Buon cumpleanno to me…Cinque Terre style!

May 16, 2011, Day seven


Upon waking up, I slowly rise trying to gauge how I was feeling…hmm no more chills and no head cold…yay!  It’s my birthday and we’re going to Cinque Terre!  Cinque Terre (chink-weh tay-reh which means “five lands”) is a series of villages clinging to a remote stretch of the Italian Riviera coastline.  The night before, I was so concerned that I would still be sick and we would have to cancel our trip...and I was bummed not only of the thought of missing this trip that I had specifically chosen for my birthday but I also didn’t want to waste the money we’ve already spent to purchase our train tickets.  So, feeling good this Monday morning was pure joy!


We chose the early 7am train for this 3-hour ride so that we can maximize our day at CT to see and do as much as we can.  Unfortunately, we never heard of CT until later in our planning phase and only after we had already booked our accommodations so we were limited to a day trip which we happily learned is quite common with many tourists who visit CT.   


Our very early morning walk over to the train station was so cool because all the streets were deserted with the exception of a handful of people who I guess were walking to work. So sad, they have to go to work. [evil giggles]  Anyway, this is the first time we’ve seen the Piazza del Duomo empty and with the beautiful natural light, I saw tons of photo opps but Brad dragged me away since we did have a train that won’t be waiting for us.

the Bapistry is to the right, and the grand Duomo behind it

The train ride to CT involves a stop at Pisa and while I wanted to check out the Leaning Tower, we knew it had to be saved for another time so we can make the most of CT.

CT is composed of five small fishing villages -- four of the towns possess an old-world charm:  Riomaggiore (“Major River” because once there was a major river that ran through its valley), Manarola (most picturesque), Corniglia (the only CT town not on the water),  and Vernazza (the region’s cover girl and most touristy).  The northern-most town, Monterosso, which, of the five, is the closest thing to a beach resort town, with not much to see beyond the boardwalk apart from modern apartment blocks and hotels.  The other four had more personality mainly due to their narrow, crooked streets, and quaint houses.  

Over centuries, people have carefully built terraces on the rugged, steep landscape right up to the cliffs that overlook the sea. Part of its charm is the lack of visible modern development because it is traffic-free, and only has walking paths, trains and boats connecting the villages.
There is no museum in sight here…just sun and sea, where people come to enjoy the villages, swimming and mostly hiking the coastline.  All five towns are linked by a hiking trail of varying difficulties and can be completed in an estimated five hours.  While there are many tour companies that come here from Florence for day trips, we opted to go by ourselves so we can do our own thing, at our own pace, and not get stuck with hardcore hikers like the German trekkers with their hiking sticks who might run you over if you're not going at their pace.  :) 


Based on many recommendations, our first stop was at the most southern village, Riomaggiore, primarily because the trail between Riomaggiore and Manarola is the easiest of the five trails. 

While at Riomaggiore, we took our own personal tour of this charming town…we snuck in the very narrow streets and enjoyed the sights of the fascinating tangle of colorful homes.  So far during our trip, we’ve done a crazy amount of walking but this was the first time we had encountered such steep hills. 

During our climb, I must admit that, although Brad was doing very well, I was having a tough time and would fall behind 20 or so steps behind.  I kept hollering at Brad with, “who’s friggin idea was this?!”  So we continued our climb with periodic stops in between to enjoy breathtaking views of the ocean and the colorful old houses stacked haphazardly on top of each other.  

At one point, I was so exhausted that I was panting like a dog with my head drooping, keeping myself upright against a wall, we see this very old woman (I swear she reminded me of my great grandmother at 101 years old) bone-thin, clenching two enormous bags in her frail little fists, who passes us by steadily and swiftly, greeting us with a short but friendly nod, between her lips a cigarette that she puffed hands-free.  After a moment of shock and embarrassment, we continued our climb up the steep incline until we reached the top which made it all so worth it!

this is someone's patio and view…so lucky!

Most of the action in Riomaggiore is on the main street, Via Colombo, where there is an assortment of cafes, bars, restaurants, and of course, gelaterie.  Italy is famous for its flower pots everywhere, and the villages of the CT are no exception.

We picked up lunch at Te La Do Io La Merenda (I’ll Give You A Snack).  We both shared a pesto and a formaggio (cheese) pizza. 4 stars; 1 star for service because the lady was rude when we asked to have our pizzas heated up in the oven.  Excuse us but we like our food hot.  This region is the birthplace of pesto so naturally, it was on our “must do” list.

This region is the birthplace of pesto so naturally, it was on our “must do” list.

There are also alimentari (groceries…very tiny ones in comparison to what we have in the US) selling the typical yummy Italian fare: fresh fruit, assortments of salumi, cheeses, olives, etc.  We couldn’t resist the seafood display and decided to buy some acciughe (anchovies, another specialty of this region) and olive skewers and some tuna-stuffed pepperoni to snack on for later.  Btw, if you've always hated anchovies (the harsh, cured-in-salt American kind), you must try them fresh here where they are served the same day that they're caught!

