Return to the Cinque Terre

Wednesday Oct-2, 2013 

When Michael came to visit us in June, a trip to the Cinque Terre (the five coastal towns on the Italian Riviera) was right at the top of his list.  We spent 2 nights there, hiking the historic fishing towns, swimming in the Mediterranean Sea, and eating in the great restaurants.  And, we resolved that when the last of our guests had returned home to the States (and the weather got a bit cooler) we would return.  

We left early Wednesday for the 3 hour drive into Manarola, the second of the five towns.  It was the same town we stayed in last time, partly due to limited hotel availability – the tourist season is still in full swing, with many American and French retirees on holiday.  Even though we arrived early, the friendly staff at the Hotel Da Baranin had our studio apartment ready and we checked in to an awesome view right out our window.

We immediately walked just a couple of minutes down to Trail 6P for our first hike.  Down at the harbor, the entry gate for the Coastal Walk to Corniglia is still locked shut, however, by taking Trail 6P from the upper part of town, and making the climb part way up the mountain,  it turned and dropped us right down on the Coastal Walk and straight onto Corniglia from there.  

The reconstruction crews have done an outstanding job rebuilding the Coastal Walk trail between Manarola and Corniglia, using sturdy new suspension bridges to get us over the chasms and washouts from the horrific mudslides of two years ago.  It was an easy trek onto the foot of Corniglia; I say foot because the trail deposits you at the bottom of a winding staircase of 350+ steps straight up to the town, which is perched on a large rocky outcropping high above sea.  The train station is also located at the foot of the town, and I don’t envy anyone getting off the train and hauling their suitcases up that staircase to check into their hotel!

We walked up for a visit around Corniglia, pausing to buy a collection of watercolors of the five towns painted by a local artist who set up her little “shop” right on one of the landings on the  staircase.  We then went back down to the train station to catch a ride back to Manarola.

Once back in town I could not resist the allure of the Mediterranean Sea, so I changed into trunks, grabbed a beach towel, and went down for a swim in the mighty Med.  The afternoon was quite sunny and the water surprisingly warm for October, so there was  a pretty good crowd swimming, sunning, and clambering over the huge rock outcroppings that comprise the Manarola harbor area.  

Later that evening Angie and I had dinner at the local Trattoria La Scogliera. We started with a cheese sampler and a giant plate of mussels.  Both were very good, but it was the Secondi Piatti that was the big hit – grilled sea bass.  Served whole and “non-spooned”, meaning heads and skins on, they required a bit of picking to watch for bones but were fresh and delicious.

Thursday Oct-3, 2013  After fixing breakfast in our studio we checked out, hauled our luggage up to the car, then walked the short distance to Trail 6.  We had hiked Trail 6 in June with Mike; the accent is steep and challenging, and in many places the high mountain trail is little more than a narrow goat path – it is no place for the inexperienced or out of shape, but the glorious views over the mountains and sea are worth every step.

We made the tricky decent down into Corniglia for lunch before catching the train back to Manarola.  Once at the car we headed for home.

Our return to the Cinque Terre was so rewarding; the mountains and sea are magnificent, the hiking outstanding, and the culture and charm of the seaside towns is spiritually uplifting.  It is a place that resonates with both Angie and I, and without a doubt is one of our favorite places in Italy.