Italy Day 13, Departure

Day Thirteen: Sunday, April 27 - Departure
Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel; continental style for participants with early morning departure.

Morning: Coach to and Depart from Naples airport.


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Some folks had to take the 4AM bus to Naples.  Fortunately, I had a later flight, and I left Minori at 9AM.   The Naples airport is a manageable size.  I had only 1 1/2 hours to make my connection in Rome, a huge airport, and I had arranged for assistance.  Even with assistance, there was not a lot of room to spare.  

The flight from Rome to JFK was uneventful.  I had arranged for an upgrade to the economy seating.  This meant I had a slightly larger seat, and it included sound-cancelling headphones with which to watch the movies.   That helped a bit.  But it was still a long flight!  Wine, juice, coffee, and water were available during the flight.  Lunch was adequate, barely.  The "snack" served a couple of hours before arriving in NY was not.

Arrival at JFK was smooth and on time.   Again, I had assistance getting through the terminals, and that helped quite a bit.  I had a couple of hours to wait for my next flight, and I sat in a comfortable chair surrounded by  people waiting for flights to Buffalo, Rochester, Toronto, and Syracuse.  They announced that all four planes were on the ground, but the traffic on the ground meant they could not get to the gates.   My plane arrived at the gate 30 minutes late, I boarded, and we moved from the gate.  Thirty minutes later, we were still waiting to take off.  My plane finally landed an hour and a half later than expected.  I had arranged for a hotel for the night, and D would pick me up in the morning.  

Now, more excitement. . . No luggage.  I had packed a shirt and underwear in my carryon.  The airline gave me an emergency kit that included toothbrush, T-Shirt, deodorant, so I was all set.  I had carried my special things - ipad, cameras, chargers, etc., with me.  I was in bed by 1:30.  Of course, to my head, it was 7:30 in the morning.  

D picked me up before 8AM, and I was ready to be in my own home.  

The luggage was delivered at 2:30 PM, and I was able to get laundry done and get ready to return to home life.   The only thing missing from my luggage was the batteries (I had had them in the carryon on the way over, as you are supposed to do, but I had checked the carryon to return, and I forgot to transfer them.  Also missing was a tin of Altoids.  There was no TSA note that the bag had been opened.  There was nothing of value in the bags, and nothing else was missing.  I was worried about the limoncello and olive oil, but they arrived intact.

Even the cold, drizzly days look good.   It will take a bit of time to readjust my mental clock.  It's hard to get back to a sleep and eating schedule.  They say it takes a day for each hour of adjustment, so I should be good by the weekend.

Great memories of a wonderful two weeks.   I sure would like some gelato!  And I miss the breakfasts of fresh fruit, cookies, cheese, and ham.

Lunch on your own ~ Minori, Italy

After a visit to Ravello, a hill town on the Amalfi coast, we returned to Minori, where we are scheduled to have "lunch on your own".

For starters, I chose pistachio and nocciola.

For main course, I stopped into a pastry shop.

I photographed with an Altoids tin to give an idea of scale.  

I'll save some to eat in the airport.  On the way here, nothing appealed to me, so this should be great.

(This is why I always pack zip-lock bags!)

For dessert I was glad to be in my room.  The pear was so juicy that it dripped down my arm.

I have enjoyed the fresh fruit in both hotels.  

Others in the group had lunch in a cafe or trattoria.  I am pleased with my choice!

You may notice lots of food blog entries.  They are easier to do, since it is a matter of selecting just a couple of pictures.  In places like Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Paestum, I must select from hundreds.

Lunch in Paestum, Italy ~ Netturno

After wandering through Paestum, we were ready to sit for a lovely lunch.

 The first course was a Caprese salad.  but this one was made with buffalo mozzarella.

Buffalo is water buffalo, not bison.  They are mostly found in this part of Italy.

It was excellent, and I cleaned my plate.  This fresh mozzarella is only eaten like this the first day.  The second day it is used in cooking.  The third day it is not good.

The penne is dressed with oil and roasted sweet pepper and zucchini.  They served at the table, and I was able to request this small portion (about a third of what they were serving).

