Pompeii

We drove from the coast towards Naples so we could see the ruins of Pompeii.  We had endured clouds all along our coastal drive to Amalfi, but just a hop, skip and jump away in Pompeii the skies were clear blue and lovely.

We made our way past some very pushy tourist stands in order to reach the entrance to Pompeii, but once inside the only trouble we had was keeping out of the middle of various school groups.

Our first stop was inside the arena.  Here Ted spent some time getting his bearings from the map that came with our entry tickets.

While a guide would have been hugely informative, we had learned a little from a Rick Steves Audio Europe app we have on our iphones and ipods, and from that we were able to identify what he described as the "fast food stands" of Roman times.

Would you like fries with that?

We also enjoyed walking across the raised sidewalks we learned about from Rick Steves.   They likely kept people's feet from getting dirty in the sewage and filth that would run through the streets, yet still allowed wagons to pass through.

From the modern day restrooms was a great view of Pompeii from above, as well as the infamous volcano that destroyed the town.

Handstands Around the World--Pompeii

We walked around and took in the amphitheater:

temples and markets

and some main and side streets

Finally we headed back out (throught more pushy tourist stands) and drove back into Sorrento for dinner.

Amalfi

Italy's Amalfi coast is a beautiful area... homes and buildings built into the sides of a steep incline, stair stepped up from the sea.  We drove along the coastal road south from Sorrento and snapped a few photos along the way before making a pit stop in Amalfi.

Here we made our way to one of the rocky beaches and the kids quickly began looking for sea glass, seashells and other treasures.  While they did that, Ted and I enjoyed a couple of tourist-priced cappucinos.

But they were good.

I might have hunted for a treasure or two, and in the process found this pretty little gem.  If you squint your eyes just right it almost looks like a heart.

I was working on getting a quick group shot of Ted with the kids when I promptly lost my balance and ended up falling into the rocks.  It was a pretty funny scene for Ted and my children as I attempted to stay upright for a second or two before finally giving in to the fall.

After a bit we headed up the main road into the town where we saw lots of tourist stands eager to sell us trinkets, pottery, lemons and gelato.

It also led us to a beautiful 12th century church, the Amalfi Cathedral, which we toured for a small fee.

Like most cathedrals we've visited it was stunning; filled with incredible artwork and elaborate altars.  It contains relics from St. Andrew (as in Peter's brother), and had a few treasures in a museum area that were of minor interest--including these gold statues; do you see that one of them is holding his own head?  We have no idea what this was since all of the signs were in Italian and we could not read them.

We only spent a short time here in an effort to see more of the must-see places in the area, but the few hours we did spend were fantastic-sea glass, wonderful views--both into the town and out on the sea, and a town abuzz with people enjoying it all.

When Life Gives You Lemons...

Make Limoncello!  At least that must be what the folks in Sorrento think.  We spent just a few days in Sorrento, just south of Naples, Italy--a perfect trip.  The drive down was right around 8 hours, and I stayed awake the entire time so that I didn't miss out on any of the beautiful scenery.  I even drove for part of it (wisely choosing the drive with the least amount of big/busy city traffic).

Anywho, we booked a place through booking.com (this is becoming more and more my favorite way to find lodging) called La Neffola.  It was a beautiful little oasis of a place--with lemon and cherry trees, wisteria vines, and all in all loveliness.

From here we could walk into the town where we found plenty of places to eat and shop!  Yay!  One store was called Lucy's and we found another shop called Mary.  That was kind of fun!

Breakfasts on the terrace with Mt. Vesuvius in the background.  We do not take these opportunities for granted.

yep, that's a Dr. Pepper, but you might be surprised to know that for our 3 night trip we only packed 4 total.  We're slacking off!

If you squint just right you can make out Vesuvius in the background behind Cory.

We brought home some lemons from the grove of trees, and we made a yummy lemonade...not limoncello.  :)