Cinque Terre

In the north western part of Italy, the land meets the Mediterranean in a coastal region known as Cinque Terre. Cinque Terre (Five Lands) is actually five cliffside villages along the coast between two major promontories (points of land that jut out into the sea). The villages are Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore. I had come here after the Torino Olympic meetings in May, but after being land-locked for so long and having just lived in a major, polluted metropolis for the last month, I decided I needed to see the sea! The weather wasn’t cooperating much when we first arrived in Manarola (where we stayed in a hostel), but cleared up after a storm passed through during the night. Although the exact date of establishment of the villages isn’t known, the church in Manarola dates back to the 1300s.

We woke up to a slightly chilly, but clear blue day and started hiking from village to village. The trail from Manarola to Riomaggiore is pretty much a stone sidewalk hanging over the water and is an easy 20 minute stroll. Parts of the walkway are covered and you can see amazing views of the water through arch shaped openings. This walkway is called Via Del’ Amore (Lovers’ Pathway) and has benches all along it for sitting and gazing out over the sea. The trails between all the other villages are a little more rugged, so one section was closed off due to the potential for landslides. The others were open once the sun came out, so we hiked the two remaining trails.

The trails twist, turn, climb and descend through olive and lemon orchards and family vineyards and vegetable crops. Some parts are literally along residents’ “backyards.” All along the hills are fasce, narrow strips of land on the hillside for terraced cultivation. Boundaries and stabilization are established by 2 meter high stone walls called muretti. This network of stone walls are 11,000 km long (about 6800 miles) and requires constant maintenance. I can’t imagine the amount of effort it’s taken over the years to establish this type of farming in such an inhospitable landscape and how much work it takes now to keep it going. It’s comforting to know that there is a certain amount of hard-headedness required to live along coastal areas, no matter where in the world they are!

At the end of our day of hiking, we made the 4.5 hour train journey back up to Torino. This seaside stop did wonders for my disposition, but didn’t do much for my desire to return to the city. Now that I’m back though, it’s good to be here to get things rolling for the Paralympics.