Bianca Gignac was swimming under the stars, against a backdrop of colourful, cliffside houses, with a complete stranger, her clothes left in a pile on a rock.
Bianca was in the harbour of Riomaggiore, the southernmost of the five picturesque fishing villages that make up the Italian Cinque Terre region. Built into the rocks overlooking the Ligurian Sea, it鈥檚 spectacularly scenic.
鈥淭he Cinque Terre is unlike anything you鈥檝e experienced,鈥 Bianca tells CNN Travel today. 鈥淚t鈥檚 like a dream. Something you鈥檒l never comprehend until you鈥檙e there. It鈥檚 truly a must-see place.鈥
Bianca had arrived in Riomaggiore, fallen for its beauty and now 鈥 somehow 鈥 she鈥檇 found herself swimming - sans clothes - with a guy she鈥檇 just met. The two strangers laughed, splashed each other, soaked up the moment.
鈥淲e were swimming in the phosphorescence, under the stars,鈥 Bianca recalls. 鈥淚t was a perfect July 26 evening.鈥
It was July 26, 2003, to be precise. Bianca was a Canadian college student in her mid-20s, spending the summer in Italy. She was studying fine arts, and a scholarship from the Italian Cultural Institute of Vancouver led her to Florence 鈥 the fulfilment of a lifelong dream of visiting Europe.
When Bianca arrived in Florence, she was grieving a failed relationship. Slowly and surely, Italy had won her over, helped her rebuild her sense of self.
鈥淚 went on to have the most incredible summer, I was really finding my footing,鈥 says Bianca.
鈥淭hen, three days before I was leaving to go home, my friend said, 鈥楲et鈥檚 go to the Cinque Terre. It鈥檚 the most romantic place I鈥檝e ever been to. And so we went there for the weekend. And within hours, I met him.鈥欌
鈥淗im鈥 was Bianca鈥檚 night-time swimming companion 鈥 Alessandro Morelli, a twentysomething from La Spezia, the nearest city to the Cinque Terre, a 10-minute train journey from Riomaggiore.
鈥淚 had a steady job with the local shipyard,鈥 Alessandro tells CNN Travel. It was a job everyone assumed he鈥檇 do all his life 鈥 in general, his life was 鈥渟teady鈥 and 鈥渞outine.鈥
Alessandro was in Riomaggiore on July 26 for a friend鈥檚 birthday party. The plan was to gather on the beach to celebrate and enjoy the long summer night. Alessandro was walking through the village with a friend when they decided to detour via one of the outdoor bars built into the cliffs.
It was at this bar that Alessandro and Bianca鈥檚 eyes first met.
The connection was 鈥減lain and simple,鈥 says Alessandro. He couldn鈥檛 stop looking at Bianca.
鈥淭he red hair 鈥 she was the prettiest girl I鈥檇 ever seen,鈥 Alessandro recalls.
He told his friend he was going to go and speak to her. Then, Alessandro got up, walked over to Bianca鈥檚 table and asked if he could buy Bianca and her friend a drink.
The moment Alessandro approached her table, Bianca felt an 鈥渋nstant connection.鈥
鈥淲hat struck me was he was very kind. He wasn鈥檛 cocky,鈥 she says. 鈥淗e was a kind person and I could feel that.鈥
Bianca asked Alessandro if he wanted to sit with them. Then, his friend pulled up a chair too.
鈥淲e just started talking,鈥 says Bianca 鈥 they spoke in English, as Bianca鈥檚 Italian wasn鈥檛 great back then.
鈥淪o it was the four of us. And we literally talked into the night,鈥 she recalls. 鈥淲e were in this little bar, it still exists today, 20 years later - it overlooks the little bobbing boats in the harbour. It鈥檚 super picturesque.鈥
The group stayed until closing. Then they walked down to the harbour and greeted the birthday party revellers.
That鈥檚 when Alessandro suggested the night-time dip: 鈥淟et鈥檚 go swimming,鈥 he said to Bianca.
鈥淚鈥檓 not going swimming in those waters,鈥 said Bianca, skeptically. It was pitch black out, the sea dark and the water and rocks illuminated only by starlight.
But Alessandro won Bianca over 鈥 in his presence, she felt safe, free, happy.
鈥淪o we went out skinny dipping,鈥 Bianca recalls.
