Sorrento, Capri and Amalfi Coast

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Italian Adventure day one

Today we began the Italian adventure tour. The drive to Sorrento was boring. We drove through the outskirts of Naples - which is still controlled by the mafia and the home of pizza - and around Mt Vesuvius, which erupted in 79 A.D., covering the town of Pompeii in 7 metres of ash. We had a guided tour of Pompeii, which showed some well preserved buildings, two amphitheatres, multiple brothels and the mould casts of people (and a dog) who were all overcome by the explosion. After lunch we continued our trip into Sorrento. Stayed at the (dodgy) camping ground, and headed out for a 3 course dinner with the group. We had a taste of lemoncello, lemon liquor which tastes like toilet cleaner! And finished the night off at a cocktail bar.

Day two.

We began the day with a walk down the cliff face near the camp ground to a boat docking “rock” down by the water. The boat was taking us to Capri for the day. On the way we stopped at the famous blue grotto. It is a cavern in the ocean with a small above water entrance, and a hole in the rock under the water, which filters the light entering the cave making it this awesome blue colour. To get into the cavern we had four in a small row boat, and then the driver and we had to pick up speed to enter through the hole, and all lie down on top of each other… not very flattering! After that we headed to Capri. This amazing town set on the cliff face, where all the famous people like to hang out. Went had a late brekkie in Capri and caught the bus up to Anacapri, even higher on the cliff. The bus was this tiny little thing travelling on an even tinier road. Cars can’t pass each other, so either one has back up till the other can get past or they both sit there to see who will move first. I had been told the ride up is pretty hairy, but when a local in front of me made the sign of the cross and said a prayer I knew I was in trouble! I have never been so scared in my life and I jumped out of plane! Sheer cliffs that drop for hundreds of meters with a one foot stone ledge to stop us from going over the edge. And this bus driver was fangin’! I couldn’t look, and was glad to get off. Problem was I knew I would have to go down again at some stage! In the meantime, we caught a chairlift up to the highest point on the island. Best 9 euro spent! It was an amazingly long ride, completely silent, fantastic views out to the ocean from nearly every angle, and it took us over people’s homes and gardens. Amazing. And the views up the top were magnificent. You can see all the trails the boats leave behind in the water for miles, long after the boats have disappeared from sight. We stopped for gelato once we got back to the bottom, and did a bit of shopping before getting back onto the bus to Capri, not as hair-rasing this time as the bus was one the other side of the road. More shopping in Capri before heading to the beach - no swimming though, the water was filthy. We jumped back on the boat late in the afternoon, and heading back to Sorrento, passing by the emerald grotto on the way (same idea as the blue grotto). We headed back into Sorrento for dinner before doing some late night shopping. Every town seems to come alive late in the evening.

Day three.

Headed back to Rome today, via the Amalfi coast. It is listed as one of the top 5 drives in the world (and Australia’s own Great Ocean Road is on that list), and it’s not hard to see why. The roads are narrow and winding, and there is always an amazing view. Sheer cliffs with house perched on their sides. We stopped at amalfi for something to eat, and went and made my own paper at a paper shop. It is also known for the St. Andrews church, and we just happened to be there on St. Andrews Day, so there were big brass bands playing on the steps of the church. More shopping, and then we continued on through the stunning scenery and went through a town called Ravello. All this area is amazing, but apparently this is where the devil brought Jesus for the second temptation. We continued on, although I didn’t see much, I was too car-sick, and couldn’t stand looking at anything anymore. Didn’t feel any better till we got back to Rome!

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