Blogs from Campania, Italy, Europe
May 15th 2012
We had breakfast overlooking Naples and spotted where the ferries left for Capri from our table and decided to catch one. A lovely 50 minute crossing and then we arrived at the island. We decided to just spend the day wandering round the harbour but we needed to find an ATM. We had a cappuchino and the waiter told us there was one 15 minutes along the road so off we went. About an hour and 3000 steps later we were half way up the mountain to Capri town with at least another 3000 steps and a certain heart attack to go so we flagged down a taxi. Getting out of the taxi I caught my shoe and it broke - so there I was in Capri town with no shoes surrounded by the best shoe ... read more
May 14th 2012
Gaining access to the castle in Calitri had proved impossible for six years for the cousin and his intended. Thwarted by irregular opening hours they prepared us for the possibility that it just might not happen. A chance meeting at the Manhattan restaurant, where we went for pizza one night and incidentally where the UEFA cup match between Real Madrid and Bayern was being beamed for the edification of local football enthusiasts, with Titti Lampariello ensured that we would have our very own Saturday morning guided tour. Titti works at the Tourist Information Centre as a volunteer and said she would be more than delighted to show us round. The door to the ceramics museum at the base of the castle was open, the main gate was not. The castle caretaker was nowhere to be seen. ... read more
May 11th 2012
The Amalfi coast is legendary. So are the crowds and the narrow, winding coast road clogged with traffic. Mid-week, late April, we anticipated that we might avoid the masses. On leaving Salerno it soon became apparent that we had underestimated the effect of a Fiesta day. Tutti il mondo and his wife had decided to head out to the coast before the influx of tourists when the season started in earnest. Our first glimpse was taken as we headed round a bend, sparkling sea, incredibly large lemons in lemon groves, impossibly constructed villas hanging on for grim death onto the craggy hillside. Steep and craggy, my mother said once on a visit to Switzerland, so many moons ago when as obnoxious teenagers we thought it was such sport to make fun of her. Steep and craggy ... read more
May 7th 2012
Ciao from Capri, Sorrento, Positano and Pompeii Italy! WHEW! What an amazingly beautiful and serene weekend I had with the Bus2Alps crew heading down the Amalfi Coast. After flying into Rome, taking a bus into the city just to have dinner (crazy right?) we were ready for the 3 hour ride to our hostel, Hotel 7. This hotel was absolutely beautiful with pebble stoned flooring in the main room with convertible open rooftop, both base floor and rooftop bars and comortable 8 person rooms it was definitely the best place I've stayed at so far! Each room had a cute name that started with the same letter, changing depending on what floor you were on but of course we were the "Sweet" room! The first day started off pretty early and after a bit of a ... read more
Lago di Laceno, Bagni Irpino, Melfi, Venosa and Llagho Monticchio
Published: May 8th 2012Europe » Italy » Campania » Calitri
May 7th 2012
After completing auditions for the remake of the Italian Job we dropped down into a mist-laden valley hiding the ski and summer resort of Lago di Laceno. Between seasons, a ghost resort with nary an animal grazing to break the eerie silence. In Summer it is hard to find a picnic spot, competing with vast family groups bar-be-queing, spit-roasting, pasta boiling and generally cavorting. Snaking down through more heavily wooded forests once favoured by Neapolitan mafia in days gone by, we hit the cobbled streets of Bagnoli Irpino. Even through driving rain its picturesque qualities shone through. It should be, said my cousin, the amount of EU money that has been thrown at it. Narrowing into a lane we turned a corner more suited to pedestrians than motor vehicles. The strange purpose built town of Conza ... read more
May 4th 2012
It must have been a tail wind from England. We find ourselves waiting in a cloudy Sunday searching for some sustenance after our punishingly early start from Gatwick. Two cappuccinos to restore humour. Airport coffee? They were delicious. Don't suppose we'll find a bad coffee in Italy. Croissants and marmelade are fluffy, moist and satisfying even if eaten at a dirty, plastic-chaired airport cafe. Does it feel like Italy yet? Looking out of the picture windows high on the departure level the cars look the same as in every other country we've visited in the last few months – the hoardings, though, display advertising with wording I struggle to translate calling on adolescent Italian learnt before a memorable holiday to Grado in Northern Italy. The local lads taught me quite a few words, none of which ... read more
April 25th 2012
Day 1 We caught the train to Naples from Rome and then down to Sorrento. Our hotel was up on a hillside about 25mins up from the hotel... Would have been nice if the sign for the hotel was before our bus stop but it wasn't! We got off at the next stop and ventured down the treacherous, windy road dodging the cars as they came hooning round the bend!! Our room was nice but the view was amazing! Right over the Sorrento bay! Incredible! We missed the bus back down to Sorrento so they said you could walk, an easy 30 minute walk..... Well blinkin heck if that was an easy walk I would hate to see a hard one! It was down a steep, slippery, windy "street". But it was beautiful and I am ... read more
School Sponsored Trip to Pompeii, Sorrento, Capri and Naples
Published: April 8th 2012Europe » Italy » Campania » Sorrento
April 8th 2012
Happy Easter!!! Buona Pasqua :) I'm currently in Catania, Sicily writing this blog. We came here for Easter break from Friday- Monday but that will be a later blog (at some point). Last week, we (Me, Carrie and Abby) went with about 40-ish other students from Umbra to Pompeii, Sorrento, Capri and Naples. Sounds familiar, don't you think? The trip the week before that included these same places, but not Capri and Naples. We got on the bus at the ridiculous hour of 6:30am. I'm getting used to these. Wait to hear what we had to do for this trip.. We drove in a big bus down to Pompeii and were split into 2 groups and given a tour of a the city...AGAIN. Yawn. The tour wasn't even that great. And it's not like I've seen ... read more
Roman Civilization Field Trip to Herculaneum, Pompeii, the Amalfi Coast and Naples
Published: April 4th 2012Europe » Italy » Campania » Pompei
April 4th 2012
Hello! I’m taking a break from one of the busiest weeks of the semester to finally update this blog. I’ve been slacking, I’ll admit. Last, LAST week, March 23-25 I went on a class field trip to Pompeii, Herculaneum , the Almafi Coast and Naples. Last week, March 30-April 1, I went on a school sponsored trip to Sorrento, Capri and Naples. I’ll split both weekends up into 2 different blogs. In my Roman Civilization and Daily Life class we are always talking about Pompeii and Herculaneum, the two civilizations that were destroyed by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD. I know too much about this topic now… So, it would only make sense that we travel there for a field trip! We left at the obnoxious hour of 6:30 a.m. and piled on ... read more
April 3rd 2012
Unfortunately, our stay in Amalfi was all too short. We had to depart early today for a long drive to Firenze. Our plan was to take the Autostrada all the way to Firenze, which is about 540km along the A1, and arrive by 5:30pm. But if that wasn't enough, we wanted to stop in to see the ancient ruins of Pompei beneath Mt Vesuvius. After drinking almost two bottles of wine from this region, it was the least we could do. While we tried to leave early, we couldn't. The streets (I use this term loosely) of Amalfi are closed until 8:30am to ensure the school children have a safe passage to school. So we were on the road by 8:45am for the return journey through the crazy coastal road. We must have been passed by ... read more
