Cornelia is also the only town not located on the sea. From there we headed on to find the next trail to Vernazza.
This trail was set back away from the ocean for the majority of the time therefore lacking in cool sea breezes. It was a much longer hike than the first two coming in at around 2 hours including our quick pit stop to eat the paninis we bought in Corniglia. It also was more challenging with a lot of ups and downs during the heat of the day. By the time we arrived in Vernazza it was a very welcome site.
Vernazza is considered by many to be the “gem” of Cinque Terre. Hot and sweaty we headed in the direction of the water but along our way, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a man wearing a bright blue KU polo. Excited to see signs of Kansas in a far off land, we awkwardly stared at him for a minute then decided to go over and share my love of Jayhawks. As I walked over I could tell the other man he was standing with recognized me so I panicked not being able to place him. Thankfully it quickly came to me…it was Brianna Moore’s dad…a girl that I was friends with and walked to class with in middle school every day. SMALL WORLD!!!! His wife, Shawn, came over from the other side of the street as soon as she saw me and we all chit chatted for a bit. They both live in Milan now as part of his job and were in Cinque Terre showing friends around from Kansas. My mom had been in contact with them getting Italy advice recently and Shawn said, “Patsy is just going to die when she finds out we ran into you!”.
We parted ways and continued heading to the water. The harbor featured a sandy beach and giant sunning rocks littered with people. We jumped at the chance to relax and cool down on an open rock. We learned our lesson about pre-summer cold water in Santorini and stuck to sticking out feet in instead. The people watching was fabulous…kids playing, honeymooners, too many men in Speedos, and groups of friends just hanging out.
An hour on the rocks seemed like five minutes but we had to move on in order to get in the last hike of the day. First we climbed up to the castle within the village to get a panoramic view but the scene wasn’t as good as the views on the trails coming in and out of town. It took us awhile to find the entrance to the final trail and by then Mel and Rachael decided to bail and go back to our room. Erika and I were pretty disappointed but we kept on going anyway. The last hike is known to be very challenging so we went into preparing for the worst. The first 20 minutes ended up being a cardio stairmaster workout but after that it was smooth sailing and downhill. The paths were super narrow at times…probably no more than 8 inches wide…which made it more fun. While this hike took a little more effort it was definitely the most beautiful….a little more lush and untouched than the other trails. Amazingly the vegetation differed on each trail even though we were in the same general area.
We came upon the cliffs overlooking Monterossa al Mare after about an hour and forty five minutes and took our time finishing our hike into town as the sun starting going down a little. This village is known to be a little younger and more resort-like with a popular large sandy beach. The vibe was different from the others but I still liked it a lot. We planned on coming back on Sunday to explore more so we didn’t walk around at all…..other than to grab a gelato for the train ride back to our town.
As we were waiting at the trainstation for our train to come, Erika overheard some American girls talking about a train strike. We didn’t think much of it at first but continued to inquire just in case. Turns out a train strike was scheduled to start at 9pm tonight until 9pm Sunday evening. We were devastated because we had to head home tomorrow to make it back in time for finals. Our only option was to forfeit our private room and catch the last train back to Florence leaving in less than 30 minutes. I can’t even describe how bummed I was….I’m still bummed and I’m writing this in June. I told myself I’d find a way to come back during the week by myself but it never worked out. After a high school trip and a semester in Italy I’ve made my way to most of the main tourist stops and this one was my favorite….maybe because I got such a little taste of it.
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