The train station of Riomaggiore is caught between two cliffs, the tracks at each end disappearing into the darkness of one of that many tunnels that shoot through the bellies of mountains here. The day has just broke and the hillsides are enveloped in blue shadows. The metallic voice coming out of the speakers on the platforms giving instructions in Italian makes me think of totalitarian regimes and George Orwell's 1984. I catch a train to Monterosso.

The exit of the Monterosso leads onto a long promenade along the bay with the only extensive sand beach in the Cinque Terre. I have breakfast in a local café where I'm the only foreigner. Back at the train station, at the tourist info kiosk, they tell me the trails are closed. The walking trail has been closed for years due to floods and landslides and the hiking trails were closed due to to heavy rain in the previous days. I had come specifically to hike the trails so before resigning myself to move between the five villages either by train or boat, I set about to find an unwatched mountain trail.

On the edge of town I find a sign indicating the next village. It's still very early and I decide it's worth a shot even if I have to double back at some point and use the train instead. The stone steps go up a steep hillside and soon Monterosso is well down below. It's a steep climb and after a while I'm walking a winding path of dirt and steps between narrow terraced plots of land along the coastline. I find other tourists on the trails.

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