Manarola/Cinque Terre - June 3, 2010

On to Cinque Terre - We buy our tickets to La Spezia/Manarola and go off to wait for the train which comes 10 minutes late. This, of course, puts us late for the regional train to Manarola from LaSpezia but that’s Italy! Once the train gets rolling, it takes about 10 minutes to get to Riomaggiore, the first stop, and about another 10 minutes or less to get to Manarola. There is a handy office to buy our tickets for the trails right away and I talk them into a half-price ticket for the evening walk we plan to take as soon as we check into our room.

Trek to our room - We trudge through the tunnel from the train station and up (and up and up and up) the cobblestone street in the direction of our room at Aria di Mare. Pulling the suitcase over the cobblestones and up the steep incline proves to be quite a challenge. Bob gets tired of waiting for me and finally takes all the luggage. You’d think with all the stair climbing workouts I do that going up the street wouldn’t be a problem – but it was. I was slow as a slug. Plus, my feet hurt.

Mama Franca & Aria di Mare - We arrive at the top the same time as another couple and there she is (as promised in Steves book). It’s Mama Franca with her big toothy smile waiting for us at Trattoria Billy’s. “Aria di Mare?” she asks. We all nod and off she leads us through a narrow, dark cobblestone street. I don’t know how the elderly folks manage to negotiate these hills and uneven surfaces! We come to – yikes! – a narrow and super steep stone staircase which is nearly impossible to get a small suitcase up. And yet, up clambers Mama Franca.

While Mama gets the Italian couple into their room, we wait outside and marvel at the incredible view of the sea and town. Then it is our turn to go to our room. Oh, my! It is fabulous! It is quite new and beautifully decorated in bright colors. There are a comfortable queen bed with small side tables and lamps, a desk, chair, and refrigerator. The bathroom is thoroughly modern and tiled in turquoise. Stunning! I reserved these rooms via email with Maurizio and his sparse English. He did not take a deposit, which was worrisome (would he give them away?) and he wants cash payment. However, I emailed him a couple of times to confirm the reservation and all seemed to be fine.

Even more stunning than the room is our own private patio with table and striped lounge chairs. We are surrounded by grape vines, a garden, a couple of cats who enjoy the treats I give them, and those incredible views. Mama Franca lifts her arms and dramatically gestures to the sea, “Aria di Mare!” she exclaims. She then goes on to explain everything in rapid Italian – none of which we get and hope that we can figure everything out eventually. She asks for our passports and we hear the explanation involving the word “polizia,” but we know that taking our passports is to be expected.

Via dell’Amore - Mama Franca also indicates that Maurizio, the owner with whom I emailed for reservations will be here in 30 minutes. But the evening is coming and we want to stroll the Via dell’Amore portion of the Cinque Terre trail between Manarola and Riomaggiore (to the south). The walk is breathtaking on the paved level path. Along the way I take pictures of flowers, cliffs, water, and the ever-present locks that lovers have placed along the way on the chain link fencing announcing their devotion to each other.

The Edge of Paradise - At the Riomaggiore trailhead we pop into Bar & Vini a Pie de Ma. We head for an outside seat and gradually, as people leave, work our way to the best table for two with a jaw-dropping vista of clear aqua sea, the pastel buildings of Riomaggiore tumbling down the hill to the water colored by several glasses of white Ligurian (somewhat like Pinot Grigio) wine, a complimentary dish of salted peanuts for munching, and a piece of spinach quiche. At dusk, we reluctantly, we leave our seaside seat high on the edge of the cliff to wander back along the scenic walkway back to Manarola.

Nightcap - The torturous hike up to our lovely room somehow seems less difficult to accomplish. I think we're getting used to hills. We sit out on our terrace to sip our way through another bottle of red wine from Montalcino and munch on olives, crackers, and cheese while the sky descends into pinks, purples, and finally, the black of night. Tomorrow is our one full day for hiking to the other Cinque Terre towns so we crawl into our clean, comfortable bed while soft cool sea breezes caress us into slumber.