Italia: Amalfi coast

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Amalfi coast
The train to Sorrento was easy. We were relieved to have escaped the bus police and to be going to a more relaxing place. We all had to switch trains half way because the one we were on broke down. While we were waiting on the platform, I noticed a young attractive traveler by himself, I was tempted to go up and talk to him but didn’t. When we all got on the new train I wanted to sit by him but it didn’t work out, so I figured if it was meant to be it would be.
We got off the train and caught a bus to our hostel. It was only 10 euros a night each, which is pretty good. We had our own little cabin. There were a bunch of cabin/bungalos on the property, some with cute porches. There was a swimming pool, our own beach access and an amazing view of Sorrento, the coast and Mount Vesuvius. As we were exploring the property we came across the traveler we had seen on the train; I guess it was meant to be. Later we all agreed that fate was leading us to meat each other. We had stayed in Napoli the same nights, went to Pompaii the same day, were on the same train and were now staying in the same hostel. His name is Byron and he is from Australia.
We all were starving, having the same cheap diet of nuts and fruit. So we walked to town and got pizza. He told us a little bit about all his adventures. He has been traveling for 9 months, the most recent ones he has done alone. He went to Russia, Mongolia, China, Croazia, Greece and other places I don’t remember. He had a lot of great stories and pictures of his travels. That night he invited us to his camp site, with the best view of the whole place. He had a little stove so we made the whole wheat pasta I bought and some brocali and carrots.
The next day, Katie and I took a bus to Positano. It was beautiful of course. We hiked down narrow passageways and staircases into the center. We looked at the overpriced linens and tasted samples of lemon chocolate and lemoncello. We sat on the beach and ate our sandwiches. It was a beautiful view looking out onto the water of fishing boats and looking behind us at the houses on the hill and the ominous black fog rolling in. We wished it was warm and sunny so we could swim, but there was something magical and peaceful about those black clouds above us.
We walked around for a while and it started to drizzle. We caught another bus to Amalfi, we walked around and got pizza, then we walked along the edge of the stormy, black waters. We sat outside at a café, protected by a canopy. We both got cappuccinos and talked for hours. It is moments like these that are the best, when we just sit and eat or drink and talk about important things and random things. In the middle of our deep conversation about men, ironically two old men came by and sat with us. One of the guys was funny at first but turned out to be an aristocratic ass. He went on and on about how he is a doctor and told us the history of the whole coast, which was cool. The other guy was a little younger and kind of a dork. He had this little pouch with all of his stuff, including one of two phones that his mom kept calling him on. They wanted to take us out to dinner, but we had already eaten, we walked around a little and got on the bus without them.
On the bus, we quickly came to our senses and realized we would not be calling them in the future. We would take a cheap dinner with each other or Byron anyday over a fancy dinner with two creepy old men. I love traveling with Katie, but two girls traveling together is much different I imagine than two guys or a girl and a guy. I will never know if the guys throughout our travels who invited us out are genuinely good people or just creeps. If I was traveling with a guy and locals invited us out or to stay at their place, It would be easier to judge their intentions. I hate thinking this way, I just want to be able to be nice to everyone and trust everyone, but in reality it is not so easy. As two girls traveling together, we have to turn down opportunities just to be safe.
Anyway, on the bus, we talked to a sweet old man, he was about 80 and going into Positano to a Piano bar, to listen to music and go dancing. After everyone got off, it was just us and the bus driver, so we talked to him for a while. Most people along the coast spoke english because of all of the tourists, they don't even care if u try to speak Italian to them. But the bus drivers didn't speak english, so it was fun talking to them. Even though Katie was about to barf from the ride she was still mumbling in Italian, trying to practice. That night, we met two german guys, they were 18 and part of a huge group of 70, they were all staying at out hostel. We played foosball with one of them, Katie and him were talking pleasantly while i was just focused on beating them at the game. After that Katie still had energy from that cappuccino, so we climbed the fence and went skinny dipping in the pool, Giving these three germans a great view unfortunately.