It was a joyful end to the evening. Later, in the early hours of the morning, Bianca and her friend returned to their rented room, tired, but happy.
Then, mere hours later, the sun was streaming through the window, and there was a knock on the door.
鈥淚 was like, 鈥榃hat is going on? Who is that?鈥欌 recalls Bianca.
She tentatively opened the door, and there was Alessandro and his friend from the night before, grinning.
鈥淭hese guys were there, with their speedos on, their bags, their sunscreen and they were like, 鈥楪irls, let鈥檚 go on a boat trip.鈥欌
It was July 27 鈥 Bianca鈥檚 birthday. She鈥檇 mentioned the significance of the date the night before, and Alessandro figured a boat trip was the perfect way to celebrate.
Alessandro鈥檚 friend was from Riomaggiore and he had a boat 鈥 鈥渙ne of the fishing boats bobbing in the marina.鈥 So the group spent the day floating around the Cinque Terre villages, admiring the green hills, the houses dotted among the cliffs, sunbathing and exploring. It was a magical birthday.
Bianca and Alessandro were inseparable for the rest of the weekend.
鈥淲e were simply living the typical Italian summer. Going to the beach, going out for pizza 鈥 going on walks,鈥 says Bianca. 鈥淭he guys just kept knocking on our door every day and taking us out. And we just kept saying yes.鈥
The four of them - Bianca and her friend and Alessandro and his friend - all got on well.
鈥淚t seemed incredibly normal and comfortable and we just all were having a great time and it was very relaxed 鈥 almost like we had been friends for a long time,鈥 says Bianca.
A decision to stay
Bianca and her friend were only in Riomaggiore for a long weekend. The next week, she had a midnight train booked to Rome, which would take her to the airport and back to Canada, bringing her Italian summer to an end.
After three days with Alessandro, Bianca didn鈥檛 want to leave, but she figured she had no choice.
鈥淚 packed up my bag. I was leaving Italy for good,鈥 she says.
Before heading to the train station, Bianca went out for a last dinner with Alessandro, 鈥渢hree steps away from where we met, while waiting for the train to arrive at the station.鈥
Bianca鈥檚 bag was at her feet. She鈥檇 checked out of her accommodation. All the signs pointed to her leaving. But neither Bianca nor Alessandro could accept that this was goodbye.
鈥淏ianca, don鈥檛 go,鈥 Alessandro said, as the time came for her to make her way to the station.
鈥淚 have to,鈥 Bianca said. 鈥淚 have a job, I have college.鈥
But Bianca made no signs of moving. Something inside her knew 鈥 she wasn鈥檛 going.
So Bianca missed her train. She missed the flight. It was out of character, but it was exciting. It felt like the right decision.
With Alessandro in tow, Bianca returned to her vacation rental and asked the owner if she could extend the trip 鈥 back then Cinque Terre wasn鈥檛 as busy as it is today, so that was a potentially doable request. The owner, who knew Alessandro, just looked at the pair of them and 鈥渓aughed and laughed.鈥
鈥淚t鈥檚 a small village,鈥 says Bianca. 鈥淗e slapped Alessandro on the back and gave him the keys.鈥
Over the next 10 days, Bianca and Alessandro grew even closer.
鈥淲e didn鈥檛 try hard or force anything. It was just completely natural and we were just spending every minute together for a week,鈥 says Bianca. 鈥淗e even brought me to meet his mother, Paola, almost right away. I just sat in their kitchen and she was so sweet. She fed me, of course.鈥
Alessandro also took Bianca on the back of his scooter for hilltop rides around the Cinque Terre. They spent long days together, exploring, chatting.
鈥溾嬧婣nd then I really did go,鈥 says Bianca. 鈥淲hen we said goodbye at the train station, I was crying. I was like, 鈥業鈥檓 never going to see you again.鈥 And I really believed that there was no concept that I would ever see him again.鈥
Back in Canada
Back in Canada, Bianca focused on her degree. She was going into her final year of college and her goal was graduating. She tried to put Alessandro out of her mind. But before she鈥檇 left Italy, they鈥檇 exchanged contact details.
And while Bianca assumed they鈥檇 never see each other again, Alessandro was sure it was meant to be. He made an effort to stay in touch.
鈥淚 started calling her, and we鈥檇 talk over the phone,鈥 he says.
These conversations became more and more regular.
