Riomaggiano - Day 94

Date: November 20th, 2009
Distance: None
Country: Italy
Song of the Day: Pachuca Sunrise - Minus the Bear

In the morning Claudine, the girl who is staying with me in the "hostel", and I walked along the path between the villages in the Cinque Terre. The views along the coast were fantastic. The five towns really are cute. Crowded into little coves along the coast. Each pastel colored building is practically on top of the next. The hillsides were very cool too. Terraces of olive groves or vineyards. The best part, there wasn't a cloud in site. It made for quite a pleasant morning.

We only made it as far as Vernazza though. I think that really is the most pretty of the villages. This is the one with a fort and tower protecting a tiny harbor. Claudine and I grabbed some lunch and ate it on the piazza overlooking the marina. The sun was shining and the foccacia was great.

We decided to take the train to the next town though. My right knee has been bugging me a bit since I left Pisa. So I am trying to take it easy. (I need my knees for the rest of the trip.) I think Claudine was also tired, and a bit sore from lugging around this giant suitcase she has. Plus the trip between Vernazza and Montorosso is supposed to be hell. So we took the train. We had to wait for about an hour though. So we spent the time hanging out on some rocks watching some locals fish. We were trying to figure out what they were doing. One guy was fishing, and would catch a little fish, then use that as bait for something bigger. I am still not sure what though.

Montorosso is interesting, but is the flattest and also most "developed" of the towns. It was smaller, but looked very much like the other coastal resort towns I have been through. Hotels and restaurants along the beach. Of course, this means it had a beach. The other towns had marinas. I suppose that you could swim there. But I think the locals would look at you funny.

Me, I decided that I wanted to go swimming. I should have thought ahead and brought my trunks and a towel, but I didn't. So first I had to go back to get all my stuff. Claudine left to go out to another town called Portofino. I took the first train back to Riomaggiano, changed, missed one train by seconds, and caught another back to Montorosso. It was just before 4:00 when I got to the beach. The sun had set on half the beach. I ran out (to the sunny half), dropped my clothes and ran into the water. Okay, I walked into the water. (The beach isn't soft sand, it is pebbles and very small rocks.) The water was actually pretty good. It wasn't very warm. It was more like the lake back home in the first days of summer. Cool, but not cold. Swam around the little swimming area there for a bit. Enjoying the setting sun while floating in the Mediterranean. I think this is the first sea I have been in. Done, two oceans, lots of lakes, ponds, rivers and streams before. Never a sea. So I can sign that one off my list.

From there I dried off and ran to catch the train again. I was hoping to spend a bit more time in Vernazza, then take the trail up to a great view of Corniglia. The sun was right behind it in the morning. I figured that it would be perfect just before sunset. These plans were dashed by the magic that is the Italian rail system. I missed the first one by a minute. Then the next three were "delayed". By delayed, I mean they never arrived. Finally a forth train showed up an hour later.

It wasn't all bad. I got to watch the sun set in Montorosso. This really was spectacular. The light was still hitting the water making it sparkle all sorts of amazing blue colors. The sky to the west was orange and red. I was just standing outside the train station listening to the waves crash on the beach. I would recommend that you all do this. Actually, tonight after you read this (or maybe tomorrow if it is dark already) take a few minutes, walk outside onto your porch, the terrace, a balcony, or the limb of a tree and watch the sunset. Sunsets happen every day, and you don't have to be halfway around the world to enjoy it. It is something simple, but sometimes it is good to remember the common things are still beautiful and wonderful.

Anyway, when I finally did get on a train, it didn't go to Vernazza, like they said. It did at least stop at Riomaggiano, so I could get back to my room. I took a quick shower and couldn't find a good place in Riomaggiano. Instead I walked back over to Manarola. There was a cute little gelateria and bar (great combination, huh?) that was open. I had one of the best panninis of my life. Oh, and I couldn't leave without some gelato. So I walked back along Via dell'Amore in the dark eating gelato. This was great. The stars were out. Lights set into the cliffs were making the waves sparkle. The moon was slung low in the sky casting a bit of light across the sea. Ahhhhh. So pretty.

-Dravis