Naples/Capri/Sorrento

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We had to be up bright and early to pack up the bus and leave Rome. We took a nice drive (about 3 hours) down to Naples (or Napoli, to the Italians). We really only saw the city as we drove through to the port, since it was not our main destination. At the port, we boarded a hydrofoil boat and went approximately 45 minutes across the water to the tiny island of Capri.

In Capri, we took a small caravan of taxis up the narrow and winding roads to the top of the mountain. This ride was somewhat scary, since it didn't really seem that the roads were wide enough for 2-way traffic! Let's just say that it was a fun - albeit occasionally tense - ride! At the top of the mountain, we had lunch on this beautiful afternoon. Afterward, we took taxis to another location further down the mountain, where we toured this charming little town. We were given about a half hour or so to look around and shop on our own. I took the opportunity to FINALLY enjoy a gelato (Italian ice cream), which I heard so much about from my friend Mary Catherine. It was excellent!

When we met back up, we took a funicula (cable car and origin of the famous song "Funiculi, Funicula") the rest of the way down the mountain back to the docks. At this point we took a boat out to see the Blue Grotto, but we arrived at the entry point only to discover that it had just been closed because the water was becoming too rough for it to remain safe. Oh well! Maybe next time. I hear that the inside of these caves are so blue that it is truly a natural beauty worth seeing.

We finally headed off the island of Capri, and traveled to the nearby city of Sorrento. Sorrento is a quaint, beautiful little town known for its lemon production. Our guide for the day, Mariano, is from Sorrento. We had free time for shopping in the downtown area, and then met our bus driver - Massimo - for the ride up to our hotel for the evening. Upon arrival at the hotel, many of us discovered that we were staying in a new building which was added to the hotel. It was nice looking, but was right alongside the road, making for some added noise at night. This was the only hotel of the trip in which we stayed for just one night.

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