The executive summary of Day 2: Awoke at Gatwick; flight to Naples; Boat to Capri; Late Lunch; Hydrofoil to Sorrento; Drag luggage up a million stone stairs; Directed wrong way to hotel by police; Sweat profusely; Reverse direction and find hotel; Phenomenal dinner featuring local veggies and wine; Score free internet access in the lobby of the hotel because I have my own laptop......
Hard to believe I was in London 14 hours ago. I am sitting in the lobby of the Hotel Sorrento City using their free internet connection since I have my own PC. Weather is perfect. The doors of the lobby are open and a rare breeze flows in. But mostly the weather is just, well, perfect. I'm in shorts and a golf shirt. A bus just growled past. Some British tourists looking for a bus stop wandered in looking for directions. Unfortunately, their bus stopped running at 11pm. It is now 11:45pm.
The flight over the Alps was fine. When I lived in the south of France 1989-1990, I took that flight for granted. Today, the majestic, snow-capped peaks were a sight to behold. I planned to take the train to Sorrento. But on the flight I got engaged in a conversation with a guy across the aisle who is a PhD candidate at a Glasgow university with a specialty in 'value co-creation.' For those at SkillSoft, co-creation is a big part of Connect, He was attending a conference on the topic in capri and was taking a ferry from the Port of Naples. So, rather than training it, I decided to take the ferry, see a little of Capri and then catch a hydrofoil to Sorrento.
I had to take a bus from the airport to the Port of Naples. A bargain at only 3Euro, it gave me a taste of the 'gritty, dirty' city. We leave the airport area and head to the motorway. 'Vesuiv' the driver declares to some German tourists standing near him. The sight dominates the view beyond the crumbling city seemingly held together by graffiti and neglected stonework.
Still, Naples (from the bus) does not appear as as bad as the guide books make it out. The funny thing is that cars just double/triple part in main streets. The bus snakes its route with a fog-horn-like auditory weapon that blast obstacles quickly from its path. The driver always grumbles aloud something that sounds like "Qu'est la problema?" as if this si the first time he's ever seen a street blocked by a wayward car. Makes me laugh. Welcome to Naples.
Arriving at the bus terminal for the Port, dead reckoning is a required tool to find the ferries. After a short wait, I board the boat to Capri and sail through the harbor past the gargantuan Mediterranean cruise ships and the sight of Vesuvius. I am surprise that Vesuvius is so close to Naples. The guide books leave you with the impression that it is further away. It must have been a frightening sight for ancient Romans living in Naples in 79 AD when the second, and most fatal eruption of a generation, occurred. Maybe that helps explain the live and let live psyche of the Napolese.
The view of the Bay of Naples from the water is magical. As we near Capri, I am struck by the sheer bulk of the island. It is sheer granite, rising out of the ocean, topped with a lush green toupee that is home to many species of birds and more than 800 variety of plants. A veritable Garden of Eden. The Roman Emperor Tiberius built a palace on the Southwest corner of the Island - ruins barely visible high above the marina. Not enought time to do a 1 hour tour of the Island; so I opt for a late lunch of cheeseless vegetarian pizza with a local drink of frozen lemonade that the waiter warns me is 'sour.' He is right; but is pairs perfectly with the pizza under the hot sun.
I take the 6:30PM hydrofoil to Sorrento. With my luggage in tow, I climb an eternity of stone stairs carved into the cliff face to reach the center of Sorrento. Silly me. A woman walking near me offers words of encouragement at each landing. Sorrento is a small city that appears much larger when a policea gives you directions in the opposite direction to where you need to be going. The misdirection, the heat, the mopeds, and the cobblestones conspire to make the journey to the hotel harder than it had to be.
A shower is a wonderfulthing. Refreshed, I explore the Sorrento streets as night falls. A beautiful sunset from the Hotel Royal. I wander until I find the Ristorante Pizzeria S. Antonio, which has two dozen vegetarian dishes mixed among the local Sorrento fare of carne and pesce. At 10pm, I settle in for a relaxing Sorrento vegan meal of mixed marinated local vegetables (two types of mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, grilled eggplant carpaccio, fava beans, chick peas), a mixed greens salad (the iceberg lettuce in the salad actually had flavor!), and a 1/2 litre of local red wine. The waiter takes my order on an HP handheld wireless device! He shows me how it works -- has the entire menu programmed in and he has no problem handling special orders. Has been using this device for 2 years and loves it.
Not much on the ancient Roman ruins front today, but hey, this is Italy. Relais! Tomorrow is another day.
Ciao!
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