For families planning a trip to Italy in the future, Cinque
Terre needs to be on your list. If you
were to poll the kids, I think they would say that “Part 2” of our Cinque Terre
visit was their favorite yet.
Whereas our first two days here were spent quietly on the
beach and enjoying tasty meals, days three and four turned – unwittingly - into
a thrill-seekers adventure.
After breakfast we grabbed the train for the 15 minute train
ride to Manarola, the fourth town in the chain of towns that make up Cinque
Terre (literally, “five lands). Here is a map, jut to provide a sense of where we were. (Our hotel is in Monterroso al Mere, the northern-most town.)
Our plan was to hike a fairly flat 2.5 mile trail from Manarola (town 4) to Corniglia (town 3) and to have lunch in Corniglia. Manarola – true to all of the Cinque Terre towns – is a
quaint fishing village where the small wooden fishing boats line the streets,
nearly blocking the entrances to the restaurants and small shops. We proceeded thru town on our way to the
hiking trail when we come across a small swimming hole. It was too tempting for the kids to pass up,
so we decided to let them take a quick dip while Tree and I watched.
Panoramic View of the "swimming hole."
Getting ready to jump in...
Acclimating to their new find...
Within a few minutes, our kids had swum across to a large rock with a rope hanging off of it and had climbed up the rock. Billy had spotted a few locals jumping off of the rock from about 4 feet above the water. Our kids decided to do the same.
Climbing onto the rocks...
And they're off... (Jimmy "Superfly" McKinnon)
Lilly too...
I was still on the shore when Billy started to climb to the
top of the rock – about 30 feet tall – and to peer over the other side. Not knowing what was on the other side, I was
uncomfortable and told him to climb down, lest the others try to follow
him. It was too late. Tommy was fast on his heels and Danny was not
too far behind.
The kids climbed up the rock, despite my pleadings not to...
From where we were standing, it was impossible to see what
was on the other side of the rock, but one could walk back up into the village
and gain a different perspective, so I quickly did so – mostly to make sure
they were not about to fall to their deaths.
By the time I made it to the other side of the rock, another
teenager had climbed up with Billy and Tommy and was about to show them how to
jump off of this higher rock – about 22 feet above the water. He jumped, demonstrating where to aim in
order to land safely. Billy built up his
courage and followed him in a minute later.
Tom was next, then Danny.
Billy took the plunge off of the high rock while the others watched
Tommy soon followed, then Danny.
No sooner had Danny hit the water than a speedo-clad man
climbed to an even higher perch and
executed a perfect swan dive into the water below.
He was followed by another kid about Tommy’s age. The challenge was on. If they could do it, then Billy, Danny and
Tommy could do it. And if Billy, Danny
and Tommy could do it, then Dad had to do it.
I’ll leave you with these videos… (for some reason they show up very small -- expand them when you play them to get a better view)
Part I of the adventure complete, we decided it was time to
continue our hike. Unfortunately, about
½ mile into the trail, we came across a gate that was locked and blocking the
trail. Two years ago, Cinque Terre was
pounded by a massive storm that dropped 14 inches of rain in 3 hours. The storm caused massive mud slides that
severely damaged several of the towns and destroyed parts of the hiking trails,
including the part that we had planned to hike.
Looking back at Manorola from the waterside trail we originally hoped to hike (it was blocked)
We turned around, regrouped and decided that we would simply
take the train to Corniglia (town #3 in the Cinque Terre chain) and hike
another part of the trail – the part connecting Corniglia to Vernazza.
When I made the decision to “hike another part of the trail”
I did not know what we were in for. If
our original hike is a 4 (of 10) on a difficulty scale, the new hike is an
8. It started with a climb up about 400
stairs just to get into Corniglia.
Unlike the other towns in Cinque Terre, Corniglia does not have a port. Instead, it is perched about 500 feet above
the sea, carved into cliffs. It is
largely a farming town, prodicing olive oils and figs.
We made it up the stairs and made a brief pit stop in
Corniglia to refill our water bottles, admire the views and to get the kids a
gelato. Our team proceeded to climb
about another ½ mile out of town – uphill – just to get to the trail head.
Somewhere in this landscape there is apparently a "trailhead." We had no idea where we were going...
We've grown to love coconuts - healthy nourishment for our hike.
For a 5 year old, Jimmy is a trooper. He has kept up with us the entire vacation
with nary a complaint. However, the
hours of walking take a toll on his little body, and when he get tired he
typically turns to me and say “Dad – shoulders.” I had already carried him up the 400 steps
into town, and knew that the hike would be no different. As we continued on the trail – completely
exposed to the noon-day sun, and having ascended probably 400 feet vertically
from town – Jimmy (riding my shoulders) commented “Dad, I’m getting
sweaty.” I remarked “Yeah, me too.” Jimmy has a sharp little mind and got the
irony. That aside became a running joke
between me and Jimmy every time I carried him.
“Are you getting sweaty?” I’d ask?
“Nope.”
A view of the flat part of the trail from the mid-point.
Looking back at Corniglia from the mid-point of the trail
Another steep ascent before we start the trip down into Vernazza
Lilly's face captures how we all felt about 75% of the way thru the hike
Finally we made it... The hike was only 2.5 miles, but we covered 1000 vertical feet from our arrival at the train station in Corniglia, up to the highest point of the trail. From the peak -- about 1000 feet above sea level, the trip down into Vernazza (which was at sea level) was much easier.
