Torna a Sorrento
Trip Start
Jan 12, 2008
1
20
22
Trip End
Jun 18, 2008
Sorrento,
Campania,
Italy
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
My actual birthday, May 7th, was a lovely Wednesday spent on a 9 hour train from Milan to Napoli, followed by a 1 hour local train to Sorrento. It was...not particularly festive. BUT after that, the fun began. Turns out the toilet in our hostel was broken, so we got moved to a four star hotel! Happy Birthday to me! It was really nice, with a great view of th Bay. We got a nice dinner of local wine and "Gnocchi alla Sorrentina" (Gnocchi baked with mozzarella), we got some sleep in preparation for a great long weekend.
The following day was an 80 degree Thursday in Campania, so we headed to the ancient city of Pompeii. Quick history lesson: When Mt. Vesuvius erupted in 80 BC the entire town of Pompeii was covered in ash is a split second, preserving it forever in a state of shock, until it was uncovered over 1600 years later. Apparently, it also sells more tickets than any museum, church, or cultural exhibit in Italy, and is the most popular archaeological site in the world. It really is an amazing sight to see. Besides the fact that there are no roofs on the buildings, the whole town is just exactly as it was - even some of the artwork on the walls is still there! There's a shopping quarter, residential district, park, stadium, theater - everything! And the coolest part of all: They have on display some of the actual bodies of the people trapped in Pompeii at the time of the eruption, mummified by the ash in the exact position they were in at the time.
Sorrento 1
WAY cool. We spent that evening in the town of Sorrento, which was a little kitschy and touristy, but absolutely beautiful. We sat on an outside deck and drank cocktails as the sun set - a great night.
The next day we made our way to Positano (not as easy as it sounds, thanks to yet another public transportation strike in Italy - of course), which is a great little town on the coast - probably one of the most beautiful places I've been so far. They call it the "vertical city" because all the buildings are build right into the sides of the mountains. And the best part of all was the BEACH! It was so gorgeous out those two days, that we spent morning till night on the beach, soaking up the sun (and getting just a little burnt in the process). But it was so relaxing and beautiful. I even bought myself a pair of handmade sandals from a little old Italian man who's been making them for probably 100 years - they're beautiful. The people in the area were SO nice, even if I couldn't understand half of what they said (the Naples accent is SO different!)
After navigating the Naples train station on Sunday while the CRAZY Napoli soccer fans ran around trying to get to the stadium for the AC Milan - Napoli match, we finally got on yet another 9 hour train home. It was a wonderful little vacation - the perfect birthday present!
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