Mara, Maggie, and Gina swimming in Manarola, the beautiful town of Riomaggiore, Sarah, Ellie, Vinnie, Danielle, Maggie, and Jackie in Vernazza, my seafood lunch, Via dell'Amore, the post-concert picture.
Today is the most anticipated day of the trip, free time to explore the five lands of the coast,Cinque Terre, as well as our final concert. The morning is rushed because we get no wakeup call, but the brekkie I eat is the best I've had. Fresh fruit, yogurt and granola, a crossaint, and café. I put on my swimsuit under my dress and pack for the day.
We take a train out to the furthest city(map), Riomaggiore, and we have the day at leisure. Danielle, Ellie, and I explore the city, my legs and lungs ache from climbing countless stairs. We find a place to climb down on the rocks and sit by the sea. We watch the white foam rush in and around the rocks below and I try to capture the spray of water on film.
We take the Via dell'Amore to the next town, Manarola. It is the most beautiful scene I have witnessed. Tourists litter the path and we stop to take pictures for couples and to scrutinize the locks and scribbled messages. We find a small swimming area and our group. Everyone goes swimming in the salty blue water, the icy cold is refreshing to our skin, but the salt makes me thirsty. I jump off the cliffs and enjoy the freedom and the water swelling around me.
Danielle, Ellie, and I dry off and head to get lunch. I want seafood. It is the one thing I have left to do on this trip, the one thing my dad insisted I try. I get a delicioius meal of mussels and linguine and the waiters are friendly. We finally get bread and olive oil, one of the first times this trip. We meet up with the choir again and take the train to another town,Vernazza. There is a small beach with large rocks and we lay out like turtles sunning and I take photos.
The last train is coming soon, so we head back to the station and decide to go all the way back to Levanto. In Levanto we go to the beach and I finally experience the pulling and smashing waves that toss my body about. I let the waves pull me out to deeper water and think to myself, this, is bliss. The salt soon choes my throat and I let the waves push me out of the water and onto shore. I finish my water and lay on the beach, chatting with Nancy and eating cherries, letting the sun dry my skin.
Exhausted, salty, and sunned, we head back to the hotel to shower. My hair is lightened and wavy and my face and shoulders are sprinkled with new freckles. I take a warm shower and reorganize my suitcase. It is again time for dinner and I am able to make do with the three hunks of cheese and salad we are given.
It is time for our last concert. We walk up a hill to the church and meet Aldo, a cute old man who Mr. Aamot and his father have sang for many times. He is also the composer of "La Sera", our favorite song of the trip. Sarah, Tyler, Faith and I wait in a creepy, dingy storage room to use the one bathroom. There is a bat skeleton on a shelf. Filled with adrenaline, we make dumb jokes and try not to laugh because we have to go to the bathroom so badly.
After finding our places, we warm up in the small piazza, the men and women separated and everyone is nearly silent, both anxious and wistful about what we are about to do. The girls sing "There Is More Love" and "Every Night". The men take a picture of everyone doing "bow me." It is time to begin the end. It is difficult to hold the tears back the entire concert, but there is a small girl of about two who toddles up and watches us enraptured. She claps, shushes her parents, and moves her feet with the beat. She reminds us of joy and happiness and allows us to keep singing.
The end of the concert is hard. Sadness is swelling through me, at the loss of my father, the end of this trip, and the end of the most wonderful part of my life thus far-choir. It is not just the people, it is the music, the emotion, the deeper connection. I am also exuberant, I feel blessed and joyful knowing that I got to be part of this for so long. I let the tears stream down my face during "The Road Home" and the choir heads to the piazza outside the church and we sob into each other's arms.
The audience continues to clap and Aamot calls out "That means encore. Lets go!" We sing "From This House" with more power than we'd ended the concert initially. We go back outside to the steps and tears flow ceaselessly as I hug the friends I've gotten so close to over the years. We go inside for a group picture, our eyes red and puffy. After struggling to take a decent picture, Aldo leads us to a small reception room near our hotel where the townspeople have a reception for us. I cry a little at the gesture.
It is raining and the women go out to the piazza and dance every dance we know. We say goodbye to Aldo, and then we have 45 minutes until bed check. Ellie, Danielle, and I go to the beach where Mara and some others are taking a late swim. We are full of energy and a little antsy to do something out of the ordinary our last night here. Ellie and I sneak down to the beach and steal Mara's dress and shirt. They see us and call out and we run. We go to Ellie and Mara's hotel room and see other girls in our group and tell them the story.
Danielle and I head back to our hotel, talking to Andrew and Connor about the nights events. When we get back to the room, I rinse off my sandy feet, hang up my wet clothes, and crawl into bed. I drift into unconscious as the clock shows that the greatest day of my life is now over.
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