This weekend put me in shock in more ways than one. Not only because of the fact I almost drowned, but also because the sites that I saw while traveling proved just how amazing Mother Nature really is.
Friday started out quite calm with a nice workout and more staring of course. A group of us headed to Assisi for a few hours to check out the little town on the mountain. The transportation situation was interesting because we took a train straight to Assisi, but when we got off we had to catch a bus to take us up the mountain to the actual town. Very few cars are allowed in the town and visitors get there mostly by bus.
The views from the top of the mountain allowed us to see the Tuscany region and all its wondrous shades of green and yellow. It was a huge workout walking up and down the hills of the town. Just being there you could feel the ancient history seep through the stone walls and the winding paths. This little town became famous because of St. Francis and since then visitors have taken over the town. With the history and the beauty, once can’t help but visit the city and I surely wanted to check it out.
After Assisi, I planned for us to go to Perugia. One because my sister studied there and said it was definitely worth checking out and two because there was a cool Jazz Festival going on and I figured Perugina chocolate and music blend together quite well. After a quick train ride to Perugia, we hopped on a bus that happened to take us right to the entrance of the Jazz Fest and about two minutes from the major town square. It was coincidental and definitely a plus in helping with our sightseeing.
The Jazz Festival was pretty awesome! We heard a band from Texas play and got to enjoy some beautiful weather with great people and music. As I usually do, I ventured off to take some pictures of the town and got some great pictures of couples sitting on cliffs. I than realized that I have this tendency to photograph couples wherever I go, so I think I’ll dub myself the love photographer. Yea. Sounds good to me.
Now that I’m the love photographer and all I have to make sure I get some more great shots while traveling and that I did while travelling to Cinque Terre. There was plenty of love in the air on these remarkable beaches and I tried to capture it with my camera. With my stomach filled with Foccacia and Torta di spinaci, I was ready to go and get some great shots of the beautiful towns of Cinque Terre. We went on a two hour hike across the mountains and towns of Cinque Terre and it was very exhausting but worth every bit of pain. my knee luckily held up for the hike, however I started to feel the clicking toward the end. I just wanted to get to the beach and be able to walk to the train station and I felt as though that might get harder the more hiking I did...
Friday started out quite calm with a nice workout and more staring of course. A group of us headed to Assisi for a few hours to check out the little town on the mountain. The transportation situation was interesting because we took a train straight to Assisi, but when we got off we had to catch a bus to take us up the mountain to the actual town. Very few cars are allowed in the town and visitors get there mostly by bus.
The views from the top of the mountain allowed us to see the Tuscany region and all its wondrous shades of green and yellow. It was a huge workout walking up and down the hills of the town. Just being there you could feel the ancient history seep through the stone walls and the winding paths. This little town became famous because of St. Francis and since then visitors have taken over the town. With the history and the beauty, once can’t help but visit the city and I surely wanted to check it out.
After Assisi, I planned for us to go to Perugia. One because my sister studied there and said it was definitely worth checking out and two because there was a cool Jazz Festival going on and I figured Perugina chocolate and music blend together quite well. After a quick train ride to Perugia, we hopped on a bus that happened to take us right to the entrance of the Jazz Fest and about two minutes from the major town square. It was coincidental and definitely a plus in helping with our sightseeing.
The Jazz Festival was pretty awesome! We heard a band from Texas play and got to enjoy some beautiful weather with great people and music. As I usually do, I ventured off to take some pictures of the town and got some great pictures of couples sitting on cliffs. I than realized that I have this tendency to photograph couples wherever I go, so I think I’ll dub myself the love photographer. Yea. Sounds good to me.
Now that I’m the love photographer and all I have to make sure I get some more great shots while traveling and that I did while travelling to Cinque Terre. There was plenty of love in the air on these remarkable beaches and I tried to capture it with my camera. With my stomach filled with Foccacia and Torta di spinaci, I was ready to go and get some great shots of the beautiful towns of Cinque Terre. We went on a two hour hike across the mountains and towns of Cinque Terre and it was very exhausting but worth every bit of pain. my knee luckily held up for the hike, however I started to feel the clicking toward the end. I just wanted to get to the beach and be able to walk to the train station and I felt as though that might get harder the more hiking I did...
Once we made it to the beach, we got into our bathing suits and headed toward the water. I was so ready to get into the water, but I was a bit worried about there not being much sand. There was basically just rock and deep water on the other side. Because I am not a swimmer, I kept my distance from the water until a few of my friends convinced me to jump in and try it out. Well, after much deliberation and time I decided what the heck right? I'm in Italy on a beautiful beach and I just hiked for two hours- I could use a nice, refreshing swim. So I get ready on the edge and grab my friends hand to jump in. We have the whole thing set up- the photographer, the crew in the water, the exit plan just in case and there we go jumping in the water right as the wave dies down. We jump right into the shallow water and i come up from the water not being able to breathe with my lungs filled with water and my eyes blurred from the stingy salt water. I am in bottomless water. I am not able to breathe. I am not able to see anyone. I can not swim.
What was I going to do? I was going to try and scream for help- that's exactly what I did. I freaked out because I had no way of doing anything else. I couldn't believe how I was in pure shock. As I swam over toward the ladder that was hanging off the other side of the ledge, I was yelling for help. I finally made it over to some coral reef under water and grabbed onto that (probably not the best idea since it definitely tore up my legs and knees pretty bad). At the time it was the best thing for me to find and I got a good grip on it. It allowed me to grab the ladder and hang on until someone could come grab me. My body was shaking and my breathing was short and sporadic. I needed to get out of the water and on the ground. I snapped into survival mode the moment I got into the water and from than on I was not in any condition to be off the solid ground. I laid on the ledge and some angelic Australian woman helped slow my breathing and clear the water out. My friends helped me and after a good 15 minutes of trying to get calm, my chest was moving normal again and I was able to open my eyes.
What I had experienced was my biggest fear hitting me straight between the eyes. Looking back on it, I wish I could have controlled myself so much better, but my fear of drowing and water and swimming in deep oceans overpowered my mental stability. I couldn't believe that I, with a pretty strong mind and body, could let it affect me to such extreme levels. I know that I need to learn to swim or stay away from risky water situations because I do not need to put my body through that shock again. I still have trouble figuring out what I was thinking! I am very daring. For those five minutes of my life I was not thinking- I had no thoughts but thoughts of survival and rescue.... Discovery Channel stuff phew.
After a lot of great help from friends and complete strangers, I was back on my feet and ready to enjoy more sunshine. We took a mini ferry boat ride to the first of the Cinque Terre towns where we got to go on another mini hike and then through the Via Dell'Amore. The street of love? Can you get any more Monica than that?! It was an incredible experience after the ridiculously scary experience earlier. I crossed the Via Dell'Amore with thoughts of love and peace and passion. The history goes that a bridge was built to bring together people from two towns and the Via is where men and women would meet (from the different towns) and fall in love. Absolutely gorgeous. There was love graffiti along the tunnel and hearts everywhere. Yep, definitely me. ;)
After having visited a few towns and cities in Italy this weekend I realized that these towns are simple, small places that tourists have turned into sites where people from around the world come to visit and appreciate each of their beauty. But doesn't that have the potential to take away some of the original, pure beauty? Cinque Terre's economy has changed drastically since a journalist discovered the beautiful coastal towns. At one point there were only fisherman and agriculturalists who worked the city and provided for the residents, but now tourism has taken over most of the economy. The beauty is irresistable but the preservation is most important. We must remember that in order to enjoy what we have now, we must preserve it in its most precious form. That is both the traveler and the environmentalist in me...
No comments:
Post a Comment