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Pompeii and Napoli
Our final leg of our trip brings us back to the Campania region to Pompeii.
We check in to a great hotel called Habita79 and go for lunch after a very long drive across the country from Adriatic to the Mediterranean. We take a stroll but as we are told, Pompei is a very small city. Basically built around the ruins and a big basilica.
We go to the beautiful rooftop patio and are treated to amazing fireworks and a procession. We are told it is a campaign to try to get someone to be declared a saint. 🤦♀️
Tonight the boys decide to go to the ….McDonald across the street to see how it is. I can not participate in that…I go to bed 🙂
The next day is a very full day.
FIrst we meet our guide for a 2-hour tour of the ruins. It is very much worth it and we learn a lot about the history of the city and how they lived. Some of the house that have been excavated are the house of rich merchants…they are huge, complete with a garden inside the courtyard. Pompei was a port city in 79BC when the eruption occurred and under Roman rule. We learned that this city that is being excavated was actually build on top of a previous city prior to Roman conquering this region. There are amazing mosaic, sculpture and artifacts…but we learnt that all the mosaic on the floor are reproduction as every thing of value is stored in the Naples museum.
At the end of our tour, we rush back to the hotel to get our luggage and drive to Vesuvius for our entry time. Fortunately, I realized a few days ago that you must pre -book your time for access to Vesuvius and that can only be done online.
Chuck drives up very winding and narrow roads where we come face ti face with full size tour bus….that is so crazy! And on top of that, we are driving along a very steep cliff….but the view for us, passengers is amazing!
We finally arrive at the parking (basically along a side road) and are told that we have to pay for the taxi that are waiting there to take us even further up. Very disorganized affair.
Once at the top, we begging the climb up a dirt / gravel road, much steeper than anticipated. But the view along the way is fantastic as well as when we reach the crater. The view of Positano and Capri is breathtaking! Well worth it!
The descent is tougher for me as my knee is protesting loudly but we take our time and finally make it to where the taxi should be picking us up but we find that we have to wait for them to feel like driving up. It takes a good 50 minutes before we are able to get room in one to take us down. We are all tired and hungry and so ready for the famous Napoli pizza!
We drive to Naples to return the car and check into our last hotel. It is complete mayhem in this city! The roads do not make any sense and no one cares about any rules – stopping anywhere to park, cutting people from any directions, scooters and pedestrians coming out of nowhere. Chuck thinks it is probably the worst city he has ever driven in.
The hotel is OK but 10 minutes from the airport which is important since our flight is at 6Am tomorrow morning. On their recommendation, we walk to Felece for pasta and pizzas. We taste meloncello and limoncello after dinner and are ready to go back and get ready to return home.
Since we fly via Paris, as a last treat, we buy passes for the boys to the Air France lounge at Charles De Gaulle and spend a confortable 4 hours waiting for our flight. When it is time, we say good bye to Alex who will fly to Edinburgh a few hours later than us and stay in England for an extra week.
It was a fabulous trip and we are so thankful to have been able to celebrate our 30th anniversary with our 3 amazing boys.
Life is good! Ciao!
Amalfi, Atrani and Positano
The boys’ flight was delayed for 2 hours so we enjoyed a few Birra and panini on the patio at the airport in Naples. Our driver was there on time to pick us up and drive us to Atrani. Unfortunately, it was dark by the time we were driving so we could not take in the scenery but the narrow, very winding road was very reminiscent of the Mountains of North Scotland or the road to reach Chamonix in France. We were glad that Roberto was driving!
Once at the villa, Antoinette showed us around and opened the door to the most amazing terrazzo! This is even better than the photos!
We take in the view and then walk down the 50 steps to the road to go to this restaurant on the water. We meet Andrea, one of our most friendly server. He informs me that I can not have parmigiana for my pasta with clams and mussels. Every time someone puts parmigiana on fish, an Italian die 😳 They are all most welcoming and the food is amazing!