One of the people ordered una coca.  With tip, it cost €3, about $4.

The dessert was a very moist lemon cake.  The cakes here are much less sweet.  Very good.

Wine and water were included with the meal, so I enjoyed that.

Now fortified, we could go on to the Archeological Museum of Paestum.

Tomb of the Diver ~ Paestum, Italy

Around 470 BCE, a young man died and was buried in a limestone vault.  The vault was not discovered until 1968.  The base of the tomb is the groundstone.  The four walls and the lid are of limestone upon which are applied frescoes.

The lid is painted with a diver, painted in sillhouette, diving into the ocean (into the unknown).

The person who died could look at the scenes.

The left and right sides depict a symposium.  It was suggested that these could be read as scenes from a movie.

The first fellow is requesting more wine.  The second is examining the cup.  The third  is checking out the activities of the fourth and fifth.

On the other side panel, the first is a musician.  The fourth is playing a flute.

The end panels 

The guests arriving.

I can imagine the excitement of discovering this intact tomb that had not been seen since 470BCE.

it was exciting for me to see something I had only read about.

More description and professional pictures can be found at

http://www.paestum.org.uk/?page_id=303

The walls and lid are now in the Archeological Museum in Paestum, Italy.

Food on Thursday on the Amalfi Drive

I guess I've had enough pasta.  Today's lunch was spaghetti with a red sauce.  I didn't even photograph it.  There was also tossed salad with fresh fruit salad for dessert.

Later that afternoon, I added to the food groups:

That was nocciola.  Nuts are nutritious, aren't they?

I could have chosen pasta or soup for a first course.

I chose seafood risotto instead.  It was delicious, with lots of clams, tiny octopus, tender small slices of calamari, pieces of shrimp.  It was excellent.

For seconds, I chose a cheese plate.

At 12 and 6 are ricotta.  The top one has herbs.  At 9 and 3 are smoked mozzarella.  At 4 is fresh mozzarella.  In the center is fresh pear.

Others chose soup or salad for starters and pork or pasta for main.   Dessert choices were green apple gelato or panna cotta or my choice of fresh fruit.  I asked what the fruit was, and they said banana and mandarin orange.  I thought that was an odd mix, and I wondered how much sugar syrup they would add, but when It came, I saw there was no syrup. . . It was one whole banana and two tangerines!  I ate one refreshing tangerine and brought one back to the room.  The person next to me took the banana.

Tomorrow we go to Paestum.  I am looking forward to the Greek Temples and the museum.

Hotel Villa Romana, Minori, Italy

We arrived at our hotel, Hotel Villa Romana, in Minori, Italy.  The busdriver who had picked us up from the piazza in Amalfi, dropped us off at a parking lot on the beach.  A van came to pick up our luggage, and we walked up the hill to our hotel.

The room is white on white.

It is quite small, with a nice large bed.  In the corner is a corner cupboard.  The little square cabinet houses the refrigerator and mini bar.

The bathroom is also small, but has everything you need.  (Except extra towels.). There is one bath towel, one bath mat, one hand towel, one bidet towel.  

When I got to my room, tired, I unpacked a bit, but I could not make the TV work.  I haven't seen TV in almost two weeks, and I thought I would check the BBC.  And the lights did not work either.  I forgot the trick!

Underneath the lightswitch is a plexiglass half circle.  And it is not for holy water!

You have to put your room key in the slot to enable power to the room.

What a great energy saver.  Now a guest cannot leave lights on when they go out!

Unfortunately, it also means you cannot charge your toys.  I was afraid my camera was broken when it did not charge in the hours I was at dinner!  But it charged in a short time when I got back.

The view from my room ... left looking.  It's a little hazy and humid today, and the picture is not crisp.

All those green things are mesh tarps protecting the lemons from the cold and the wind,

Now right looking.

We go down to dinner at 7:15.

The next day, while getting ready for dinner, I heard a cat fight.  I thought I heard an immature rooster.

And there is a cat.  He heard the rooster, too.  They are behind the green mesh screen.

