Cinque Terre Towns
Besides being beautiful, the towns of Monterosso al Mare (where we stayed), Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore were really fun to explore. After visiting a coffee shop for a cappuccino, a gelateria for gelato, or a restaurant for pasta, we usually made our way up the main street that inevitably led from the waterfront (except in Corniglia that doesn’t go down to the water) to the hilltops through the little alleyways high above the crashing waves of the Mediterranean. Looking back at the little towns tucked in the cracks of the hills, I was spellbound by the colors—the pastel blues, pinks and yellows of the buildings caressed by the blue of the Med. At least I was spellbound for about 2 days; then dark black clouds covered the sky, and the rain began. Even then, the sea showed some of its brilliant turquoise in the shallows set against the blue-black of the deep water. At the shoreline, the white foam crashed against some gigantic rocks. I kept walking by my favorite, an enormous dark magenta piece of flat marble that the waves washed over and then swirled around. It looked like a large round table being readied for dinner by washwater being thrown on it.
The clouds were very dark in the evening of our last day and eventually the sky opened up and dumped a huge deluge of Florida type rain, complete with thunder and lightning. The forecast had been for 3 days of heavy winds and storms. We were lucky to have had 2 days of reasonably bright sun. Tomorrow will probably be very clear, but we have train reservations for Nice, France that we’ll need to keep.
Besides being beautiful, the towns of Monterosso al Mare (where we stayed), Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore were really fun to explore. After visiting a coffee shop for a cappuccino, a gelateria for gelato, or a restaurant for pasta, we usually made our way up the main street that inevitably led from the waterfront (except in Corniglia that doesn’t go down to the water) to the hilltops through the little alleyways high above the crashing waves of the Mediterranean. Looking back at the little towns tucked in the cracks of the hills, I was spellbound by the colors—the pastel blues, pinks and yellows of the buildings caressed by the blue of the Med. At least I was spellbound for about 2 days; then dark black clouds covered the sky, and the rain began. Even then, the sea showed some of its brilliant turquoise in the shallows set against the blue-black of the deep water. At the shoreline, the white foam crashed against some gigantic rocks. I kept walking by my favorite, an enormous dark magenta piece of flat marble that the waves washed over and then swirled around. It looked like a large round table being readied for dinner by washwater being thrown on it.
The clouds were very dark in the evening of our last day and eventually the sky opened up and dumped a huge deluge of Florida type rain, complete with thunder and lightning. The forecast had been for 3 days of heavy winds and storms. We were lucky to have had 2 days of reasonably bright sun. Tomorrow will probably be very clear, but we have train reservations for Nice, France that we’ll need to keep.
No comments:
Post a Comment