Storming the Cinque Terre

After my experience in Turin, I arrived in the Cinque Terre a little unsteady and somewhat downtrodden.

The Cinque Terre is a collection of five small villages perched on steep rocky terrain that descends abruptly into the ocean. Some of them have small harbors that allow for a bit of swimming, while only one has a proper beach. But collectively, they have a reputation of being a relaxing seaside destination in Italy.

Terra #1: Vernazza

I decided to stay in Vernazza, which is said to be the most beautiful village and with the most character. Once you deboard the train, you walk along a winding street that slopes downwards, drawing you towards a beautiful harbor. It’s lined with restaurants, colorful umbrellas, a quaint church, and large flat rocks warmed by the sun.

I checked into my room and then went for a self-guided walk through town. Then, because I knew it was supposed to storm for the next few days, I took advantage of the hot afternoon sun to go for a swim. There weren’t any other people swimming in the harbor, so I first asked a few people if it was okay to swim. They all said that it was, but warned me that it was going to be cold. Lesson here: trust the locals. It was piercingly cold. Breath-stoppingly cold. Body-numbingly cold. And so, so amazing. As I got out of the water, the people I’d asked if it was okay to swim looked at me expectantly, waiting for my verdict. And I announced it confidently for everyone within earshot: “Fa freddo!” It’s cold! Everyone laughed, but I noted a newfound respect in their eyes.

Afterwards, I chose a large flat rock to dry out on. After the cold, the warm stone and sun felt amazing. And with that, I realized that the ocean had completely washed away the lingering weirdness from Turin.

A quick shower and then I headed out for an aperitivo overlooking the sea, followed by dinner at a small local restaurant further up from the harbor. Here, I had a local specialty: anchovies layered with potatoes and tomatoes. Because the anchovies were so fresh, it wasn’t fishy or salty at all…just fresh and flavorful.

I ended the night with a walk to the point of Vernazza that extends furthest into the ocean. By this time, the temperature had dropped several degrees since I went swimming and the sky was darkening. I stayed out there for a long time, texting with my siblings and letting the wind swirl around me.

Terra #2: Corniglia

After a classic Italian breakfast of a croissant filled with ricotta and sweet pistachio crème and a cappuccino, I decided to visit the Tourist Office at the Vernazza train station to plan out my hiking schedule (one of the highlights of visiting the Cinque Terre).

Math break! There are five villages. If you were to number them from 1 to 5 (starting from the northernmost village and ending in the south), I was staying at village #2, Vernazza (aka: “my” village) and due to some trail closures, it was only possible to hike between #1 and #2, and #2 and #3. (I planned to take trains to villages #4 and #5.)

Now, I wasn’t planning on hiking that particular day, but after finding out that there was a trail race scheduled for the following two days (which meant that the trails would be closed to hikers), I regrouped and decided to set out on my first hike—from my village to #3: Corniglia.

The hike was, as expected, stunning. And, surprisingly, not super easy! Or maybe I’m just not in the hiking-shape I was a month ago in Portland? Regardless, it was incredibly rewarding. For some reason, I decided to play P!nk’s “I Am Here” over and over and over along the hike. I think this is because, partly, I sometimes have to remind myself that I’m here. After being in Italy for a few weeks, there are times when I forget that I am on the other side of the world from the life I was living only a few weeks ago. And, whenever I do remind myself that I am here, it sends a wave of electric joy through my body. I. Am. Here.

Corniglia is small and sweet. I did a self-guided tour of the city and then found a quaint place for lunch. I wound up sitting next to two women from La Jolla, California (near where I grew up). We compared notes on where we’d been so far while eating grilled fish and bowls of fresh pasta topped with small scoops of flavorful pesto. Then I grabbed some gelato (one scoop of basil, one scoop of lemon). I was planning on taking the train back to Vernazza, but because it was so cold, I decided to warm myself up the natural way: with another hike.

I ended the day with aperitivo and dinner as the sea grew rougher and intimidating clouds gathered along the coast.

Terra #3: Riomaggiore

The storm finally arrived on my third day. Waves smashed into the sea wall protecting Vernazza, which sent water surging up into the harbor. The rock where I had sunbathed only two days prior was completely submerged. I donned a raincoat and scurried across the harbor to find some breakfast. Or, in the case of this particular café...cake. Disappointed,  I ordered a cappuccino and…cake. The server asked me if I wanted to eat it in their dining area two doors down. I agreed and ducked under a few awnings to get there, arriving to a huge table filled with fruit, hard-boiled eggs, breads, yogurt, nuts, and cereals. Jackpot. As always, the Universe provides.

As I was paying, the server asked me where I was from. After I told her, she said, “Oh, that’s funny. I thought for sure you were German.” Which is funny because, my great grandfather was German and my last name is German. Mind you, this woman did not know my last name and could only see my eyes during our interaction (because I was wearing a beanie and face mask). How incredible is that?! She knows her tourists, I suppose.