The next day, the ones who are up by 6:45 are witnessed to a fabulous sunrise which unfortunately does not last long. Clouds are rolling in and the waves are huge!
Marc-Andre and I leave early to walk over to Amalfi and enjoy a coffee and the freshest orange juice (spurmate al arancia). In front of us, in all its glory is the cathedral. Absolutely beautiful! But even more touching is seeing these older couples all dressed up, climbing all these steps, very slowly, to attend mass.
Back to the apartment, the rain does not let out….a few of us walk back to Amalfi to enjoy a lunch and I have a very flavourful and comforting vegetable soup. Pasta with mussels for chuck!
We walk around a bit to discover a small market where we buy salami and cheese as well as beer and wine. We find a vegetable vendor where I buy tomatoes, onions and pasta to cook at home so we can enjoy the terrasse tonight. Antoinette has warned us that Sunday afternoon and night, most stores and restaurants are closed so we will eat on our patio. Unfortunately it is mostly a rainy day so we enjoy the rain with a good book from the patio.
During a short reprieve, Marc-Andre, Mathew and I go down to the road to walk a bit in Atrani to discover the beautiful views of the cliffs from different angles as well as the church and the small back alleys with the never ending staircase.
On Monday we wake up to more rain and our tour to the lemon farm is unfortunately canceled. Disappointing since we walked to the town in the pouring rain but we sit at our favorite cafe to enjoy our freshly pressed orange juice and coffee, while Alex and Mathew order an English breakfast of bacon and eggs.
As I walk in Amalfi, I find a local marketto and fish vendor so I will come back to buy supplies to cook a nice fish dinner on the patio rather than walk around in the pouring rain again.
When we go back the fish market is closed! Italian have a very loose idea of time and things seems to close unexpectedly. We end up at the butcher and buy veal scallopini, 3 of the biggest amalfi lemons I have ever seem and supplies for pasta and salads. But first we walk to Atrani to try to get a “lemoni sorbetto” but discover that everything is closed because Denzel is filming Equalizer 3 in the area!
Back at the apartment we are treated to an amazing double rainbow!
Dinner is a treat, everything is so fresh and bursting with flavour!
Tuesday morning, the sun is finally out and we make our way to the ferry to spend the day in Positano. The view is spectacular of course and the 25 minutes ride is very picturesque.
While Positano is beautiful and as with the other towns, the houses are pretty and the views as we climb the twisting road is nice, it is much more touristique and commercial than Amalfi. I do love the street with the wines overhead!
We walk to the top and find this overpriced restaurant with an amazing view. Well worth it!
Who would have thought…I bumped into a mom from Mississauga I hadn’t seem in over 10 years!….what are the chances!
Back on the ferry to return to Amalfi in a rougher seas than in the morning. Once in the town, we do some last minute shopping, and again, the store I was going to buy some ceramics souvenir is closed! Why?!?! Nevertheless we find new little alleys to have fun!
And yes mathew is using a hat from our apartment 🤣
We walk back to the apartment, barely missing some unexpected rain and decide to still go for a dip in te Mediterranean. While it is chilly, it is surprisingly confortable once we jump in!
Final night in Atrani….we drive to Puglia tomorrow.
Sicily – 30th in Sicily
A long time in planning – we are finally off to Italy for our 30th anniversary.
First stop is Sicily for Chuck and I. Since we have a long lay over in Naples, we decided to take a taxi into town for a taste of pizza where it all began! The famous antica Michele has a long line up so we make our way to El Présidente. Watching the locals scream at each other across the road is a show onto itself!! While the slice is good, the crust could be better cooked in my opinion. We will try again.
First day in Catania, we decide to walk around the town to see the various landmarks. We are staying on Via Etna which is the main artery with high end brand name stores as well as cute cafe and trattoria in sideway alleys.
We start with the ancien Roman amphitheater that is very close to our hotel. Unfortunately it is closed to the public while they repair the walls and we can not walk down but we have a great view from the street. Very impressive.
