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| Waving from our favorite swim spot! |
Hi there!
Austin bloggin at ya from Cinque Terre again, we just can't seem to get away from this place!! It has captured our hearts, not only with its lovely beaches and grub, but the friends we have made here as well. Example: Brittany, the Texas girl married to a Vernazza local ( Vernazza is the village that we make our humble adobe of the five), who helps at the internet cafe we frequent; her kindness and helpfulness with getting to know Cinque Terre has been amazing. Then there is Andrea, a Roma local vacationing here at his past away grandmother's mom, who makes us smile and feel so important. And, of course, the local shopowners, who remain genuine and friendly despite the mass tourism present.
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| Enjoying our three year anniversary dinner. |
Another layer of depth in our experience hearing stories of the flood that hit Vernazza and killed three locals. It was October 2011, and what assumed to be just a few inches of flooding in shops became within moments a ten foot high water surge through the main street, dragging cars, debris, and even people into the ocean. One powerful story is the sacrifice a local Gelateria owner made by holding the shop doors shut against the rising water while his family climbed to safety. He was swept away in the surge; the full story in English is here: http://savevernazza.com/testimonials-2/. Kindra and I were in tears just reading about it.
Other stories include numerous close calls and absolute miracles that resulted in lives saved. The shopowner of the Internet Cafe was in her brother's wine shop across the way, and they for some odd reason chose to keep the door propped open during some of the flooding, which later gave them an unexpected escape. Another woman was hanging on for dear life in the flooded street, when the water level dropped for a few moments, enough time for her to float down to the square, where she was rescued by those on higher ground. Here is a video of the flood:
In the aftermath, the Vernazza townspeople had their hands full clearing loads of debris, but were able to get open for the following tourist season. Locals are more united from the event, but uncertain whether is would happen again (this kind of flood hadn't occurred since the middle ages).
Tomorrow, we may leave for Tuscany to pursue a wwoofing option. In the meantime, we release the uncertainty of the our future plans and instead play in the sun and enjoy the adventures and lessons that God has for us here. :)
More photos: https://plus.google.com/photos/117860913937238604610/albums/5905291286111365617?banner=pwa
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| Kindra leaps into the smooth Mediterranean. |
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