After breakfast, I took a train to my third village: Riomaggiore. By the time I finished lunch, the worst of the storm had passed and intense, pure sunlight bathed the village. So I walked out to the ocean along a series of paths and lookout points with beautiful views of the sea. I was completely transfixed by the ocean demonstrating its power on the land. Wave after wave crashed into the cliffs and sea walls. Occasionally, people would venture further down the paths and closer to the water than I was. They would be fine for a while, but every twenty minutes or so, a set of waves would come in that would send a giant splash up onto the lower lookout points. Soaked, everyone would laugh and retreat further up the hill to watch the next batch of unknowing people venture down into the splash zone.

I eventually took the train home and as I was grabbing gelato, ran into the women I had lunch with the day before in Corniglia. While traveling alone, it provides such a dose of joy to run into people that you “know” unexpectedly.

Last thing: While on this trip, I’ve been writing notes at the end of each day about what happened so that I can remember everything when it comes time to write my blog posts. For the end of this day, I’ll let my notes do the talking:

“Came home and got stuff from the market for dinner at my table overlooking the harbor. Drank a bottle of local wine, crackers and cheese, tons of veggies, and lemon cookies. Watched Drag Race. Super fun, sweet night.”

Terra #4: Manarola

There aren’t a ton of “official” things to do in the Cinque Terre beyond hiking, swimming, and eating. (For example, there aren’t any museums or noteworthy churches.) However, as I was planning my day in Manarola, I read that it was possible to do a pesto-making class. I thought, why not?

So I took a train over to Manarola, grabbed a quick breakfast, walked through the town to get my bearings, and then hiked up to the restaurant where the class was to be held, high above the town. The views were absolutely stunning and I was excited to get to do the class with such an incredible backdrop. As we entered, they assigned each of us a table. Because of the pandemic, I was sat at a table by myself. As everyone filed in and began preparing for the class, it was the first time during this whole trip that I felt a little bummed that I was by myself. It just felt like something that I should be doing with other people. In that exact moment, a woman who was seated at the table next to me said “Hey! Do you want to join us?” And because we were all outdoors, I did. The woman, Amy, and her husband, Ryan, were from Montana. We got to know each other as we began picking the basil leaves from our plants and by the time we started mixing the pesto with a mortar and pestle, we were already friends.

Y’all, making pesto is kind of intense. You have to do it very fast and very aggressively. (At least, in the way that we were taught for this class.) But it was also super fun because while pesto was flying everywhere, everyone was cheering each other on. I was so focused on my own pesto that I didn’t really have an opportunity to see how everyone else’s pesto was shaping up. But as I was grinding away, I could sense that a bit of a kerfuffle was building around me. More and more of the staff kept coming over to look at my pesto. Eventually, one of them started filming me and asked me to say my name for the camera. By the time that we were finished (“Pestles down!”), my pesto was a gorgeous, creamy swirl of vibrant green.

The teacher told a really cool story about how he won the restaurant we were in via a contest and eventually revealed that they were going to choose a “winning pesto” of the day…

My trophy was a bottle of local wine.

Afterwards, as we were enjoying our pesto with giant cutting boards of focaccia, meats, and cheeses, the teacher came up to tell me that not only was my pesto the winning pesto of the day, but that the whole staff agreed that my pesto was the best they’d seen for the season. It was a total ego-booster and I decided to let it go to my head immediately.

Terra #5: Monterosso al Mare

For my last full day in the Cinque Terre, Amy, Ryan, and I made plans to hike to the final village: Monterosso al Mare. The day was stunning, so the hike was a bit more crowded than my cold, cloudy hike to Corniglia. But it was challenging and invigorating and gorgeous.

As Monterosso al Mare has the best beach of the five, we ate a nice lunch on the water and then laid out on the sand until Amy and I worked up the courage to get into the water. It was, again, freezing, but felt incredible. Then gelato, focaccia, and a final drink at a fun bar playing Shaggy(!) before we grabbed a train back to Vernazza.

Changes

As some of you know, I lived in India for six months in 2005. Before I went, I wondered how the experience would change me as a person. For the first month or so, I would pause and think to  myself, “Have I changed?” Needless to say, the experience did change me. But it wasn’t until after I’d returned to the US from India that I was fully able to grasp exactly how I’d changed.

So, of course, I’ve been thinking about this experience and wondering how it will change me. And, again, it’s not immediately clear. However, there has been one distinct change already. Prior to my time in the Cinque Terre, I considered myself a “cup guy” (when ordering gelato). It was during my time in the Cinque Terre that I started to notice how happy people looked while eating ice cream from a cone. So, I tried it. And, I loved it. I don’t know how, but it does make the whole experience even more joyful. So, if you’re wondering how I’ve changed since I’ve been in Italy, you should know that I consider myself more of a “cone guy” now.