Amalfi Coast

The road to Amalfi was pretty hairy...I admit to closing my eyes and holding on so tight I thought I had given the tips of my fingers nerve damage. I am really bad with any sort of heights, and this was heights on a very small road with a large bus...shit!!! Our driver was brilliant and got us there in one piece, the views were spectacular...apparently!

We were staying in Maiori on the beach, the room was basic, but the view from our balcony fabulous. After a quick settle in, we went for a walk to explore, a slightly larger style of village to Vernazza. Dinner was in the hotel with our fellow travellers, who we were getting to know. A mostly good group, but a few annoying ones...pretty normal. We had a three course meal of pasta, veal and gelato...thank god we were walking so much each day...the food was amazing.

The next day was a free day, so we slept in a little, and then headed to the town and walked around. There was a market on, so was interesting to check it out. Lots of great bargains, but we were mindful of luggage space. We then headed back to the balcony for a snack, some sun and a snooze. It was nice to be able to do nothing to catch our breath after such a full on time in Rome.

We headed to one of the many beachfront cafes for lunch...Mum, Amanda and I had the Mixed Shellfish, which came out in a huge platter of Mussels, Clams, and baby clams in a white wine sauce, fresh and delicious. Dad had the Mixed Fish, which was different types of lightly battered fish and calamari.

Another nap was in order, followed by a swim in The Mediterranean. The water was initially fresh, but then warm, the stones on the beach a bit rough, but all fabulous and refreshing.

Dinner was meant to be to be light, we went to a pizzeria suggested by our guide. We shared Bruschetta, but that was a meal in itself, and divine. Then the pizzas came out, by far the best we have had, with drinks, came to 10 Euro a head!!!!! We rolled back to the hotel and slept well.

The next day we had a tour of Amalfi and Capri. We caught a boat to the town of Amalfi for a short tour of the old town. It was a lovely old seaside town. In the middle of the town the streets narrowed and went down not so much underground but lower. The area was often overtaken by pirates and locals were getting fed up. The pirates stole not only their valuables but also kidnapped the beautiful, young local girls. The townsfolk paid young girls to help trap the pirates. The girls were sent to run down into this area with the pirates following. The streets were narrow and low, trap doors were set up and the pirates were trapped and murdered as they chased the young girls. An amusing yet disturbing story, especially standing at the scene as it was being told. The tour ended in the main town area near an amazing cathedral.

Next stop a larger boat to cruise us to Capri, it was a stunning day and the water beautiful. We arrived at Capri and took the Funicular to the top. A Funicular is sort of a tram or train cable car. It was pretty steep, but the views from the tops were amazing. We had a tour of the little town which ended near the cliffs in the botanical gardens overlooking the water...stunning.

We then had a few hours before the boat took us back, we had something to eat, looked at the shops and made our way back down to the bottom. It was probably an hour too long, as we had covered everything. By the time we got back to the hotel we were really tired, we had dinner with the group in the hotel and an early night.

Posted with Blogsy