Sorrento, Italy: Make Yourself at Home

 If you plan on visiting the ruins in Herculaneum and Pompeii, one thing you are going to have to decide is where to stay. The nearest big city is Naples - lots of nightlife but also a pretty rough city. There are small towns near Pompeii and Herculaneum - no nightlife and not much to choose from. Or you can do as most tourists do - you can stay either on the Amalfi Coast or in Sorrento. Typically, British tourists choose Sorrento, American tourists choose the Amalfi Coast. Since we see enough Americans already, we chose Sorrento. This first photo is of the central town square in Sorrento.

 But that is not the first thing we saw our first morning in Sorrento. After walking three or four blocks toward the town square, this is the first photo I took. Not because it is particularly beautiful, but because of the name "gaetano" written on the wall (graffiti is very common in Italy, but not as common in Sorrento). One of my son's friends is an young man of Italian heritage named Gaetano. It is an unusual name in southern California, but apparently not in Italy. In any case, Gaetano, this photo's for you.

 Standing approximately where the dark station wagon is in the first picture and looking right, this is what I saw. Note the bay of Naples in the distance and the deep ravine running between the buildings. What is in that ravine?

 This.

 There are motorcycles all over Italy! Zipping by every which way. Safety always leaps to mind when I see the way they drive, but as long as it's not me or my family on them. Which brings up safety: that is one of Sorrento's strong suits. I always felt very safe in that town - daytime, nighttime, it didn't matter. A very large percentage of the people there are tourists, and there are police everywhere to ensure things go smoothly. Just outside the restaurant where we were having the limoncello, we did see several police cars zoom up and arrest a man walking down the sidewalk, but he was wearing a suit and never once did I question our safety. In fact, knowing they were so much on-the-ball actually increased my sense of security.

Just a block or two from the center of town (well, it *is* a small town) is this scene. A tourist shop owner standing in her doorway, her little Fiat parked half on the curb.

 And her cat, keeping a close eye on things. I would imagine this little guy earns his or her keep ensuring critters are nowhere around.

 This is the interior of the Foreigners Club on the same block as the above photos, overlooking the Bay of Naples (kind of washed out in the background of this photo). I think this used to be called the American's Club and was told to look for it by a co-worker, Larry Weaver, before we left the States. I am pretty sure I even saw signs saying American's Club while I was there, but online search show it being called he Foreigner's Club. Probably a smart move since most of the tourists there are not American. It was about 5 PM when this photo was taken and the place was empty. We weren't hungry yet so we continued on our way.

 A typical street scene in Sorrento. It was in this area that we saw a little chapel with a wedding just wrapping up. I think we actually walked by just a few feet from the front door, so it is almost as if passers-by become an unintentional part of the wedding. I am pretty sure that is the wedding party - with a few tourists sprinkled in - in the background.

 Another street. While the city feels very safe, it is wise to keep your eyes wide open for traffic while walking since many areas have no sidewalk, and those that do have extremely narrow and rough sidewalks.

 Remember the restaurant where we had the limoncello? This is the view in one direction. If I had turned to the right, I would have seen the statue in the town square. It was at this restaurant that we met a couple of Americans who were touring Italy as a part of a tour. They were amazed that we were brave enough to see it on our own, especially considering we don't know Italian. Well, it can be done, but it is not for the faint at heart. I wouldn't have it any other way though, because while they spent 4 hours in Milan as a part of their tour (four hours!!), we spent as much time as we wanted there. Which turned out to be several days. More on that some other time.

 If you do any sort of Google search at all, you will soon find out that weddings are a big part of why tourists come to Sorrento. While it is very picturesque, it seems to me that it would limit the number of people who would attend the wedding since not everyone can afford to travel...then again, maybe that is why they do it!

 There is one section of town we almost totally missed. We didn't even discover it until our last night in town, and even then we didn't discover it until about 10 PM when most shops were closed or closing. It is about a 10 block area with extremely narrow walkways (no cars, and only about 10-20 feet width to the "street") that almost had a carnival feel to it. Every shop was entirely aimed at tourists.

 Since I hadn't anticipated stumbling across such an area, I didn't bring anything but a pocket camera which struggled taking these two photos. Unfortunately they are not of a typical scene in the area, but instead are of the interior of one of the more ornate buildings.

