February 6th, 2010

Amalfi Coast and Sorrento

Amalfi

Southern Italy is host to a diversity of geographical backgrounds. Unlike Naples, where tall-standing buildings and monuments are in a race to cover the sky, the Amalfi Coast and Sorrento offered the opposite.  I traveled with Anthony, Kelsey, Marissa, Marson, Sarah, and Shay. The bus ride itself was its own adventure. We traveled in a ‘greyhound’ bus on narrow roads, where at certain turns only one car could to travel at a time.  The scenery was stunning. To our left the Mediterranean Sea greeted us from a mile away.  To our right the rocky mountain sides greeted us only a foot away from our windows! Our first stop was Amalfi where we all enjoyed a fresh seafood dish.  The local shops on the main road were decorated with lemons, they take great pride in their lemoncello, which originates from Sorrento. After lunch we strolled to the sea and climbed immense chunks of concrete, which we believed were placed there to prevent ships from anchoring near the shore. The depth of the shade of blue of the Mediterranean Sea offered tranquility and relaxation. As we overlooked the sea we couldn’t help but to feel lucky to be studying in Italy and to have avoided the gloomy weather in Seattle.  

After 30 minutes, we jumped on board a bus to Sorrento where we had the best gelato from Gelateria Primavera. The shop is covered from ceiling to walls with pictures of famous people who have visited the shop. There was also a display of important American landmarks carved out of chocolate. Mt. Rushmore with the addition of Barack Obama’s face, a Michael Jackson shrine and many American flags. We unfortunately missed the last ferry back to Naples, but without fretting we took a train. After exiting Naples central station, the majority of the group, dazzled by the ‘saldi’ signs and clothes on mannequins with weird expressions, shopped for the last hour of business. We discovered many sales people to be impatient with tourists. They linger behind their foreign clients, keeping an eye on the items that were misplaced. As well as being rude, they were also short-tempered. The lack of customer service prompted me to only purchase one item, a blazer.

Once at the hostel, we headed out once again to Pizzeria da Michele. A pizzeria known to provide the best pizza in Naples, it was featured in the film Eat, Pray, Love. I must be honest, it was delicious! After a long day, a group of four of us watched a movie and fell asleep. We looked forward to our trip to Pompei the following day. Ciao Amici!