Rick Steves put it nicely: "A group of American women who married into the
community organized a project which brought relief to their town in the
immediate aftermath of the flood and now is morphing into an organization to
help preserve and foster healthy tourism in town. For the latest on the town,
the recovery, and their activities, visit www.rebuildmonterosso.com"
Rebuild Monterosso in the news
Women with a mission
by
Joanna Sandager (issue no. 163/2012 / May 10, 2012)
Expats unite to help
rebuild Cinque Terre
On October 25, 2011, a
devastating combination of heavy rainfall and seismic landslides hit over 10
towns between lower Liguria and Northern Tuscany (see TF 152).
Among those affected the most were the seaside villages of Monterosso and
Vernazza, which received more than 20 inches of rain in under four hours, about
one-third of the average total annual rainfall. The catastrophic weather
claimed four lives and caused destruction worse than any other disaster,
including World War II. Few in these towns believed they could recover from the
damage done that day. Six months later, spring has brought new life. With help
from American expats living
in Tuscany and Liguria, the towns are quickly bouncing back to their original
beauty. Read More . . .
By Christine Mitchell
When I moved to
the seaside Italian village of Monterosso al Mare, I was ready for a lot of
things. I was prepared for the buttery summer sun, heaps of pesto coating trofie,
and shimmering silvery anchovies topping soft foccacia. I was ready to stretch
out on the beach in the morning, splashing in the clear as glass water. My
afternoons would be spent learning to cook with the fresh ingredients available
at the market as I pursued my quest to discover authentic Ligurian cuisine. I
would spend my evenings serving food in a local restaurant to blissful
tourists, clinking glasses over a vivid orange sunset. Days off would be happy
afternoons on the beach, and long, extravagant dinners with friends at the
little restaurants dotting the main street of town, eating under the stars. My
first summer in paradise went exactly as planned in my little slice of the
Italian Riviera, light on the glitz that covers nearby towns like Portofino,
but heavy on the charm. Read more . . .
After the Flood: Small-Town Grudges and Mother Nature’s Nudges (Part 2 in a 3-Part Series)
I woke to the sound of miniature cement trucks and jackhammers. These were happy sounds to me, as physically, Monterosso and Vernazza are being put back together after the recent devastating flood. Socially, too, it’s been a time of reconstruction for both communities. Being small towns, they were rife with cliques and ancient grudges. With the challenge presented by the flood and recovery period, locals marvel at how everyone came together. Today, many locals enjoy better relations with old enemies, but there is a new divide: between people who joined in the community-wide effort, and those who only took care of their own business needs (or even left town during the chaos). In both towns, while a large percent of the businesses were essentially destroyed, lots of people and hotels that were on higher or luckier ground came through unscathed, losing only their water and electricity for a while. Some of them ignored their business needs and became heroically involved. And, as it goes in small towns, those who didn’t will long be remembered for turning their backs on neighbors in need. Read more . . .
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