Entering Vernazza, the end point of our hike
Vernazza from the end of the trail
The hike was well worth it as it afforded some magnificent views
of the town, the ocean and the landscape, and it ended at a beach in
Vernazza. We took a well-earned dip and
then enjoyed dinner at a nearby restaurant.
To top things off, we (and the entire restaurant) were serenaded by a
local tambourine and guitar duo that played what I’d best describe as an Italian version of the Gypsy
Kings.
We left Venice relatively early on Tuesday and headed to the
airport to pick up our rental car. Cars
here are small, but Dad was able to find a 9 person diesel van that could
accommodate us. On more than one occasion
pour friends have referred to us as the Griswold Family, and to this trip as
our version of National Lampoon’s European Vacation. Well then, meet the family truckster:
The ride from Venice to Cinque Terre is about 5 hours. We
wanted to break it up a bit, and Tom and Jim love fried baloney, so I promised
them that I would stop in the town that invented it – Bologna.
Fodor’s guide to Italy as a section called “Food-Lover’s
Tour of Italy” and one of the stops is a small bakery and butcher in Bologna
called Timbourini. Supposedly this the
one place were you can buy the best foods of the region – tortellini from
Bologna, prosciutto from Parma, aged balsamic vinegar
from Modena and parmesan cheese and pesto from Emilio Rejina.
We found the market and met the owner, who advised us on the
best of the best in his market. We
grabbed a little of each, including some hot tortellini in meat sauce to
go. It was a quick stop – in and out –
and we were back on the road.
Hand rolled tortellini from Bologna - inspired by Venus' belly button according to myth
Row upon row of prosciutto
Meringue next door...
The drive to Cinque Terre took us through some pretty narrow
mountain roads, and at one point we ended up in the wrong part of our
destination, necessitating a 4 mile drive all the way back up the mountain and
down the other side – just to cover about ½ mile of coastline.
Cinque Terre was recommended to us by our friend Nicole, who
has spent lots of time here (her family is Italian) and knows some of the gems
of the country. It is an Italian
national park, comprised of 5 small fishing villages that are cut into the
cliffs of the Ligorno Sea. Over the
years, the villages have been discovered and have become quite a tourist
destination. While many Americans have
discovered Cinque Terre, most of the tourists here are Italian, giving it more
authenticity than places like Rome and Venice.
The 5 villages – which are cut into about 8 miles of
coastline and are connected by rail – are (going south to north) Riomaggiore,
Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso, the largest of the 5. When we booked our stay, most of the hotels
were full, so we ended up at a hotel high above Monterosso, 2-3 kilometers
outside of town. I was a bit
disappointed that we were not able to be in the middle of things, but when we
arrived at the hotel the view did not disappoint.
Our first day here was pretty quiet. We arrived around 6:00, so the beach had
largely shut down. The kids went for a
quick dip and then we ducked into a beach side restaurant for dinner.
Being the adventurous foodie, Dad ordered the
sardine sampler (sardines are a regional specialty) while Jim developed a
new found love for mussels (which he thinks give him bigger muscles). We had already finished a ½ carafe of wine
when we saw the waiter bring a huge mug of beer to the adjacent table. A mug that size was too tempting to pass up,
so we ordered one. Bad idea. The drive back to the hotel – through the
narrow streets of Monterosso – was harrowing.
Dad missed the road to the hotel and had to execute a 3-point turn in a
narrow dead end alley. Twice, he bumped
into one of the local farmer’s 3-wheeled market trucks – basically a moped with
a pick-up truck bed and 2 wheels in the back.
Fortunately the farmer was sleeping and didn’t hear the banging. Eventually, we made it home.
The next morning we wandered down to the beach and rented a
couple of chairs. You must need to know
someone here to get a decent spot – we ended up in the fourth row back, in two
low slung hammock-like contraptions that – if I was being generous – might pass
for a beach chair. Others had much sturdier
“bed-like” chairs, similar to what you might see along side a pool in
Vegas. We made the best of it, and
headed to the water.
The beaches here are not sandy. They are rocky. The rocks range from 3 inches in diameter at
the top of the beach to pebble sized as you get to the water. I don’t know which are more painful to walk
on – probably all of them. When you get
into the water, the rocks are big again, and the waves slam you up and down
onto the rocks. Still –its worth
it. Not complaining, just
observing. In an effort to avoid the
rocks and the steep drop-off, we bought a couple of rafts to allow the kids to
get out into the beautiful blue ocean.
After a couple of hours on the beach we decided to shower
and head to the furthest city of Cinque Terre, Riomaggiore. By train, it is only about 10 minutes
away. As we walked out of the train
station, I notice that – like the Vatican – the walls were decorated in
mosaic. Perhaps these were done by the
same “masters” that did the Vatican, but after they had 2-3 of those mugs of
beer.
Cinque Terre "Old Masters" Mosaic. They work in 15 different shades.
Trains between the Cinque Terre
Arriving in Riomaggiore
View from our restaurant balcony
Riomaggiore Port
Riomaggiore had a cute port decorated with painted boats,
and some nice restaurants. As we ate
dinner, the sun set behind us.