And then, when Christmas rolled around, Alessandro suggested Bianca should come back to Italy, stay with him for the holidays.
鈥淚 have school,鈥 Bianca said. 鈥淎nd I don鈥檛 have any money to go to Italy鈥
鈥淚鈥檝e got a solid job,鈥 said Alessandro. 鈥淚鈥檒l buy your plane ticket.鈥
The idea of seeing Alessandro again, of being back in Italy, was almost overwhelming to Bianca. During their months apart, she鈥檇 daydreamed about night swimming in Riomaggiore, about their long days exploring together, the evenings at cliffside restaurants. She decided to go for it.
鈥淥kay, I鈥檓 coming,鈥 Bianca told Alessandro on the phone.
When Bianca told her college friends her plans, they were in disbelief. Some didn鈥檛 believe it could last.
But one friend was adamant. 鈥淗e bought you a plane ticket? You鈥檙e going to marry him and have babies.鈥
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think so,鈥 said Bianca. 鈥淏ut let鈥檚 see.鈥
Bianca spent the holidays with Alessandro and his extended family in La Spezia. The trip lasted just over a week, but by the time Bianca was heading back to Canada in early 2004, she and Alessandro had a goal: when Bianca graduated from college, she鈥檇 come back to Italy.
鈥淪o that was our plan. So then it was just about me going home, wrapping up, graduating,鈥 says Bianca.
That summer, Alessandro came to Canada to celebrate Bianca鈥檚 graduation and meet her family. Then, right after graduating, Bianca moved to Italy. It was exciting, but a little surreal. And for Bianca 鈥 who still didn鈥檛 speak much Italian 鈥 it was a big step.
One of Alessandro鈥檚 friends told him he thought Bianca would last 鈥渢wo weeks.鈥 But he was quickly proven wrong. Bianca stayed for one month, then two and then鈥
鈥淲ithin three months of us living together, we were married,鈥 says Bianca.
It was a somewhat spontaneous decision. 鈥淲e were young and dumb,鈥 says Bianca today, laughing.
But it also felt like the absolute right decision. Bianca and Alessandro were in love, and wanted to spend their lives together.
Bianca phoned her parents in Canada to break the news.
鈥淚 called my family and I said, 鈥業鈥檓 getting married. In three weeks. I am so sorry to do this to you. I know that鈥檚 hard to hear that I鈥檓 getting married in three weeks. But I鈥檓 doing it,鈥欌 Bianca recalls.
Her loved ones were a little surprised, but supportive.
鈥淓ven if we had this long-distance thing for a while, we had been together enough for people to understand that it was super serious,鈥 she says.
鈥淲e just ran off to city hall. We got married on a Friday, got the day off work, and showed up in clothes we already owned. I went to the florist across the street and got a baby鈥檚 breath, and put it behind my hair.鈥
Alessandro鈥檚 friend 鈥 the one who鈥檇 been there the night the couple met in Riomaggiore 鈥 translated the wedding service from Italian to English for Bianca. Alessandro鈥檚 family also attended and toasted their future.
Life in Italy
Bianca and Alessandro lived and worked in Italy for the next two years, including a period of living with Alessandro鈥檚 mother in her home. Bianca had been hesitant about moving in there, but everyone being under one roof allowed her to really bond with Alessandro鈥檚 loved ones.
鈥淎ll of his family lived there. His aunt lived upstairs. His uncle used to live downstairs, it was the family home that the grandfather built. So it was just this incredible experience for somebody like me, coming into this whole culture and becoming part of his life,鈥 says Bianca.
Bianca and Alessandro also spent a period living in an apartment, just the two of them. During this time, they lived in the moment 鈥渏ust enjoying the now,鈥 as Alessandro puts it.
But they also learned a lesson that became essential to their relationship, as they navigated cultural differences and the first months of married life.
鈥淲hen you鈥檙e in a relationship, you need to exercise the deepest patience,鈥 says Alessandro. 鈥淓ven more so when someone is from a different culture.鈥
鈥淧atience and understanding, you have to have that as a couple anyway,鈥 agrees Bianca. 鈥淲hen you are in an international relationship, it takes a lot more compassion and understanding.鈥
Bianca worked in a gelateria, which she says was 鈥渧ery stressful,鈥 but which she credits as the reason why she finally perfected Italian. In time, she could speak the language fluently, and she was acclimatized to life in La Spezia.
