The Greatest Place on Earth

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After blogging about my new friend Junior (among other things), Bradley and I headed out for the morning with a purpose... make reservations for a train to the Cinque Terre, and with any extra time see more of Milan. That morning alone I awesomely completed no fewer than three transactions in Italian (thank you, Lonely Planet Phrase Book... which incidently has a hilarious section on "Romance" phrases, like "easy tiger" and "Can I kiss you?" among other things some readers - mother- shouldnt read... none of which I will be using, I assure you.... except on Steven). The first was to order breakfast. My favorite new word is questo, which mean "this." Thus, I can point at something and say questo, indicating "I want this". It is my caveman approach to foreign languages. We then walked to the train station and booked our train. It would not leave for a few hours, so we killed time checking out Milans castle (uninspiring, but free), a pedestrain boulevard (always fun because we often lack such a brilliant concept in America), and the rooftop of the cathedral. For 4 euros, we had the priviledge of climbing stairs so high and tightly wound, that Bradley and I wondered aloud whether we have been transported into the MC Esher (spelling is wrong, I am certain) drawing with the infinity stairs that go around in a circle. The roof was fantastic. It perfectly represented what I love about Italy. There is so little regulation. They like to say to tourists (implicitly, of course), "there is a great sight. Now have at it". We essentially had free reign to walk anywhere among the fantastically spired rooftop. I have been on top of a number of great churches (including St. Peters in Rome and Stevensdom in Vienna), but this was the best.

Then we jumped the train, which was largely uneventful except for the scenary of rolling hills. We then pulled into the place I am now considering the most beautiful and perfect place imaginable.... Cinque Terre. It means the five lands (I think?) in Italian. They are five cities which are separated by a series of walking trails. In a day you can feasably walk from one end to the other, stopping to admire each city along the way. They are small, local, not-terribly-touristed (although, too high for my taste) cities. Built into hilsides and vallies along the Mediteranian, even my (fantastic) photos will never do it justice.

As we checked into our hostel, we met up with our friend Steven (went to high school with Bradley, male bonding ensued.... thats the backstory). He is studying abroad in Italy and came to meet us this weekend. First we walked through the city we slept in... Manarola. It is small, quiet, and surrounded by viniards built into the hillsides by terracing. Then we walked in one direction to the nearest city.... Riomaggiore. The path between them is called "the walk of love," presumably because it is a romantic setting. Joking ensued among us men as we made the (brief treck). We explored the other city and got lost (mostly because Bradley likes to mock my man-love for Rick Steve and his guidebooks. Bradley refused to follow the Rick Steve approved walking tour, so of course we wound up down a dead end and in the backyards of several irritated locals). Back in Manarola, we enjoyed a lovely dinner out, all of us sampling something Cinque Terre invented.... pesto (I never knew such a random condiment could taste so good). Steven then claimed he had heard there was supposed to be a lunar eclipse that night at 9. So we got a bottle of wine (of the white variety for which the region is apparently famed) and sat on a bench in the nearest city square where we had a view of the moon (this square happened to be in front of the town church). We waited for the moon, had enjoyable conversation, and carried on like fairly well mannered Americans (although, the kind that would drink wine from plastic cups in front of a church). The eclipse never happened so Steven was beaten (on the bright side, the conversation created a number of running jokes, one of which involved our already burgeoning love of our city.... we have formed a gang/club called the Mana-Rollaz (people who know how to roll in Manarola). There is even a sign we can make with our hands which displays an M (for Manarola) as well as a circle (representing a water wheel.... long story short, Manarola was named after a water wheel). Ask me to demonstrate when I return home.

We were up early this morning, because I (correctly) hypothesized that the weather is clear early, but clouds seem to roll (Manaroll?) in during the late afternoon. The trails which connect the cities are pretty basic, well marked, well maintained, and hug the coast. However, above the cities, further inland, there are further trails which head into the mountainous terrain beyond. I (looking for the most picturesque spots for pictures) wanted to take some of these. The previous night I had surveyed a very rough map in our hostel lobby and tried to memorize where were the turns we needed to take. This is how we ended up down a dead end trail (an hour lost going and then backtracking), hugging cliffs on nonexistant trails (in my defense, they looked sort of like something resembling a trail when you find yourself inexplicably in the middle of nowhere), and getting really, really, really upclose views of the surrounding olive trees, lemon groves, and grape vines. Eventually we reached the trail we should have taken in the first place and were rewarded by spectacular views. It also took us through a couple very small villiages (just collections of a few houses) for a view of uber local life. Finally with legs throbbing from the intense ups and downs of the climb, we descended into the next city, Corneglia. It was very quant, and we had a delightful lunch in a kind bar (word I cant get used to around here simply meaning small food shop). For the next leg, we took the official Cinque Terre path (not some crazy one I decided to invent both improvisationally and based on a vague recollection of a very vague map). It was nice but less adventurous. The next city was simply stunning. Just google "Vernazza" and look for pictures. I will not add commentary. Lastly we trecked (again on the sanctioned path) to the final city, Monterosso. From there, Steven departed for home, and Bradley and I have come back to Manarola for food and much needed sleep (I do not look forward to tomorrow soreness after the hilly miles I put in today). Along the way we helped a traveling couple from Montana with eating, sleeping, and hiking recommendations ("the high road path from Manarola to Corniglia is really beautiful - and adventurous").

Tomorrow Pisa and Florence.

Sorry, no time to post pictures (but really, there are too many good ones to decide on just a few).

P.S. I realize I may come off here as the worst kind of tourist (boldly walking where I obviously dont belong), but I assure you, it is done in the most respectful and apologetic manner possible. And no one caught us.... so there.

Mother, remember to let us censor to photos for you... the cliffs and footpaths will frighten you.

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Comments

[Mom]

LOL
Thank you for letting me laugh with you...it's not like being there, but I can hear your voice while I read. Love you!