Italy, Day 7, Isle of Capri

Day Seven: Monday, April 21 - Full Day Excursion to the Isle of Capri

                    Board a boat to Capri. Indulge in a full day on the Mediterranean's most lush island while roaming the intricate cobbled laneways and the chic neighborhoods.  

We took the hydrofoil from Marina Piccola   to Capri.  It's a twenty minute ride.  Then we took the funicular to the town of Anacapri.  There are no cars in this wealthy resort town.

Guided visit to the villa of Axel Munthe.  This villa has spectacular gardens.

It is a site. worth missing.

Weather permitting enjoy the scenery from the convertible car with the top down.

Now this was cool!  The convertible taxis hold six passengers, and the views are spectacular.

 The roads are switchbacks, and there were times it was essential to back up to make the turn, to honk to alert oncoming traffic, to pass with inches to spare.  I could see why the guidebooks recommend against planning to drive in this part of Italy.  Leave it to the experienced drivers and enjoy the view.

 

Lunch was salad, ravioli,
 

and a chocolate torte

 

 In the afternoon, an optional boat excursion was available.  It is not included in the program, partly because it works best on a day like we had.  Sunny and in the 70s.  We were not going to the Blue Grotto, but instead to the emerald and red grottos and to the Faraglioni rocks.

  The water is just magical.  

This water looks red because of the corals, reflected or seen near the surface of the water.

  

Can you see the boat that is going through the arch in the Faraglioni?  We will go through after them.

It was a wonderful boat ride.

We returned on the hydrofoil by 4PM.  Dinner was "on your own".  I was exhausted from our day in the sun and wind, so I snacked in my room and enjoyed my balcony.

Lest you feel sorry for me, in addition to breakfast and lunch, there was time to sit on a patio.

Easter Morning in Sorrento

We left at 9:00 AM for a walk to the Tarsia Museum.

http://www.museomuta.it/muta/en/

I was only moderately interested, and after a few blocks at a fairly quick pace, on a beautiful, but humid morning, I decided this wasn't fun, and I told the group to go on without me.  Then I used the morning to explore the town.  

I enjoyed moving at my own pace, with time to stop wherever I wanted.  I window-shopped and sat and watched the passaggiata.

€3.00 for a basket of strawberries is about $4.  My hotel has wonderful fresh fruit at each meal, and if you are not interested in the dessert of the day, they bring fresh fruit.  

I was looking for lemoncello filled candies.  I found them in this shop.

No bargain, in this shop called, Il Vino, but they are delicious.  He also offered me a taste of limoncello. Mind you, it was 9:45 AM.  

We had some at the dinner last night, and I found it to be bitter.  

But this one was delicious.  Our group leader suggested waiting to buy it until we tried the good stuff at the agroturismo Galatea, when we go on Tuesday.

And I took time to smell the flowers.

It was a lovely morning.

Buona Pasqua!

If you take it, you have to schlepp it

In an effort to minimize the weight I had to haul around, I took one small suitcase, lightly packed, one carry-on, lightly packed, a handbag, and I wore a Scottevest.  The suitcase went into checked baggage, cameras, ipad, and chargers went into Scottevest, along with money, passport, and tickets. One set of meds, liquids bag, one set of tops, extra jacket, flipflops, went into carry-on.  The other five tops, five underwear, extra shoes, suit,  slax, bathroom bag, went into checked.  Pencils and pads, various miscellany, went into checked.

How do you make it work for two weeks?

This is how.

The checked bag also included a few clothespins and laundry soap in a little shampoo bottle.  (One of the women swears by Pert for oily hair.  Cleans well and takes out grease spots.)  I also packed a pack of shoelaces from the dollar store so that I could make a line of any length.  Works slick.  It helps to have a balcony.  (BTW, those sox were bought at Brooks Brothers in 1976, when D needed a great suit.  It pays to buy quality!)

Most apartments in Sorrento have special lines to hang clothes because no one uses or even has a drier.  So I didn't feel out of place hanging clothes on the balcony.

This is taken from my balcony.

Easter Dinner at Grand Hotel Cesare Augusto

The hotel provided a special Easter Dinner for us.

The antipasto came first.

