From Rome to Positano

So where are we now? We left Rome for the Amalfi coast, Positano to be precise, two weeks ago. We had originally booked one week here but were having a bit of a dilemma about where to next so as the apartment was empty for the following week we decided that we would stay on for another week here instead, as really when else in our lives will we ever be able to say “ah shall we just stay another week?”  And having been lucky enough to visit here once before we knew how much we loved it and just what a beautiful place it is. And quite frankly after the 6 hour hellish journey here from Rome via disgusting Naples we both could not face moving on anywhere any time soon. We did not want to see another train or bus!

We have been staying in a little split level studio built into the cliff side with our own little terraced garden, complete with our very own lemon tree, with views of pretty Positano all around. All pastel painted houses, bougainvillea blossoming and lemon tree’s all built into the cliffs tumbling down to the bay and the sparkling sea, lovely! Apart from the f***ing mosquito’s, aghh…

Since arriving here it has been nice to kick back for a bit, unpack and stand still for a while, go to the beach, lay in the garden, relax over a drink with the sea stretching before us, wander the maze of alleyways filled with shops (Fendi beach bag anyone??) and restaurants spilling out into the paths and generally watching the world go by albeit packed with day trippers and whilst sweltering in the boiling, humid heat. Been in the 30’s but 80% humidity. Sweaty!!

We had a hot, expensive and reasonably disappointing day in Capri. Firstly went to the famous Blue Grotto on a boat trip, the waters were meant to be bright azure and seemingly glowing from underneath, what actually happened was we paid 50 bloody euros to sit on a boat at the entrance to a cave for an hour, then climbed into a tiny rowing boat to enter said cave for 5 minutes, the water was quite blue, not really that amazing, there were so many poxy boats you could barely see the water anyway then we were whisked back to the dock. A complete waste of €50. Don’t bother if you happen to find yourself there. We then headed up to Capri town, which was basically Bond Street on top of a cliff, packed with us day-trippers, bastard boiling hot and ridiculously expensive, even for Italy. €10 for a glass of fruit juice?? I think not!! And the showing off and posing took things to a whole new level, (even for Italy!!). Unless you really have squillions in the bank you would feel like the poor relations staying here, people really only come here to be flash and to be seen being flash, and in all honesty I can’t really say I can see why? It’s quite nice but there are nicer places, it is just exclusive for exclusives sake. It cost us €150 in total for the day, to get the boat there, go to the bloody grotto and have a pizza for lunch (the cheapest thing on the menu), and no drinks apart from water. Crazy. We both felt we would have rather treated ourselves to a meal out in Positano instead but hey ho, you live and learn.

The other place on our doorstep here is Pompeii, we never went the last time we were here, as we just wanted to relax and the way to get to Pompeii is not relaxing. You have to get a train which links Naples (vile city of filth and mafia) and Sorrento, and Pompeii is in the middle, we had had the unfortunate experience of this awful train before, it is like a really old underground train but with plastic seats, no air-conditioning, no luggage space (hundreds of people have luggage with them as it is the only train to Sorrento and you cannot get there by any other means unless coming direct from Naples airport!!!!!), packed to the rafters with people hot and sweating and it takes about an hour and a half. It is hell. But anyway I digress, we had decided to get up early and catch the 7.55am bus to Sorrento in order to get on the awful train to Pompeii, we stood at the bus stop until 8.50 when we, and many others, found out the sodding buses were on strike. So we went off to the beach instead. Pompeii take two, a couple of days later we tried again and managed to get there. It was ever so impressive that the whole town of roman ruins is still basically standing all these thousands of years later and the level of destruction caused by Versuvius’ violent eruption was immense but unless you buy a guidebook or pay for a guided tour there is no information about anything at all, not even a map from the information office on site!!! So if you’re going buy a bloody book before you go in.  We spent the morning there and enjoyed much more than our outing to Capri and then once reaching Sorrento, again by horrid train, basked in the knowledge that we never, ever have to get on that god-awful piece of transport again.

Then we have spent a few more days knocking around here, got rained on (just one grey day), had a lovely fresh fish dinner out with views of the sea and village and have been trying to keep cool in these ever rising temperatures, thank god for air-con!!

So that brings me up to date really, we leave Positano tomorrow morning for an epic journey to Sicily, our last stop. We have 2 hours on a bus with a change in the middle, then 6 hours on a train all the way to Sicily (the train goes on the ferry apparently??), the a cab to our B&B for the night in Milazzo before sailing off to the Aeolian Islands on Sunday where we will be staying for a week. Will need a blimin rest after all that travelling!!

Positano pics,