The "hike" from Riomaggiore to Manarola via Via dell' Amore or “Pathway of Love” aka “Lovers Lane” was really more like a leisurely stroll cuz it only took about 20 mins and it was on a paved walkway.  The views will take your breath away!

the trail from RIomaggiore to Manarola 

inside "lovers lane"

The story behind this trail’s name goes back to the early 1900s when these towns were extremely isolated and villagers rarely married anyone outside their town. Sounds like West Virginia.  A trail was constructed between Riomaggiore and Manarola which became the meeting point for boys and girls from the two towns. Along the trail, we found more “padlocks of love”. 

While you'll find no beach here, stairways lead to remote rocks for swimming, fishing and sunbathing.

At the end of the walking path, right before entering Manarola and immediately after the picture below was taken, I had another accident! This time I fell when I lost my footing while stepping down from the path.  I felt myself in slow motion with my arms swimming in the air as if trying to grab someone or something to hang onto and finally landing on the ground!  Luckily, my messenger bag broke my fall, saving me from scraping and bruising myself.  What is happening with me…this was the second time I’ve fallen in Italy!  Of course, I had another set of audience.  How embarrassing!  I’ve always been clumsy when it comes to dripping or spilling food on myself but I’ve never had issues with walking!  And here’s Brad begging me to be careful…cuz yea, I like to humiliate myself for strangers.  Anyhoo, after confirming no bleeding or broken bones, I'm ready to go …let the Manarola tour begin. 

taken in Manarola (behind us is the next village up, Corniglia)

Manarola

The lower part of Manarola is filled with boats. 

covered boats line the main street

Manarola also has a nice little swimming area. It’s a little cement pier next to some big rocks that you can wade out from and into the deep blue sea. There are also stairs going all the way down to sea level.

After the pizza and antipasti snack, we weren’t entirely hungry yet but I wanted to check out a restaurant that had great reviews on their fresh seafood offerings caught the same morning…so perhaps just a bit of antipasti?

Trattoria dal Billy, way off the beaten path, perched on a cliff and has multi-level dining options.  


Our meal was off to a great start when they served us some good quality, thick, silky, velvetty balsamic...

acciughe marinate al limone (anchovies marinated in lemon) 5 stars
anchovies will never be the same for me

muscolli (mussels) simply steamed with garlic…so plump and briny fresh! 5 stars 

breathtaking view from the dining area!

More incline calls for a gelato break in Manarola!

Our plan was to hike from Manarola to Corniglia but the trail was closed for repair (yay!) so instead we decided to skip Corniglia and took the train to the fourth village, Vernazza.  All the towns slope down to sea-level except for Corniglia, which is perched on top of a tall cliff…while it sounds lovely, we wanted to hang out by the ocean.

zoomed-in shot of Corniglia, taken while at Manarola

Vernazza has a maze of tiny streets that eventually lead down to the main street. 

we couldn't get enough of these cute little "streets" with such colorful homes each with their own personality

The beach area is a small sandy strip -- there is a small section of water roped off for swimming, beyond which are boats and then the open sea.

Gelato break in Vernazza!

Ferry that runs between the villages except for Corniglia since it has no water access

There are plenty of dining options here but we chose Il Pirata delle Cinque Terre because in addition to the great reviews we read, a nice Sicilian-American we met at the train station earlier in Florence raved about this place so we just had to give it a try.  Located at the top of the town and not at the best location compared to others that had ocean views, the dynamic and enthusiastic Sicilian duo Gianluca and Massimo (twins, aka the Canoli brothers) own and run this place. Their fun and playful service makes up for the lack of a view.

Massimo

I knew I wanted the pesto lasagna and we went with Massimo’s suggestion of stuffed mussels and Bolognese lasagna.  They clearly have experience in catering to Americans since we promptly received a bowl of ice...ghiaccio!  Massimo explained that he knows what his American customers want so he serves both ice and butter without being asked.  I was afraid we might have fallen into a tourist trap...and perhaps we did, but we were very pleased with our dining experience.  

to the left are picked eggplants…really yum and i don't like pickles!

stuffed mussels…not as fabulous as we hoped it to be. great sauce but stuffing was eh. 3.5 stars

Lasagna Bolognese…5 stars!

we learned that a traditional pesto dish is prepared with potatoes and green beans…who knew?  4.5 stars

For dessert, we took some Sicilian cannoli "to-go" and munched on some on the train ride home.  4 stars

our NY Italians can make these just as yum!
check out Veniero Pasticerria in Little Italy, NY

For the remaining time we had left, we made a quick stop at Monterosso before taking our train back to Firenze, which gets us home at midnight.  

Monterosso…taken while in Vernazza

Monterosso's beach

What a great birthday this was and a nice break from the bustle of the city!  We are so glad we made this trip…my only regret is that we couldn't stay for at least two nights.  We both hope there's a next time. :)

Quoting travel expert, Rick Steves, “CT could be a painting by Picasso -- five picturesque fishing villages perched on Mediterranean hillsides, splendidly brushed in sun-washed colors.”  


My pictures do not do CT justice because I couldn't get aerial shots and I'm limited to a basic point & shoot camera, so I got these postcards to properly represent these beautiful villages.

Bellisima!