Life Happens

I've often been told that we learn from our mistakes.  While I have battled with myself from time to time about whether I believe this to be true or not, I decided this weekend, that I do indeed believe it to be true.  Considering a good many mistakes were made on my part this weekend, I have decided to impart some tips with the hope you can learn from my mistakes and avoid the hassle yourself.
This weekend, ISA (International Studies Abroad- my program) offered a weekend excursion to Cinque Terre (that means 'five lands' in Italian) which consists of five different villages right on the coast that are connected by a trail running along the coast.  They are small and quiet and stunningly beautiful.  As much as I love Florence, I've come to realize that I miss seeing green in my day-to-day life, so needless to say, I was greatly looking forward to taking advantage of the hiking trail.  My expectations were high and I couldn't wait to get going on this great adventure.  However, it seems that Saturday morning I forgot how to properly start adventures.
Mistake #1- Not setting your alarm.
My apartmentmates were kind enough to arouse me that morning with 10 minutes to spare before we were supposed to leave for the train station.  I had thought I had set my alarm the night before for a full hour before we were due to leave so I could shower and pack, but its not a real day in the life of Sam Gormley if a little dysfunction is not present.  For anyone who has lived with me, you can imagine the scene that is taking place right now- shooting straight up out of bed, spitting out very colorful words about as fast as I'm moving, which is a blur, a cloud of clothes, hygiene products and other traveling necessities filling the air around me as I pack at lightning speed.  15 minutes later, I'm out the door, looking semi-presentable, though a little disgruntled and on my way to the train station.
Tip #1- Remember to ACTUALLY set your alarm.
The journey there was uneventful and I arrived in significantly better spirits.  We were dropped off in Levanto and made our way to the hostel, getting an opportunity to take in the town as we went.  Seeing the beach and the cliffs had us all practically giddy, and we couldn't wait to venture off in the town.  We powered through settling in the hostel and lunch, then took off as soon as we could.  I couldn't even tell you where we ended up, but we found an obscure road that led to a wall, which made a great post to climb up and get some great pictures.

Well, I think they're great pictures..
After a little bit of wandering, we met up with the rest of the group and headed for the train station to go to the first town of the Cinque Terre, Riomaggiore.  That's where we would begin our time on the trail.  The first section is called Lover's Lane and it is the easiest part of the trail, but this isn't a very good predictor of what the actual trail is like considering this was simply a sidewalk on a cliff.  Very cool, absolutely stunning, impossible to forget.  I guess you could say this is where my little roller coaster ride of a weekend starts.  I was with a group of four girls and the staff members only had a limited number of maps and train schedules.  One of the other girls was given the map and train schedule, so I knew I needed to stick with her.  We got separated almost first thing on the trail, but I just assumed that I would meet back up with her at the next town.
Mistake #2- Assuming that people are going to do exactly what you think they will.
This isn't life.  Let's be real.  When we got to the end of that section, the staff members wanted to show us the town and I got a little distracted from my condition.
Tip #2- Good communication, or, at least for the love of all things holy and good, have their phone numbers.
In Manarola, the second town, we were shown a popular place for swimming.  Instead of a beach, it's simply a road that goes down into the sea.  It's surrounded by cliffs and in the middle of the cove was a giant rock people were doing high dives off of.  It was wonderful and I couldn't help going down to get a closer look.  The water was so clear you could see a school of fish swimming around the rock I was on.  A friend and I poked around for a little bit and I just couldn't help but try to wade into the water a little.  Well, attempt to wade anyway, what occurred next happened so quickly I'm not even sure how it happened.
Mistake #3- Do not assume that your favorite pair of shoes, no matter how reliable, are going to save you from looking like the biggest idiot ever.
I was successful for about two steps and as my friend was in the middle of asking me if it was slippery, I'm in the water.  Why yes, yes it is slippery, funny you should ask.  I landed on my knees somehow instead of my butt and wiped out again trying to stand back up.  Thankfully, I was rescued by a nice Italian man who didn't speak a word of English.  As if my pride wasn't smarting enough, he pointed down to my leg and then walked away.  Looking at my leg, I guess I was lucky that these weren't shark infested waters.  And fun fact about me: I can handle blood- so long as it isn't my own.
Tip #3- If the locals aren't wading in, then maybe its a good idea that you don't either.  That, or come prepared with a lot of band-aids.
To recover from my fall and smarting pride, Brittney and I grabbed some gelato and rested for a moment.  Then we started to notice that no one else from our group was around.  I called one of my apartmentmates and I was informed, in a very urgent manner, that everyone else was at the train station to go to the next town and the train was leaving in 10 minutes.
Mistake #4- Not paying attention to instructions given or what others are doing.
The funny thing about paying attention to directions is that it might save you a power walk through a crowded  town with a knee and leg bleeding freely.  And it will save you all the awkward questions you're going to get about you the parts of your body that are bleeding.
Tip #4- Know what's going on.  Knowledge is a good thing.
We made it to the train successfully and went to the next town.  We found out that it really didn't matter where we were right now because we had free time for the rest of the day.  While the rest of the group went on to find some dinner, Brittney and I decided we weren't ready for dinner yet and that we would start hiking the rest of the trail.  Compared to what I was now experiencing, Lover's Lane was a joke.  These trails go straight up, then straight down.
Mistake #5- Thinking you're perfectly OK to hike a little over 4 miles with a cold, fresh injuries, and a half-empty water bottle.
I'm pretty sure I put the huffing and puffing of the Big Bad Wolf to shame.  I made it, but there certainly were times that it wasn't pretty.  The views, however, compensated for that.  There just really aren't enough words in the English language, so I just have to keep using the word beautiful.  You could sit in place for hours and just watch the day pass by and be the most content you've ever been in your life.  You're winding through grape and fig orchards and watching the waves crash on the coast is mesmerizing.  By this point in the day, the sun is beginning to set and everything is bathed in the most wonderful light.  You can see the towns you've come from and the ones you're walking toward perched on the cliffs and you just want to find a way to spend your whole life there.  After the way my day had played out to that point, I wasn't the happiest of campers, but that turned everything around.

