Embarrassment - outsmarted by a dog!!!

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Geo: 40.2345, 14.9894

I lost my Campania travelcard! I think I accidentally threw it out last night as I was cleaning out my pockets. It caused me to miss the first train to Sorrento as I was digging around looking for it. I took the train to Sorrento, and from there I took a bus to Positano.

There was an idiotic UK lady sitting behind me - she kept talking to an Italian man though he kept telling her that he didn't understand English. I think she just liked the sound of her own voice. Apparently she went to the wrong town earlier because the bus never stopped at the bus station. That's hard to believe - more than likely she missed it herself. It's completely understandable ... I find bus travel to be a bit of a pain because you never know exactly where you are.

The air in Sorrento is a little polluted, but not as bad as Naples. The air quality improved even more as I got to Positano. Positano is nice, but is definitely not Croatia! There were too many crappy-looking boats floating in the water. The beach was gravelly and the water wasn't very blue or clear. The first beach I went to was too crowded so I wandered to a more secluded one.

It was hot out ... I made the mistake of bringing my camera down to the beach. I hiked back up to the hostel to return it so that I could go swimming and not worry about it being stolen. The beach and ocean were much nicer as the sun came out. Read some more of Wilde's stories (Lady Windemere's Fan). Very good .. a bit of a moral lesson. Redemption is a big theme for most of his stories, so far. Good stuff .. I had to finish it that night. It showed that people can change for the better and forgive each other.

I found some perfect skipping rocks ... but I couldn't skip a single one! I cracked under the pressure! Lunch today was a crappy ham/cheese/tomato sandwich ... quite expensive at 4 euros from the grocery store.

Got back to the hostel. Splurged on the dorm room with the terrace. Incredible view .. but there were no chairs out there. Luckily, there was a big terrace overlooking the water for everybody to use. Chatted with bunk-mate (Claire, Aussie). She's studying architecture but is taking time off to travel. She's going to Montreal after Italy to visit her boyfriend, who is studying there.

I walked to a nearby restaurant for dinner (a bit of a hike up the cliffs, though). Too pricey for me and I didn't want to have another pizza, either. So I walked to a grocery store instead, thinking that I could do better. There was only one open ... and nothing good was there.

I ended up going to a bar and buying some re-heated pizza. I was too tired to walk back up to the original restaurant. Sad! I should've just eaten at the restaurant originally ... at least I would've had better pizza. I had a slice of vegetarian and a slice of ham pizza. Nothing special. Though I did get an orange biscotti ... amazing. It wasn't the hard type that you dip into your coffee. It was soft with a chocolate filling and a hint of orange rind.

Ate on the terrace with Claire and a couple from New Zealand (Jim, Lorna). They gave us some of their rice balls ... good. Like fried risotto. It was beautiful sitting on the terrace. We chatted awhile and then I pissed off Claire.

She asked me to watch her food for a moment while she went to get a drink. There was a dog that she worried about. Stupid dog! He was actually quite smart. He went for her plate, and I snatched it away. Then he went for the cheese, and I grabbed it away. Then he went for the tomatoes, but I saved them. Finally, he got the salami. Outsmarted by a dog ... I am pathetic!

So, I sat by myself on the terrace reading and writing. Jack Johnson was playing ... I am becoming a big fan of him as I become more and more relaxed. It's perfect music to listen to while you are near the ocean. Perfect music for the moment. Positano is pretty cool. I am positive that I would've liked it more if I hadn't already been to Croatia. Croatia seems to have spoiled me. It's not Italy's fault that it isn't Croatia!!!

Some good music was being played tonight ... a little Jamiroquai, as well. But then the old-school music started. Not my thing. Two Argentinian girls sat down next to me. I tried to strike up a conversation in Spanish (only to practice my Spanish, of course ....). No luck ... I guess they weren't impressed with my "This dog is very, very bad!" comment.

Read some more of Wilde's stories. Started "An Ideal Husband" and then went off to bed.

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Photos

a
The busy beach.

b
Look closely at the symbols on the handbag ... is that a ... "69"???

c
The less-crowded one. I don't really see any difference, do you?

d
View from the terrace of the hostel. Made the stay there quite memorable.