Buongiorno, tutti,
The sirens of the Sorento and the Amalfi Coast were calling us. We left Rome on Sunday morning and traveled to Napoli by train. At the train station, we got a taxi to take us to the port, where we would board a ferry for a short ride across the Bay of Napoli to Sorrento. The taxi ride itself was an adventure. I felt like I was on Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride in Disneyland. Napoli, to me, is so crowded and congested, I never want to spend any time there. The taxi driver made certain that we got to the port in one piece, but I had my doubts for awhile. He was a genial soul. He did not speak English, but I was too terrified to speak, anyway.
The boat ride across the bay was such a pleasant way to get to Sorrento. I have always, in the past, taken the small train, the Circumvesuviana, which is usually very crowded and takes twice as long to get to Sorrento. I was happy for this new experience.
Once we arrived in Sorrento, and checked into our hotel, we set off on a short walking tour of the town. The walk was not very long, as we were hungry. We went to Ristorante Aurora, to have pizza, for they make the best pizza in Sorrento. The restaurant sits right on the main piazza, Piazza Tasso. From our outdoor table, we could watch the people walking by, as well as the activity of the piazza.
Sorrento sits on top of huge limestone cliffs. The canyons, the small streets, the hills, as well as the parks and quiet places, are so stunning, making Sorrento a superb walking town.
On Monday, we went on a driving tour of the Amalfi Coast. Carolina Monetti, daughter of our usual driver, Raffaele, picked us up at 8:30 and away we went.
Carolina drove us over the mountain to the Amalfi Coast side of the Mediterranean. She pointed out different points of interest to us, and stopped frequently for us to take pictures and get better views of the sea.
We stopped in one turnout on the road, where a man with a small truck had set up a little fruit stand. Lemons are everywhere. We were told that the trees down here produce three crops a year. Most of the lemon trees are in groves that are fenced and covered with mesh screens, as the torrential rains of winter, plus the birds and other calamities of nature, would destroy the fragile lemon blossoms.
Finally, though, we had to return to Sorrento. We finished our day by enjoying a fabulous dinner at my favorite restaurant in all of Italy, Ristorante Delfino, situated down at the Marina Grande. We celebrated Danny’s birthday in style. This was a perfect finish to a perfect day.
Until we meet again, Arrivederci. There are certainly more adventures in our future, but Danny’s birthday this year has to go down in history as one of the best days ever.
Ciao for now,
Dolly
Last Summer I spent a weekend in this stunning part of Southern Italy, and I fell in love with it! Although not far from Puglia, the region where I live (a mere 3 and a half hours drive), I barely knew the area. I had visited it once with my parents when I was a kid, but I didn’t have much memory of it: it was such a surprise to discover how beautiful it is! I slept in Maiori, the perfect starting point for many different day trips around along Amalfi Coast.
First of all, where is that? Amalfi Coast is so called after the name of one of its best known towns, Amalfi. It is a stretch of coastline about 50-kilometers long in Campania region (the most famous city of it being Napoli, or Naples). It runs from Vietri sul Mare, a picturesque town worldwide famous for its ceramics, up to Meta, hilltop village just outside Sorrento. Amalfi Coast runs at the base of the Lattari mountains, which makes the view of the coastline very dramatic.
Driving through the so – called “road of 1,000 bends” is an experience itself. Very tortuous, the road passes through lemon terraces (being the lemon the most characteristic fruit of the area, well known for the limoncello productions) and traditional villages. The road is so narrow that during summer months traffic jams are inevitable! For this reason, if driving is not your favorite thing, you should probably avoid to drive on this road, preferring to take one of the buses that link the coast. It will also be a pleasant way to enjoy the stunning cliffs on one side and the astonishing azure sea on the other.
My day took me from my base at Grand Hotel Excelsior Vittoria in Sorrento, all the way to Ravello and back along the stunning panoramic road of the Amalfi Coast, with stops in Amalfi, Praiano and Positano. From the distance, I was also able to catch a view of Maiori and Minori, and drive by Atrani, which I thought I was very charismatic.
