Blogs from Campania, Italy, Europe - page 3

All hands were on-deck at the butt-crack of dawn this morning, as our friends John and Cindy are heading home after their 9-day-visit. Our trusty friend and driver, Francesco, arrived at 6:00AM to deliver them to the airport in Naples for their 9:30AM flight to Amsterdam. From there, they connect with a transatlantic flight to JFK, and then arrive in Jacksonville, Florida, which is about a 2-hour drive from their home. It will be a long and tiring trip, but we hope a safe and reasonably comfortable one, at least to the extent that is possible with airline travel these days. Although Dee and I were sad to see them depart, they left us with many fond memories of the experiences we shared together during their stay. UPDATE: As I write this blog entry, we received ... read more

Today we had booked a 4-hour tour of La Masseria, a family-owned and operated farm in Massa Lubrense, a village located about 5 miles to the southwest of Sorrento. The pick-up point for our group of 20 people was about a 10-minute walk from our apartment on Via degli Aranci, and we arrived slightly early for the scheduled 3:30PM rendezvous with the minibus and driver that would deliver us to the farm. Our driver today, a grumpy-looking guy who looked to be in his 60s, turned out to be quite a character. Dee noted straight away that his fly was at half-mast (so I quickly dubbed him "Flyboy"), and he was clearly agitated at a few late stragglers (and some no-shows), while all the while muttering expletives in Italian. But the real fun began during the ... read more

Editorial Note: Our friends, John and Cindy, wanted to visit Capri during their 9-day stay with us in Sorrento, so they did just that today. Dee and I decided to forgo the walking that would be involved in this excursion, so we stayed close to home. Cindy prepared the following commentary and provided the photos regarding their adventure. After our intel gathering at Marina Piccola with Mitch and Dee on Tuesday, John and I decided on an 8 am ferry departure on Wednesday to Capri. At 7 am we trekked along the path where Mitch and Dee had helped us leave breadcrumbs the previous day. We were feeling very cosmopolitan and successful until we arrived at the gates leading to Villa Comunale where the lift delivers tourists down to the docks. It all came to a ... read more

Our guests have shown remarkable resilience in recovering from the rigors of their overseas flights yesterday. As we can attest from our own experiences over the years, the first day or so after arrival from the states is like being in a daze, with biological clocks and sleep cycles thrown out of kilter. But John and Cindy, our guests from Florida, are coping well so far. They managed to get several hours of sleep before waking up in the middle of their first night; sat for awhile on the balcony watching the "street action" below; then back in the sack for a few more hours of sleep. They awoke just in time to enjoy one of Chef Dee's robust breakfasts of eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoes, toast and coffee. Since there was no strict agenda set for ... read more

The weather gods must be smiling down upon us (at last!), as we enjoyed yet another day of blue skies, sunshine and mild temperatures. We only hope the streak continues, as we're expecting two special guests (a couple from Satsuma, Florida) to arrive this coming Sunday for a 9-day visit. Since they are Floridians, their thermostats (like ours) are not accustomed to the chilly temperatures we have endured since our arrival in Sorrento almost three weeks ago. Our first order of business today was to walk to the pharmacy, the same one we had visited to purchase some blood glucose test strips for me shortly after we had arrived. It is a customer-friendly environment here, and the pharmacist on-duty today was very helpful in suggesting an over-the-counter cough medication that Dee was seeking as a replacement ... read more