Over the weekend, 11 of us from Gonzaga (along with about 20 other students studying in Florence from various schools across the US) went to the Amalfi Coast with EuroAdventures. We left Florence around 7 to take the bus down south and got into Sorrento around 2 am. Thank goodness for good movies on the bus! We stayed at Villagio Verde and felt like were were going to freeze because the heaters in the bungalows were not working and we had nothing but shorts and t-shirts to sleep in. Oh well, we survived, but were running on very little sleep the next day.
We woke up and met Bruno, our fabulous EuroAdventures guide, at the hotel so we could walk down to the marina in Sorrento to pick up our ferry to Capri. We had to hang around Sorrento to wait for the later ferry, so we enjoyed cafe lattes by the beach and soaked up some early morning sun. Once we got to Capri, we got ready for our hike. The first part was about 25 minutes up stairs through a residential area- too bad we thought that was the so-called hike. Once we got to a view point with some nice shops, Bruno pointed to the top of the mountain and said that that was what we were hiking... The trail was called Passetiello and it led us to Anacapri. I highly recommend doing it if you get the chance to go to Capri! It was an exhausting, intense hike straight up the hill, especially for a group of college students who have been fed pasta everyday and have barely seen the inside of a gym. It was a nice motivation to get right back into shape when we are home! The views were gorgeous and we took many detours to find awesome vista point and photo ops. We looked around Anacapri and then took the 1000 stairs down to the main harbor that we started out hike from. We got delicious Caprese sandwiches and fresh strawberries for an easy lunch in the sun. One a quest for a bathroom and dessert, we went into a little bakery and when we asked the employee about where we should go to find a boat cruise around the island, he called up his friend, who showed up very soon to take the 11 of us around the island. The boat was only suppose to take 8 people total, but there was a total of 12. It wasn't a problem, but if the police had found out, there would be some huge fines! Anyways, the cruise was amazing! We were a bit bummed at the Blue Grotto was closed, but our boat guide took us to some very neat caves and spots around the island. We got to see bright red coral that the island is known for. It was a gorgeous ride- I would love to do it in the summer so swimming would be a possibility! Oh well, I'll just have to go back to Capri for the third time. After we scurried off the boat to make sure we didn't see any police, we did some souvenir shopping and had a nice little coffee break before taking the ferry back to Sorrento. It was SO cold, especially since we were all in shorts, when we arrived so we took a little bus up the hill and then went on a quest to find PJ pants. We even resorted to the Disney store... no luck! Once we got back to our bungalow, we figured out how to turn on the heater and mad sandwiches from the fixings Sarah and I bought at the Mercato Centrale in Florence earlier in the week. We were in bed by 10, but being the girls that we are, stayed up for an hour talking- it sort of felt like summer camp!
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| Sorrento marina |
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| Lazy cats of Sorrento |
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| Our boat to Capri |
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| Bruno! |
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| Capri |
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| Our hike |
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| Made it to the top! |
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| Boat ride |
The next morning, we met Bruno at the hotel again and took the bus from Sorrento to Postiano. The bus ride was pretty freaky because there are times when you just look straight down the mountain from the window of the bus. The views were gorgeous, especially if you didn't look straight down... We go off the bus at the top of the town and took the stairs down into the city towards the beach. the narrow walkway was lined with little homes and adorable shops. Once we got to the water, it was a bit over cast, but it was warm and comfortable. We collected sea glass and just enjoyed being on the coast. One the rain started, we decided it was lunch time. There was a little deli just up from the beach where we got the most amazing sandwiches yet- foccacia bread with tomatoes, salt, oregano, olive oil, basil, huge chunks of mozzarella, and salami from Milan. Delicious! The rain kept falling, so we just shopped around and stayed indoors as we made out way up to the prettiest bus stop I have ever seen. Once we were back in Sorrento, the girls in my bungalow and I got ready quickly and caught a train to Naples. Naples was loud, busy, chaotic, dirty, and very interesting. It was very different from the peaceful coast and a side of Italy that should be experienced. We walked around for a bit, scoped out the fake designer street vendors, and made our way to L'Antica Pizzeria for dinner. L'Antica Pizzeria is 150 years old, the place where Margherita pizza was invented, AND where they filmed Julia Roberts eating pizza in Eat, Pray, Love! Yum! After dinner, we bought a copious amount of knock off designer items (great finds- just unfortunate knowing that our $ probably went to the Mafia) and made our way to the train back- super sketchy train station. Once we got back into Sorrento, we were all exhausted and sore from our two jam packed days. We considered taking a cab back to our hotel, but when they gave us their price, we got over that idea quickly. Another reason we got over that idea? Some other girls on the trip who weren't from GU were like "Are you guys seriously taking a cab back? [insert some rude East Coast looks]". We were taken aback by their bitchiness and decided to give them a head start on the walk back and then have all of us walk as fast as possible to catch up with them just so we could walk past them to prove that we didn't take a cab. Yeah, our inner 7th grade girls took over. As we were catching up to them, we laughed as loud as possible and talked about how sore we were from the hike (that they didn't even do!). As I said, 7th grade girls. Oh well, we had fun with it and were thrilled to get to our bungalow before they did. Add a little competitive spirit and that walk gets so much easier! We all stayed in and just enjoyed each others' company.
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| Our hotel for the weekend |
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| Sarah, the hotel dog |
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| Positano |
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| Beach glass |
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| Epic bus stop |
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| Napoli! |
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| L'Antica Pizzeria! |
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| Delicious! |
Our last day involved struggling to get out of bed due to being frozen and because of pure exhaustion from the weekend. We packed up and were the first people on the bus (GU always wins.). Bruno made it possible for us to just stop in Pompeii on our way back to Florence. He described it as the "Las Vegas to Los Angeles" because that is where people will go when they get money to build huge villas in he area. A car accident near us delayed our trip awhile, but we were still able to enjoy some quality time in Pompeii. We got a guided tour and then had some free time to explore the ruins and do some shopping. The pushy street vendors and cat calls should have turned us off from buying, but I picked up some pieces of jewelry using my new bargaining skills- this is new for me. We got some freshly squeezed orange juice that was to die for and made out way back to Florence! It was raining in Florence and since two of my roommates were in flip flops and not feeling well, we did in fact take a cab back to our pensione. And we liked it!
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| Sign to the brothel |
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| Mount Vesuvius |
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| One of the many dogs of Pompeii |
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| Preserved dog body |
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| Exterior frescoes |
