CINQUE TERRE. 381 



The rocky chasms on which these places rise are 

 so narrow that the train, when it stops, often has both 

 ends in the tunnels. ^ ou are under ground almost the 

 whole of the distance bet\vcen Sestri Levante and Spczia, 

 and one cannot help admiring the marvellous skill which 

 has opened up communication with this district. If ^'ou 

 leave the train at an^' of these stations, sa\- Riomaggiore, 

 and emerge from the tunnel \'0u will see before vou a 

 town, grey with age, built of unhewn stone, rising steeph' 

 up the mountain side ancl ending in walled terraces on 

 which the vines grow. S(.)metimes it looks as if these 

 could onh' be reached at the risk of life, as of \ore 

 those grapes in the Campagna which ripened on high 

 trees. The wine pressed from the grapes was celebrated 

 of old. It is sweet and heav\ , darker and more fier)' 

 than Orvieto, though very like it in taste and colour. 

 It is put into flasks, and as it will keep only a limited 

 time, must be consumed without any great delay. The 

 grapes literalh' roast in the sun on the steep cliffs and 

 are consequenth' very sweet. In autumn the^' are brought 

 down to the villages and spread out on the flat stone 

 roofs of the houses, where they almost become raisins 

 before they are pressed. 



If }'0u desire to get the best impression of this district 

 it is well to postpone \-our visit until the autumn when 

 the vintage has commenced and the women, clad in 

 picturesque costumes, carry vessels filled with grapes on 

 their heads down the steep slopes of the hill. In the 

 early .spring tlie vines still lack their foliage, and the 

 scene is not pleasing to the eye. The poverty of the 