Salami, prosciutto, hard boiled egg (I wonder what the chickens eat.  The egg is so orange.), ricotta, green olives.

The pasta course was ravioli stuffed with ricotta and asparagus.

Note the room key to the right of the plate.  It is solid brass and is left at the desk if you go out.  It weighs a ton, and I can tell you from personal experience, if you drop it on your toe, it hurts!

Secundo piatto is lamb, peas, roast potatoes.  The lamb did not need a knife.

We had a traditional Neopolitan Easter dessert.  And a member of the group had brought German Easter eggs for everyone.

The dessert is called Pastiera.  It is heavy, but quite moist, and not too sweet.

It has orange peel, citron, ricotta, eggs, and the essential ingredient is cooked wheat.  There are lots of recipes and lots of information on the web.

I'm ready for a nap!

Italy Day 4, Pompeii

INFORMATION FROM ROADSCHOLAR
Day Four: Friday, April 18 - Explore Pompeii
                  Note: The ruins of Pompeii reveal cobblestone streets, sidewalks and dirt paths. Pompeii was a city, so be aware of the size of the archaeological site. Its uneven terrain with inclines and steps makes walking a challenge. The stone pavement can be slippery when wet. Note there are few benches to stop and rest.

Breakfast: Buffet breakfast at hotel

Morning: Guided visit of Pompeii archaeological site. Explore the streets of the city frozen in time in August of 79 CE. Walk into the amphitheater, see where the gladiators trained, walk down Via Abbondanza, the main street, observe 1st century political grafitti. Notice the similarities between Pompeii where bars, restaurants, shops and bakeries line the streets, and that in any modern city in Italy.

The original of this map is found at:  http://www.unicocampania.it/files/mappe/mappa_scavi.pdf

Lunch: Lunch at a restaurant in the archaeological park.

Afternoon: Coach back to Sorrento. Late afternoon classroom session on Customs and Traditions of Sorrento.

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel.  on your own.

Today is Good Friday.

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NOW HERE'S MY DAY

We had to be on the bus at 8AM for the bus ride on twisty hill roads.  That was an adventure in and of itself!

The weather was cool and pleasant as we began our four hour walk.  We had a professional guide as well as the group director.  20 of the 23 of us went on the excursion.  The walk was doable because there were many pauses for information, and not many hilly parts, but the footing was, as you would expect, interesting, with large stones, sometimes sandy, and uneven footing.  

This was the closest we got to my childhood picture, but it's not the same place.

It was certainly much more crowded than I remember.

They have put the body casts together, protected by glass.  The casts were done in the 1800s, when they noticed they had "hollows" filled with skeletons.  They tapped the ground listening for a hollow sound.  When they heard that sound, they drilled holes to pour in plaster.  When they chipped away the volcanic material, they had the shape of the body at the time of death.  

The skeleton is still in the casts.  This is not where they were found.  They were moved here for display.

In the storeroom, you can find the only dog found.  All the other animals escaped, but this dog was chained.

There is a pregnant woman.

There may be more posts from Pompeii. . . 

Tomorrow is Herculaneum.

Free Evening in Sorrento

this evening, Thursday, is "dinner on your own".  I was peopled out, so decided not to join groups going out for dinner.  Our tour guide had told us about a wine shop that has wine on tap for €2 a liter.  I'll try anything... and I'm cheap, so I wandered down the road to the grocery store.  Turns out the only containers they had were five liter bottles, so I looked around.

It's a tiny store, about the size of a livingroom.

I was surprised to see Rana filled pasta.  I often splurge on it at home, but it can cost $5.

Check this out:

That would be about $2.70.  I wonder if this is a promotion.  This is an American company.

The deli was fantastic.

This was shot through slanted glass.  The mortadella is at least 9 inches in diameter.

They also sell Barilla pasta.

But I still didn't have wine.  I was about to buy €7 bottle (almost $10) when I discovered their 1liter box wine.  The price was amazing at €1.85.  (about $2.50).  It's drinkable, but just barely.

On the walk back, with a gelato and pastry under my belt, I was impressed with the parking.

Do you suppose they will manually lift the car out?

It's time to slop down some wine.