One long hike, and too many Germans. (5/22/09)

Today we were awoken by church bells ringing like crazy at 7 am. I couldn’t find the snooze… Anyway, since we were up, we started our day earlier than we would have originally liked. After a small breakfast we hopped on the train to Riomaggiore, the easternmost town in the Cinque Terra. We took an elevator to the top of the town and then strolled down the main road as shopkeepers were opening up and locals were buying up their groceries for the day. Via dell’Amore is the first length of the Cinque Terra trail that connects all five towns. It’s also the most tame, and pretty much paved the whole way. When it was first installed, young boys and girls from Riomaggiore and Manarola (the next town) would meet along the trail, hence the name. Now, lover’s graffiti covers the entire trail.

Manarola was a picturesque town, with a harbor and no beach. The people we way swimming we in very deep water, just off the rocks. Thanks to the Rick Steves’ book we took a roundabout hike above town through the terraced vineyards. It gave great views of the town below. Then we started a slightly more difficult hike to the third town, Corniglia. On this hike is where we started to run into a lot of crazed Germans, with big hiking boots, walking sticks, and usually no shirts, moving with a purpose down the trail, not letting anyone get in their way.

Once we finally reached Corniglia, we stopped in a little Caffe for a lunch of paninis. We stocked up on our water and headed for the most difficult part of our hike today – from Corniglia to Vernazza. Along the hike we saw signs for a free beach below. Having read previously that it was a nice beach, we headed on the detour STRAIGHT down the cliffside towards the sea. When we finally reached the beach, we were fairly disappointed as there were just a few couples hanging out on a very rocky shore. We stayed for a little while, but didn’t venture into the water. We were dreading our climb back up. It was a long way back up and we ran out of water.

Once we reached the main trail it was even more uphill as we crested the final hill towards Vernazza. A small bar at the top sat like an oasis waiting for our money in exchange for Gatorade and water, which were sorely needed at that point. The rest of the way was, mercifully, downhill – though that doesn’t always make it easier. The trail was fairly treacherous at times, and the crazy Germans were still plowing through. When we reached Vernazza, we headed to our room and crashed for an hour or two before heading out for dinner on the main drag.



Overall a great day – just wishing we didn’t take the detour to the beach below the trail, and instead headed to the beach back in Vernazza. Tomorrow, we’re hoping to hit up the fifth town – Montorosso al Mare, which has a very long, sandy beach. And we’re just going to relax.

Good night!