The path of the hermitage of the Maddalena in Monterosso

It is news these days that the elementary and middle school students of Monterosso al Mare , led by professors Marina Gargani and Maria Vittoria Pozzi, created a bilingual Italian / English brochure on the Monterosso - Maddalena ring path . The brochure is part of the "Movers ... in search of places to rediscover" project, created within the National Operational Program "For school, skills and learning environments 2014-2020", with the aim of enhancing the English language and to favor the rediscovery and enhancement of a place - the path that leads to the Eremo della Maddalena - rich in history and natural attractions, but outside the paths beaten by tourists.

Accompanied by beautiful images, the booklet illustrates the itinerary that starts from the end of the pedestrian area of ​​Via Roma, where, beside the Pastanelli stream , is the entrance of the ring path . Go along the stream, crossed by two ancient stone bridges, past which begins the climb through a historic stone staircase that leads to the walls of the cultivated land, to the holm oak interrupted here and there by the Mediterranean scrub, maritime pines and chestnut trees. You arrive in La Maddalena, ancient site of a community of Benedictine monks , where you take the graft of the path 509 which is part of the Route of the Sanctuaries and which leads back to Monterosso country. Along the route you will come across lemon groves and olive groves, a votive shrine dedicated to the Madonna of Soviore, an unusual "butterfly plant" (Buddleja davidii), the inevitable dry-stone walls. These are partial news obtained from the brochure that you can download in complete form on the site of the municipality of Monterosso , or in paper format at the Pro Loco Monterosso on the Lungomare di Fegina and at the Palazzo Comunale in Piazza Garibaldi.

Hermitage of the Magdalene

The hermitage of La Maddalena, now a private location for ceremonies and holidays, is located on a hill about 3 km from the town of Monterosso: already named after S. Lorenzo in Terriccio, it housed a seat of Benedictine monks dependent on the monastery of St. Gerolamo della Cervara di Portofino and the first mention dates back to 1244 . The complex consists of a church and monastery. The church has a simple rectangular single hall layout and is made of sandstone blocks. The apse seems to rest on older structures formed by smaller, roughly squared stones. The monastery is situated around two sides of a small cloister with semicircular arches supported by brick columns. Originally it was equipped with a cryptoporticus with lowered arches which were later reworked in simple windows on an unspecified date. On the upper floor the original cells, now converted into rooms, are covered with sail vaults. In 1327 the monastery, already in a state of neglect, was entrusted by the community of Monterosso to Fra Bartolomeo da Vicenza, who gathered here a community of hermits and became its rector. In the XVIII century it was definitively abandoned.

Photos: lamaddalenacinqueterre.it, prolocomonterosso.it, PN Cinque Terre