Europe 2011: Sorrento

Leaving Pompeii and driving down the Amalfi coastline towards Sorrento was a glorious sight. Everywhere you looked you’d see huge cliffs with vibrantly painted houses and hotels overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. As we entered the city, the quaint streets were filled with shops, restaurants and the occasional lemon orchard. In the center of the city, we came upon our swank hotel, the Michelangelo. 

A lemon orchard.

One of Sorrento's infamous lemon orchards with
the Mediterranean Sea in the distance.

 After checking in and changing into our bathing suits, we wasted no time racing down to the pool. The children were the most excited. The adults were pretty happy as well. After being in the heat in Pompeii, it was a welcomed oasis to us all.

Thankfully, the pool was pretty much deserted upon our arrival and the water was extremely cold. The frigid temps didn’t keep the kids from their fun. They all jumped in with gusto. They loved being able to cut loose, be silly and renew themselves from the heat of the day.

As soon as I felt how cold the water was, I knew that it would be perfect for Mom’s injured foot. I ran up to her room to get her. Minutes later, she and I were sitting at the pool watching the kids being as rambunctious as they could!

Stephen enjoying the pool.

The time eventually came for us to leave the pool and clean ourselves up for dinner. That night we all met downstairs in the hotel dining room. Again, the children were seated at their own tables, but this time there was a boys’ table and a girls’ table. It was great seeing the kids all dressed up and looking attractive, except that it made them all seem so much older. Still, it was very sweet to see them looking so nice and behaving so maturely.

After dinner, the younger cousins wanted to do a sleepover. Once again, they were divided into a boys group and a girls group. Christina took the girls for the evening, while I took the boys.

It was very entertaining for me to listen to the exchanges between the boys. It was even more entertaining to watch them watching Italian television. The boys had to settle on watching wrestling because it was the only channel translated into English! I wish that I could write what that was like, but it is just too rich for words! So…to help illustrate the effect of Italian television, I’ve included a small piece of video that the boys shot themselves that night recreating the televised performance.

While Christina and I were busy with the children, Bill, Bobby, Stephen and Sarah, and some of David’s clan all stepped out with Stefania to check out Sorrento’s nightlife. They definitely enjoyed themselves. Stefania had them try some of the local desserts, while Bobby had a chance to taste the infamous Limoncello. For those of you wondering, he actually liked the Italian lemon liqueur. It must be an acquired taste—more on that later!

Stephen and Stefania out on the town.

David walking the streets of Sorrento.

Bob trying out the Limoncello.

Returning to the hotel for a good night of rest!

Soon, the busy day had taken its toll on us all. It wasn’t long before everyone was tucked away in their hotel rooms resting up for our next adventure on the island of Capri slated for the following morning.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Europe 2011: Pompeii

Our next stop was Pompeii. I remember first learning about this buried city in school. The idea of being buried alive by hot volcanic ash was hellish. As we were heading out of Naples, the volcano responsible for this act, Mount Vesuvius, came into view.

Naples with Mount Vesuvius in the background.

A look at the volcano heading out of Naples.

The great Mount Vesuvius.

It didn't take long before we arrived.

Although we were hungry for lunch, we didn't stop here!

Once we pulled into the city--a very touristy one at that--Stefania guided us to an indoor cafe. I have to say that I personally was very grateful to eat inside as the temperatures outside were the hottest that we had experienced since arriving in Italy.

A relaxing lunch.

Christina and Bobby sitting with their eldest, Melody.

After being trapped on the train with her
four children, Mom needed this glass of vino--badly!!

Kids table--their preferred seating arrangement!

Our sweet Stefania!

After lunch, the group dispersed into the market area. William really wanted an Italy hat that was like the one his cousin, Ian, had purchased in Florence. William and I found a vendor that was selling baseball caps and picked out a hat that he liked. When we went up to find out the cost--surprise! surprise! It was ridiculous!! I told the peddler that there was no way we were paying that price. And, so began our foray into haggling with this man. We went back and forth several times--with us walking away a couple of those and him chasing us down--to the impasse of a couple of euros. It helped that I knew what my brother, Stephen, had paid for his son's hat. There was no way that I was going to pay more. When all was said and done, we did not purchase the hat from this guy, but we did buy one from a lovely lady in Anacapri the next day.

William and I were haggling over the price of a hat.

Anna checking out the goods.

Stephen and Ian searching for souvenirs.

Anna and Bill (lower right hand corner) browsing the markets.

It was time to meet our local guide, so we headed to the entrance of the ruins to find Hector. The walk to the entrance was beautiful. It was lined with gorgeous trees and colorful plants.

Walking up to the ruins.

Some of the ruins.

Ruins with the volcano in the background.

Swope family (minus the photographer, Christina)
near the entrance to the ruins.

We all decided to stay under the shade until Hector and Stefania had all of the arrangements made to enter the grounds. This was a reoccurring theme as it was so hot that day. It was 31 ºC (88 ºF) and a bright blue sky. At different spots around the entrance, vendors were selling frozen water bottles. I thought that this was a marvelous idea. We used the bottles not only for drinking, but also as ice compresses for the back of people's necks and knees to keep them cool. Did I mention that it was hot?!?!

Ahh...Christina...finally caught on camera at the front gates.

Waiting for our local tour guide to arrive.

Before long, we were entering the ruins to sweat it out with other tourists. The sights were amazing. The city had been buried for over 1,600 years before being rediscovered. And, because of the ash fall perfectly preserving the remains, we were able to see exactly how Romans lived in 79 AD. They were definitely more advanced than I imagined. They had a system set-up that seemed to work pretty well.

I happened to find a spectacular view. As we were walking through the buried city, I snuck off from the group to look at some digs still being uncovered. The area was roped off, but there was a spot where I could stand and look down the coast towards the sea. I immediately understood why the ancient city was built where exactly where it was--the view. The city is built on a hill so behind you is the beautiful Mount Vesuvius with its green foliage and in front of you are the blue waters of the Tyrrhenian Sea. Standing where I was (in the shade of some ancient Roman building), I could even feel a cool breeze. It was awesome!

Hector, our guide (in hat), about to
walk us up to the ancient marketplace.

Mom hiding...I mean, seeking out shelter from the sun.

Abbey at a water basin.

Hector explaining some of early Roman customs.

Stephen goofing off behind the guide's back and
showing off his Roman God-ness!!

Mosaic flooring.

Standing under one of several archways.

Hector showing our group an ancient well.

A cast was made in the ruins to find out what was
buried in the ash and mud--it was this person trying
to shield themselves from the eruption.

So surreal.

Shade!!!

Swope siblings (standing in the shade).

Bob sweating it out!

Bill's picture of a Roman Temple.

Once we finished our tour of the ruins, we walked back to our (thankfully) air-conditioned bus and set our sights on Sorrento. We knew the hotel had a pool and every single one of us wanted to jump in it immediately!

TO BE CONTINUED...