But after two years, Bianca and Alessandro were ready for a change. They relocated to Canada, to Vancouver Island, where Bianca鈥檚 family lived.
This marked a shift into a new chapter of their lives.
鈥淲e bought a house and I was pregnant within a month,鈥 says Bianca. 鈥淲e ended up totally building a life in Canada, and having our daughter.鈥
A new chapter
While she was busy reacquainting herself with Canada, looking after a newborn, and then a toddler, an idea started percolating in Bianca鈥檚 head.
In time, this idea became a business: 鈥 a Canada-based tour company running specialized Italian small group tours, aiming to give visitors a taste of Italy as the locals live it.
The company was inspired by Bianca鈥檚 鈥渒nowledge from living in Italy and the lifestyle that I had grown to love and be a part of,鈥 as she explains it.
Her company鈥檚 first trip was 鈥 of course 鈥 to the Cinque Terre.
鈥淚 got my first group of nine guests and I completely introduced them to all the people I had met there, all of my connections that I鈥檝e built over the two years, and I just was like 鈥榃elcome to my world, and here鈥檚 a week of living in the Cinque Terre,鈥欌 recalls Bianca.
鈥淭hat was the start and the seed of the company now I鈥檝e been running for 12 years.鈥
As for Alessandro, he was 鈥渉appy and enthusiastic鈥 to put down roots in Canada. He got a good job working in engineering and focused on co-parenting with Bianca.
While Alessandro found there were 鈥渕any differences鈥 between Italy and Canada, he felt they were 鈥渕ostly positive.鈥
Plus, he often joined Bianca on her Italian trips. The couple would take their daughter along too, and spend time with their Italian family.
Bianca and Alessandro鈥檚 shared commitment to prioritizing work, family and travel became the cornerstone of their family life.
鈥淓ven if we grew up in different countries, we have the same worldview. And the same worldview is, work hard, say yes to opportunities, don鈥檛 give up on yourself and your own dreams and see what incredible life you can build together,鈥 says Bianca.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 one of the values that we do say to our daughter 鈥 we鈥檙e like, 鈥楧on鈥檛 miss out on opportunities. If somebody gives you an opportunity, say yes.鈥 Because that鈥檚 very much how we鈥檝e lived our life.鈥
The family has lived in Canada ever since, aside from a year spent living in Costa Rica.
鈥淓verything really does open up after you move to one country 鈥 moving to others doesn鈥檛 seem so daunting,鈥 says Bianca. 鈥淲e had a fabulous year living on a white sand beach, and it was one of the best experiences.鈥
Bianca and Alessandro鈥檚 daughter is now in her teens. Bianca and Alessandro still take her to Italy whenever they can.
鈥淪he鈥檚 been to most corners of Italy, she speaks Italian,鈥 says Bianca. 鈥淲e have so much affection for Italy, we have so many friends there. Half of our friends and half of our amazing family memories are in Italy 鈥 they鈥檙e half in Canada, and they鈥檙e half in Italy, because we really have lived this international family life, living in two places.鈥
The Cinque Terre, of course, will always have a special place in Bianca and Alessandro鈥檚 hearts.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not a magical place where we go and relive our initial connection,鈥 says Alessandro. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just home. It鈥檚 home number two.鈥
Catching or missing a train
Looking back on their 20 years together, Alessandro and Bianca say they feel 鈥済rateful and proud.鈥
Over the two decades, 鈥渢he relationship has evolved in a million ways,鈥 says Alessandro.
鈥淏ut the very core of who we were 鈥 which is two young people who wanted a great life for themselves, and were brave enough to say, 鈥榶es鈥 鈥 we鈥檙e actually the same kind of people,鈥 he says.
The couple is always looking to the future and potential exciting opportunities 鈥 work-related, travel-related, and family-related. They pride themselves on trusting their instincts, diving head first into what feels right, just as they did with their romance back in July 2003.
鈥淎ll the things we built, that we have, are thanks to us jumping on that train that was running by,鈥 says Alessandro. 鈥淥ver 20 years of us being together, that to me was actually a lesson 鈥 don鈥檛 ever miss a train, because it might not go by again.鈥
鈥淥r do miss the train,鈥 says Bianca, laughing. 鈥淏ecause then you get to stay, like I did.鈥