Brittany and I finally made it to the second to last town on the trail, Vernazza, and we had a decision to make.  Race the sun and try to make it to the next village before dark, or give in and take the train back home.  Determined not to have to give in and use our one day train pass that day, we opted to take the chance and push forward.
Mistake #6- Thinking you can hike faster than the sun sets.  It's like daring Mother Nature and she doesn't take crap from anyone.
Little did we know that we had also just embarked on the hardest part of the trail.  I thought we would never stop climbing up.  It just went on and on.  We would pass by people coming from the last town and they looked at us like we were nuts, starting as late as we were.  Turns out we were a little nuts.  We made it to right about half-way when we finally had to pull out our cell phones and a small flashlight I just happened to have and make our way back with only that light to guide.  You want to talk about a trust walk- try hiking at night.  The path was incredibly narrow and extremely steep.  Brittney and I both took spills at one point or another, but were lucky not to get hurt.  We certainly put our guardian angels to the test, but made it alive to the last town, Monterosso.
Tip #6- Remember that you are not a character from your favorite superhero movie.  You cannot out race the sun.  Not yet anyway.
When we arrived, we immediately hunted down some dinner, and as we were finishing, there was a procession of the cross through the town for the Festa di Santa Croce.  I think its a sign.  When your day has such ups and downs, you just have to give it back to God and thank Him for bestowing it to you in the first place, even if He might have been laughing at you a little, or in my case, the whole time.  We also encountered some dancing in the square and watched as the people of the town, mainly older couples, came out to dance.  We were completely enamored by the charm of the town and were content with what we had accomplished that day.  But the night wasn't finished quite yet.
Mistake #7- Not remembering which town you're staying in.
We also had a moment of confusion in which we thought that Monterosso was where we were supposed to be staying, but really, we were staying in Levanto.  After a fruitless search, we were found by other ISA students and brought up to speed.  Apparently we had spent just a little too much time in the woods..
Tip #7- Make a cheat sheet, pack a tent, PRAY that your luck never runs out.  When you hit that low, and speaking as someone who has been there, I don't even know how to correct this little issue.  Maybe start discerning whether you're really meant for the traveling life.  Or just go to sleep
Which is what I did.  We finally figured it out and were led to the train station.  As soon as I was in the correct town, I went straight to the hostel and straight to my bed.
After my adventure the previous day, I decided to play it safe and just stuck to the beach on Sunday, which is something I'm completely OK with.  But as I sat on the beach, I thought over the list of tips and "mistakes" I had made and I realized that even though I was a hot mess spanning six different towns, I had a great time!  I saw some wonderful things and I definitely saw God work in my life for the better.  All those "mistakes" are nothing compared to what could have gone wrong.  And isn't that the point of even coming here in the first place?  To leave everything I know behind, to get out of my comfort zone and try something new?  To get lost have have nothing but my skills and talents to find the way?
Mistake #8- Thinking that my time, while enjoyable, had been dominated by mistakes.
Sure, there are parts of my body right now that look like they would be more at home in a butcher shop rather than on a human person and yeah, I could have been a lot more prepared, but that's not really me, is it?  And would I have these great stories to tell if all this hadn't happened?  I love my experience and that's all I could ask for.
Tip #8- Ignore all previous tips.  Let life happen, because as Dr. Seuss says, when life starts happening, then you'll start happening too.
Hoping that you remember to make your own rules today,
Sam