One of my favorite destinations, the Cinque Terre, was devastated by heavy rains, flooding, and mudslides today. Apparently, much of Monterosso is destroyed and Vernazza is in ruins. Here is a link to a video aired on RAI TV in Italy.
Here is a photo of the muddy water rushing down the street in Vernazza. What you see here is the point where the harbor square meets with the beach. Normally, there are brightly colored fishermen boats and several outdoor restaurants (in the upper area in the photo). The red car is actually on the “sandy” beach area.
I hope everyone is safe in the Cinque Terre. It is my favorite place in the world and it’s held up for this long with the strong Italian people there and I hope things get back to its gorgeous self there soon! Peace, Howard (from USA)
my thoughts to everyone in the cinque terre – especially that man in the photo up the top right of your page…
we visited years ago and i had the exact same photo taken with that chef… i can’t recall the name of the restaurant but we had the most wonderful night there watching him lovingly prepare all the food that night and then sit down after his busy night cooking to a humble bowl of vanilla ice cream with his grand daughter. something about him, the restaurant, his granddaughter really got to me that night.
I hope he and his restaurant pull through this awful disaster.
K
Karen and Howard – Thanks for the kind words regarding the Cinque Terre. I’ve connected with a few friends in the villages since the flooding and it appears there is a lot of work to do. I will keep posting as news comes to me.