Our day started a little later as we are all still recovering from the long travel day. We had breakfast in our apartment and then headed down to buy our rail/trail passes for the next two days. We were a bit surprised at how busy it was at the train station and had no idea that we might not even get on the train. As we made our way down to the platform it became crazier and crazier. The train pulled in about 10 minutes late and pandemonium broke out. It is very hard for the people getting off the train to do that when hordes of people are pushing their way onto the train. We moved down the track to a less crowded area and tried to board but the people in the entrance way did not move into the cars and so we missed the first train. Fortunately, the second train was only a few minutes behind and we made it onto that one. The ride was short, five minutes or so and when we got out and made our way to the village we were once again shocked at how crazy busy it was in Manarola compared to the quietness of Riamaggiore. I cannot even imagine how busy it must be in their actual tourist season. The photo below shows the terraced hillsides to the north of the town. The trails up were filled with people from bottom to top. It is from these trails that you can look down on the town though and the photo above is your reward for making the trek.
Sherri and Randy went their separate way to explore for a couple of hours and as they went up the hillside we made our way down towards the water. It is just one of those places on earth where you keep looking around and are constantly amazed by the beauty surrounding you. Again, it was not just the sights, it was the music of many languages, the colours, the smell of the sea and the cafes and the amazing beauty of opera playing in the distance.
We lingered at the water, taking our time and just soaking it all in and then made our way to the hillsides across the bay. The walking, even uphill was quite easy, maybe made easier by the views. Street artists had made their way up the hillsides and were found here and there as you rounded the corners - even the Russian Spy had moved his wares from Riamaggiore to Manarola for the day. It was supposed to have been a day of thunder and rain. Fortunately, this never happened but it was a muggy, hot day that called for lots of water and the odd gelato here and there.
I wished I had brought my bathing suit as the turquoise waters were just calling my name and there were a few people in the water along the rocks. As we sauntered up the hillside we came across the restaurant Nussun Dorma which we had heard a lot about (and I thought was in another village). The line up was long however so we will try to make it back there on Friday before we leave. We climbed above the restaurant and looked down below to see what everyone was having and we were certainly more encouraged to come back when we saw the meat/cheese/olive platters and the great views that went with them. This is a picture of the restaurant from across the bay.
We ended up heading to the top of the town for lunch. After much searching for a restaurant up top we gave up and headed to a little take out shop far from the maddening crowds. Picture a take out box of Chinese food except fill the box with hot, steaming pasta and you'll get an idea of what lunch was like. Bob had penne ragu and I had buttered ravioli. Oh my goodness, it was to die for. We were so glad we hadn't found another restaurant. We ate outside on chairs and watched the people go by as we enjoyed our lunch together. Then it was back onto the train (a little less crazy by this time) to the very small, very old village of Corniglia. It was like taking a step back in time. The train goes to Corniglia but the town is located far above the tracks. We contemplated the shuttle but were glad in the end to have made our way up the twisting and turning 382 steps to the town.
Corniglia was much smaller than Manarola or Riamaggiore so it didn't take too long to wander through its small central plaza and then through the maze of narrow stone streets. In our wanderings we passed the gelato place so many had recommended so we HAD to stop and get a taste from Alberto's gelato and we were glad we did. YUM! A bit more wandering through the back streets and then we called it a day, making our way back to Riamaggiore on the train.
After all that up and down and miles of walking we headed back to our place for showers and naps. We had a quiet couple of hours and then headed to the premiere restaurant in town overlooking the harbour. The views were spectacular, the food was just okay. If you have seafood allergies Cinque Terre is NOT the place for you as it is extremely difficult to find anything to eat in the restaurants that doesn't have squid, oyster, octopus, fish, clams or unidentifiable sea critters in it. And if you do, it will be pasta. We closed the evening by buying a bottle of wine, picked up four glasses from our room and headed back to the beauty of the waterfront to play with some night photography and enjoy an evening sip. The young couple trying to carve a private niche by the dock were disappointed with our arrival but for us it was another wonderful day in paradise.
Arrivederci all!
I love your night photo.
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