I've been hesitating to start this journal entry for a couple of reasons, one being that our trip has slowed and become more relaxed.
The other being that I didn't want to be too negative about a certain portion of our trip. After having a few days to process the metro experience from Napoli to Sorrento, I've decided to not go into detail other than to share this tip - DO NOT EVER, EVER, TAKE THE METRO IN NAPOLI. If anyone wants further details, I can share in person. And to be clear, we are safe, nothing is stolen.
So, that being said - we arrived in Napoli in midafternoon on May 6th, and used the city metro to ride out to Sorrento, which is in the Amalfie Coast area and does not have regular train service. This area is very mountainous, rocky and beautiful - the local metro/commuter train we were on ducked through many tunnels, often stopping to let other trials pass as most of the rail is one line.
We quickly grabbed our gear and hopped off at our stop, which is the last stop before Sorrento and the closest to our hotel, which straddled the line between Saint Angello and Sorrento. We walked through the streets, literally, as the sidewalks are either half a foot wide, or non-existent. I'm still amazed at how the tour buses are able to navigate these streets! Our hotel was nice, and even had some turtle friends out front to meet, one of which was born in 1987! Brings back memories of one of my friends who had turtles as pets when he was young!
We settled in, roamed around and found great food, and some of the best gnocci we have had in Italy, which was a bit of a surprise. Most reviews say that the food in the south of Italy doesn't compare to the north, but we've found that Sorrento has lots of great options.
Our first full day in Sorrento (May 7th), we braved the metro/commuter train one last time to ride into Pompeii, which has been a dream of mine to see since a child and reading the Scholastic books we bought during those famous book sales. What first struck me as we reviewed the maps as we walked around was how much bigger Pompeii was than I imagined, it felt like a huge area, filled with ruins of houses, shops, and amazing roads in use since 20 BC. The age of what we were viewing was astounding.
But that being said, the overall area was slightly underwhelming - perhaps because I had looked forward to this visit, and already knew quite a bit of the history. Its also important to note that most of the original floors, frescos, statues and bodies were removed to Napoli, and replaced with replicas. While this is understandable from a archeological perspective, it was none-the-less disappointing. We ended up spending about 4 hours walking around the city, and snapped a lot of beautiful photos.
In the evening, back in Sorrento, I took a peek at Foursquare and found a spot with a 9.1 rating specializing in Buffalo Mozzarella. We were blown away by our dishes, and the ambiance/service and couldn't of been more satisfied when we walked back to the hotel. Another day of over 25k steps, and I already feeler a bit lighter and much more in shape - I'm very excited to continue some of the else routines when I return to Winnipeg!
The next couple days, including today (May 9th), we basically relaxed in Sorrento. We walked to shops, ate at our favorite restaurants and napped with the balcony doors open. It's been so great to wind down, and we are finding we are getting a bit tired and ready to come home.
Tomorrow we will be heading out to Positano (Sp?) for the day as our last day trip, which is something Hanna is looking forward to. Then we will be heading back to Rome for one night, and flying out to arrive home on Thursday at 11pm.
I hope to jam in one last journal entry before we leave - Until next time!