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Retrieving Cinque Terre

A few days ago, I happened to open an old photo album. Ok, it was actually a computer folder, but a very old one. So, it felt a bit like it was made of paper. That folder was about my first trip with my girlfriend back then: my wife today..

Photos used to be much smaller, fewer filters and options were available. The camera my wife used to carry stamped them with the date, which was something more common in the past, especially in Asian countries. This made me smile: all those issues about sizes, quality and dates could be referred to my memories as well..

I only vaguely reminisced I arranged a weekend to Cinque Terre, in Northern Italy. The destination is very famous and doesn’t need much introduction. So, I begged my photos to take me there again and show me my old trip, dated 2007..

Which were my findings?

The first thing that immediately stood out was the fact that those five towns are astonishingly beautiful: even the low-quality photos were less degraded than my recollections. The train linking them by the coast side, their blueish blueing blueness of the sea, kids still playing football in the streets like I used to do when I was a child. And, yes, my smiling girlfriend, blooming inside and outside my memory. Where have I been these last twelve years? I should have let that weekend last forever. Time rebooting, day after day.

I found out that that trip was one of the few ones set at romance mode. We booked a small accommodation in Manarola. I remember the apartment was cozy, not very spacious. But two fresh lovers don’t need much space, they only want a room to part themselves from the world. The smaller, the better. And a little balcony to cherish the glittering sea while having dinner, in an endless Mediterranean summer day. What did we eat? Judge it yourself, I cannot figure it out from that old photo :)

And then running again to the colorful streets, stopping by flowery walls, painted walls in overflowing street art. Uphill and downhill, still young enough to not feel the strain. In love enough to think that we could have gone everywhere, as long as it was together.

For things that changed, there are also many which never changed. Cats were my proof. They’re in all my wife’s albums, since 2007. The Cats United Network registered all our movements for more than twelve years. And we were glad to be tracked by our furry friends.

Just now I remember that we probably argued for one hour or two. And, of course, I forgot the reason. It still happens, I still forget, we still go on. That’s all that matters as long as we overcome it. As long as sunset reminds us that the day is fading out. And the darkness will smoothen the skittish colors inside our souls.

Good morning, my dear. Let’s start another day, another journey, another life together.

Some additional information:

Cinque Terre, which literally means “five lands”, is an area on the Liguria coast composed of five villages: Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso al Mare.

The easiest way to reach them by public transportation is by train, from La Spezia train station by regional trains. Bigger train stations as the ones in Riomaggiore or Monterosso are also served by quicker trains located on the Genoa-Pisa railway.

The biggest beach (and the only sandy one) is located in Monterosso al Mare.

Riomaggiore and Manarola are connected by a panoramic path on the sea, called The Way of Love (Via dell’Amore), currently (February 2020) partially closed.