 Returning to our room on another evening, this is the view of Mount Vesuvius we had from our room. Very soothing and tranquil. Except for those motorcycles passing by on the street.

 Another view that we had as we refreshed and prepared for dinner.

 Okay, one more shot. What can I say?

 Traffic returning to their homes after a busy Italian day.

 A home in the middle of a lemon grove. Limoncello, anyone?

 Another row of motorcycles. These spaces were empty overnight but were completely full as early as 7 AM each morning.

 Sorrento is largely a tourist town, and it focuses primarily on British tourists. We saw many Britains there, and I think this shop demonstrates that the town does indeed focus on them. Note the store name is in English, not Italian.

 Yes, the day is over and everyone is heading home. Another reason that we chose to stay in Sorrento and not on the Amalfi Coast: the railroad terminates in Sorrento, meaning we could hop on the train to get to any place we wanted to visit including Herculaneum and Pompeii. The train does not go along the Amalfi Coast, which means we would have needed to take a bus, THEN take a train. That would have eaten up a good half hour to an hour each way.

Mt Vesuvius

The lights start coming on in the homes at the base of Mount Vesuvius. I assume that some of those are in the city of Ercolano that surrounds the Herculaneum ruins.

And we return to our bed for a good night's sleep. Hmmm. I think this setup is how Italians enforce birth control.

Amalfi Coast: Traveling from Sorrento to Positano

 We decided to take a SITA bus to see the Amalfi coast. In Sorrento, the bus station is co-located with the Circumvesuviana train station. We had a little bit of trouble communicating in order to purchase a bus ticket, and a bit of trouble understanding the bus schedule but eventually it worked out and we made our way to a long line, waiting for the next bus. I was standing in that line when I took this photo.

 There are many other buses coming and going, so it is best to ask around to ensure you are standing in the right line. Several times, we saw people who had been waiting 10 to 15 minutes finally figure out they were in the wrong line.

 But eventually we did get on the bus and Nikki found a seat next to a senior woman from the states. She and her female relatives regularly go to Amalfi. Nikki told her about our trouble finding pizza that was different than what we would eat in the US, and the woman gave us some very good advice: Buy from the street vendors - that's where the best pizza is in southern Italy!

 Now, a few photos of the scenery along the drive to our first stop on the Amalfi coast, Positano.

Amalfi Coast: The City of Amalfi Waterfront

 The main road along the Amalfi Coast, SS163, changes names as it winds it's way along the coast. By the time the road reaches the city of Amalfi, it is called Via Matteo Camera and passes by the small Amalfi bay.

 There are many buses lined up in the parking lot by the bay, and as we stepped off and away from the bus, this is the first thing we saw. Fairly picturesque, in an industrial sort of way.

 I took the chance to take this photo of Nikki with the city of Amalfi in the background. The rows of buses is directly behind me at this point.

 I snapped a few more photos of Amalfi from this location.

 It is just as lovely as it looks.

 A fishing boat passes by on the waterfront.

 This building is intriguing as it appears to be undergoing some sort of remodeling, with a massive amount of scaffolding around it.

 Let's walk along the bayfront and take a few photos.

 A restaurant right on the water. We usually skip lunch while on vacation, but standing an hour in the sun had made us hungry, so we started looking for a place to get a snack. We did not stop at this restaurant as it smelled seafoody and nothing from the ocean touches Nikki's lips. It is a long-standing rule she has.

 A few of the bus parking with Amalfi in the background.

 Now, all the photos I've ever seen of Amalfi show immaculate buildings, and there are definitely plenty of those, to be sure. But there are also places that look like they could use a little sprucing up, as the peeling paint on these buildings demonstrate.

 I'm not sure what the interior of these buildings look like, but judging from their exterior a remodel may be due. And note the obligatory Italian laundry hung on the balconies.

Lots of sea out there.

 A curious little rock formation. Do you suppose they removed the rest of the rock for the buildings and walkways but left this sliver?

 A quick peek at the scaffolding framed in an appealing way.

 Nikki politely carrying my red camera bag. What a woman!

 So I take a photo of her...

 Finally we get to the Amalfi "beach". Not much of a beach, but visitors are making due with what is there.

It is curious to see the boat dragged aground without a trailer.