Hiking in Cinque Terre

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We were awoken in the middle of the night by a loud crash, followed by an unidentifiable eerie howling noise. Puzzled, I quickly stuck my head out the door and was nearly blown back into the room. We were in the midst of a roaring windstorm that had not only knocked over the furniture on our rooftop deck, but was rushing through the train tunnel below us creating the weirdest noise--a louder version of the sound you get from blowing into a bottle. Once we figured out what was happening, we returned to sleep, but the wind didn't let up and was pretty consistent throughout the next day.

Nonetheless, we didn't let us stop us from our plan to hike part of the coastal trail that links the five towns, and is not only a national park, but also a World Heritage Site. We fortified ourselves at breakfast with a room full of other Americans, all with blue Rick Steves guide in hand, at Il Pirata cafe, where twins Massimo and Lucca serve up incredible Sicilian style pastries (think lots of puff pastry and ricotta, fruit and nutella fillings--so yummy). Then we took the train to the southern most CT town of Riomaggiore. We circled through the town, and then made our way through a tunnel at the base of the main street that connects back to the train station and the beginning of the trail to Manarola, the next town up the coast. The tunnel was an amazing find--filled with incredible mosaics of the sea and sea-life by Argentinian artist Silvio Benedetto (see photos below).

Onwards to the trail--a very easy, almost paved trail known as the "Via del Amore". We loved Manarola and spent time wandering the streets and the terraced vineyards above the town. The weather improved slightly during the day, so we decided to tackle another section of the trail between the town of Corniglia and our base, Vernazza. This was a bit more challenging, with uneven trail, lots of "steps", and breath-taking (in all senses of the word) trail placement on cliff edges. Periodically we'd come around a corner and be blown back by the wind--a bit disconcerting, but worth every step due to the dramatic views.

We finished the day basking in the glow of an incredible sunset and full of wonderful homemade pasta dishes (pesto lazagne and seafood risotto), topped off with canoli, back at Il Pirata. We chatted with several American couples that we had met during the day during our various tourist activities and Massimo "turned on the charm" to keep his Rick Steves acolytes entertained.

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Photos

Pulling Boat into the Piazza
Not a good day for fishing...

Mosaics, Riomaggiore
Incredible mosaics running the length of the pedestrian tunnel to the train station

"Via del Amore"
Trail between Riomaggiore and Manarola

Interlocking Hearts
over the entrance to the Via del Amore section of the trail...

"Tunnel of Love", Via del Amore
Trail from Riomaggiore to Manarola was the first section of the trail built to connect 2 of the previously completely isolated towns. After WWII it was improved and made safer and the tunnel became the meeting point for boys and girls of the two towns.

Famous "Lovers Sillouette" in the Tunnel
Locks attached to the railing behind it bear the names of couples in love and are found everywhere on the trail.

Shrine, Via del Amore
Lovers' locks even attached here!

View of Manarola
nestled in the terraced vineyards and orchards...

Main Street, Manarola
Since this town has no harbor, boats are "parked" on the street.

Close-up of Terraces
Carved out of the steep hillsides these terraces are testimonies to perseverance of the inhabitants of the Cinque Terre towns.

View of Manarola from the Terraces
We took a walk through the terraces above the town and discovered shrines, life-sized cut outs of fairy tale characters, and of course, amazing views.

Steps from Train Station to Hilltop Town of Corniglia
The trail from Manarola to Corniglia was closed, so we rode the train to Corniglia to continue our hike, only to find it necessary to climb 400 stairs to the hilltop town to reach the continuation of the trail.