The next day we woke up slowly and decided to find the beach, There were two entrances, we thought. The first we tried was locked so we climbed under, then there was another fence wired shut and I couldn’t open it. so we tried the other entrance. The gate was wide open. We walked down and the spot was great. It was not a sandy beach but lots of large rocks. It was still amazing. We were scared to get in because of the jellyfish and what we thought were eels. I scaled the rocks to get farther out along the cove and jumped in, it felt great so Katie climbed over and we swam around a little, then we kept climbing to explore. We found a cove with lots of jellies so we didn’t swim there. We were trying to get in again to swim back to shore but we were scared. Then I climbed up farther cuz I had to go to the bathroom, always at the worst times. As I was climbing I saw a snake, so I jumped back and sliced my foot on a rock. It was a good cut. Then we were forced to swim back. The salt water was good for it. I stumbled back up the hill and wrapped my wound. The rest of the trip was slow pace as a limped along. Maybe it was a sign to not rent a vespa, which I was tempted to do.
The rest of the day we walked/hobbled around Sorrento, we laid on the beach to tan and floated in the water. We stopped by Byrons camp site and ate with him again. We shared our stories and the beauty of the view. We could see Mt. Vesuvius off in the distance and fire works that went off every night.
The next day we took the Ferry to Ischia. I had done all of these things five years ago, but it was great to do them again with a different prospective. We went to Ischia because Katie’s mom had gone ten years ago and went to this amazing spa. So we asked all of the local shop owners where to find a cheep spa. Of course we looked up how to say cheep and money after this trip, so it made it a little difficult to get our point across. We eventually got to the cheapest spa we could find. There were about 7 pools of salt water at all different temperatures. Our favorite was at the top of the hill, overlooking the water. It was a warm pool with hammocks right near by. I stayed there for a while and went down to the sandy beach and tanned and floated in the water. We wanted to stay all day but the last boat left at 5:20 so we had to get back. The boat ride was wonderful, I got to see the sun going down, with Ischia, Capri and Vesuvius on the horizon. We were starving when we got off the boat, so I hobbled up the hill, we got pizza and sat overlooking the water. After we got gelato then walked around for a while. Then we sat at a cafe and i got a cappuccino, katie was not allowed as it would keep her up again. We sat by three cute boys but once we heard their American accents they were not so cute anymore. Then three Italian guys sat near us and started talking to us. two of them were Tennis players about to have a match the next day against each other, the third was a tour guide, which explained why he was the most talkative. They were nice, and although they didnt fail to make sexual jokes they were not creeps like most other guys who talked to us. The tour guide even was able to make a sexual joke about my dirty bandaged foot, which i didnt think was possible.
Our last day we decided to find this swimming whole near by that we heard about. It was a fifteen minute walk from our site. There was a grassy area up top, the open sea to one side with lots of fisherman and a small cove to the other side. I tanned in the grass and on the rocks for a while, then climbed down the rocks and jumped in. I swam through the 10 ft opening and into the cove. It was magical, no one was there, Katie met me on the other side, we swam around and laid on the rocks. We headed back as the sun went down.
That night we dressed up a little and went into town. We decided to eat out for our last night, I got pasta with creamy salmon sauce and a pear bear. The waiters were kind of weird, they were all so different. The one who sat us was nice, and the drink guy was cute and friendly, then their was an old guy who was trying to joke around with us but seemed kind of crazy, then our waiter at first didn’t seem nice but when I asked about the fish, we walked me over to show me the display. I expected to see how it would look on the plate but instead he pulled out a raw dead fish to show me. The fifth waiter that helped us, took bill, and when he brought back the change he was 2 euros short. When Katie demanded her money, he looked confused but brought it reluctantly. I bet they are used to dumb tourists who don’t know better and leave a tip.
After dinner I got my first Tiramisu, it was great! Katie got a hot chocolate and some yummy dessert, we sat and talked on a bench, watching the people go by. Then I had to pee so bad, so I rushed into an alleyway while she kept a look out. Then I got gelato.
The next morning we left Sorrento, We caught train after train, making our way back to Napoli, then Rome then finally Viterbo. It took us 8 hours to get back and we felt gross and tired. When I got back I took a shower and loved my roommates more than ever before because they were making dinner!
This was a long one I know, hope I didn’t bore you.
Ciao Tutti,

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