Pre-Moon Part Tre - Amalfi!

The last leg of the Pre-Moon was by far the most relaxing, which is saying something since we've already had a completely fantastic trip. We ditched the car and took a train from Orvieto, back through Rome (hello Rome!) and down to Naples. Side note, what you've heard about the piles of trash in Naples is true. I actually saw a kid, must have been at least 12, finish his juice box and chuck it off the train onto the tracks at a station. While his mom looked on and laughed! I'm still shaking my head about it.

Anyhow - in Naples we got on a local train called the Circumvesuviana (get it?? The train that goes around Vesuvius?? I love it) and after 35 stops (no joke), we arrived in Sorrento and spent the evening at a hotel that took our breath away. Honestly, this is what I picture when I think super-duper-luxurious-location. The hotel itself was gorgeous, lots of blue and white, but the private swimming area was jaw-dropping.

Next afternoon we hopped on a bus for Positano. The trip is not for the faint of heart nor for those prone to air, sea or car sickness. Imagine, if you will, giant tour buses hurtling along cliffs that go straight down for, oooh, 200 meters before dropping into the ocean and squeezing by other buses on roads that buses really don't have any business being on, the whole while the driver (an incredibly good looking Italian Man, sorry sweetie) drives with one hand, using the other to talk on the phone, gesture wildly and very frequently mash down on the horn to warn anyone coming around the curve from the other direction. Anyhow, super exciting, I wish we had taken a photo of the ride. We spent 4 nights in Positano and I actually cried when we left. It was perfect.

Swimming in Sorrento. My first dip in the Mediterranean Sea! Really clear water, photos don't do it justice. And all kinds of fun sealife - anchovies, sea urchins, opihi, etc.



Proof of luxuriousness. we're soooo going back here.

Aerial view of swimming hole (past the breakfast tables of course).

Mt. Vesuvius at Sunset. View from our room.

View from hotel room.

Pete's dream. And now his screen saver.


Off we go to Positano. I think we had the last of the summer weather. High 70s, water was still warm. We were on the tail end of tourist season, so the crowds weren't too bad. Anyone who is considering a trip here someday, I can't recommend it enough.

We rented a wonderful little apartment and got to know three generations of the family who owns it. Lilli, the grandmother, met us at the bus stop. Don't let the grandmother title fool you - this lady is a firecracker. She grabbed half of our luggage, said 'follow me!!!' and took off. We trudged along after her. One note about Positano - there are zero flat streets. Great quote from Steinbeck - "Positano bites deep. It is a dream place that isn’t quite real when you are there and becomes beckoningly real after you have gone. It's houses climb a hill so steep it would be a cliff except that stairs are cut in it. I believe that whereas most house foundations are vertical, in Positano they are horizontal. The small curving bay of unbelievably blue and green water laps gently on a beach of small pebbles. There is only one narrow street and it does not come down to the water. Everything else is stairs, some of them as steep as ladders. You do not walk to visit a friend, you either climb or slide."

There are 213 steps from the beach up to our apartment. We counted. Bummer when you forget your towel at home. Anyhow, it was a dream vacation. Thank you sweetie for making it happen.

Pete was almost hit! Kidding. Pete with anchor.

Cool house cut into the cliff in the background.

View up the mountains from our apartment.

Ahh. Our beach.

Our last night in Positano.



Pete took a day trip to Pompeii (I have to admit I opted for more swimming and beach lounging.) and loved it. Some crowds, but his report was that it really is a small city that simply stopped. Entire homes and businesses almost preserved as they were back on that super scary day when Vesuvius got tired of having a city on its slopes.

Bakery

Eek. The description says that the day it exploded, Vesuvius sent down an "avalanche" of ash, rock and deadly gas that traveled up to 180 km per hour. Dude.