Nearby a street market, piazza Carlo Alberto is full of life and….umbrella hanging above the street. As with everywhere, fish has the place of honour. The smell is almost overwhelming. 👃🐠
We arrive at the Piazza Duomo and cathedral Sant-Agatha with its famous black elephant statut (made of lava stone) and beautiful fountain. We walk to the Porta Garibaldi via a street that is fairly rundown area. Lots of small businesses seem to be closed unfortunately.
We stop at Castillo Ursino and visit the museum. This castle was moved after a lava flow covered Catania hundreds of years ago.
On our way back we stop at the Scirrocco fish bar in a small alley where everything seems to be fried. We order the specialty – a cone of fried pieces of fish and a drink. What a treat!! Chuck didn’t like the fried sardines so we will have to try again.
Then we are off to the Bénédictin Monastery that is now owned by the university and we see students in class in medieval classrooms!
We stop at another Theatro Greco, Sam Nicolo Arena, where we can walk all the way up and get a perfect impression of what it would have been to see a fight from those stands.
The garden Bellini is a must stop and yet more stairs to climb up. This is a very hilly town!
Along the way, more alleys with umbrellas and decorations 🤪
We have an excellent dinner at Be Quiet, a small restaurant near us. I have a craving for local tomato pasta and am not disappointed. Flavour is bursting in each bite. Chuck enjoys his grilled mixed fish skewer and of course we share a perfect bottle of Sicilian red wine. We learned that Sicily is the largest producer of wine is Italy!
The next day we have a full day tour to Mount Etna and Taormina.
Our excellent driver Francesco (we purchased the tour on getyourguide), explains the various craters and the particularity of Mount Etna as we take the road to climb to 2500 feet. Lava stones and craters everywhere! He tells us that Catanian are not scared of mama Etna. It is a volcano that creates slow lava flow in contrast to Vesuvius which is explosive so citizens have time to evacuate. The lava flows in return becomes a very fertile ground which provides them excellent produces. They regularly watch the “show” is short eruptions.
Arriving at the station which is a ski resort in the winter, we take the cable car up to 2750. It is a lot colder than expected. I needed to buy a sweater! The mountain currently stands at 3300 feet but this is the highest people can go. The road and cable cars etc…had to all be rebuilt following the last eruption of lava flow in 2001. Apparently they rebuild every time it happens. While some people still live in the park, houses can not longer be built or rebuilt.
At the top we take a bus to an area where we meet a guide that will take us around and explain the particularity of this volcano. We are lucky that there is a short clearing from the clouds and are able to see the top!
We are then driven to a crater that was formed in 2001 and we can still see steam from the heat. It basically was created from flat land at that time. Another hike up but well worth it. We feel like we are on another planet.
Next stop is a lava tube where we can descend to see a sort of a cave that was created in the 1700s by the flow of lava. This is followed by a quick stop to taste olive oil, honey and wine and then off to Taormina.
First, Francesco drop us off to walk the 200 steps down to the beach to see Iso Bella from the sea level. Water is surprisingly warm.
Taormina is very reminiscent of Santorini. Small pedestrian street high fashion stores, way too many people and amazing views of the sea. The Teatro Roman Greco is spectacular. Spectators in the stand would be able to watch the show with the beautiful view of the sea in the background. We are taking in the views from all directions! The best bucket list thing would be to come back to watch a show here! Our guide tells us he saw multiple acts here including Simple minds and Sting. Maybe we come back for the film festival!!
First stop is at Bam Bar for the famous Sicilian granite. We choose kiwi and it does not disappoint!
The pizza at the local trattoria wins the prize so far and the spaghetti with clams is excellent!
On our way back to the hotel for our last sleepover. The boys are boarding their flight from Toronto tonight with much drama about whether Mathew will make it or not 🤦♀️
Arrivederci Sicily!
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