Positano: Pompeii and Herculenium
Positano. one of my favorites.
Our trip down to Positano was an adventure to say the least. Had we known, we would have planned things differently and stayed closer to Pompeii and Herculaneum, but we didn’t. It was a three hour train ride to Napoli. From there we had to take a small regional train to Sorrento for another 1.5 hours or so where we couldn’t sit down, and it was hot with no a/c. Once in Sorrento, we had to take an hour-long bus ride along the curvy mountainside, to Positano. We told our bus driver we were going to Positano, and he told us where to exit. We learned later that this was in fact not the correct exit and therefore had to walk for another 45 minutes or so, down several steep, narrow steps, with little glimpses here and there of the beautiful blue Mediterranean between the buildings.
Wow!
That evening, after settling in, we wandered through our little town. This place is a honeymooner’s paradise. It’s small, with the entire town built up on the mountain. There are only a couple of streets big enough for cars, one along the top of town, and another along the main square, just wide enough for one car. The rest of the streets are pedestrian only. They wind all through the town, most turn into steps at some point, and some end right at someone’s front door. There are small clothing and jewlery boutiques, and the limoncello shops that draw you in with their delicious scents. At the bottom of town is the beachfront with a few restaurants and the Mediterranean as far as the eye can see. At night, the lights in the buildings come to life, and the whole mountainside twinkles like something out of a fairytale. I really do love this place.
Pompeii
In the morning, after a wonderful Italian breakfast, complete with cappuccinos, we set off for our first adventure. It was my birthday, and for my birthday, I wanted to go to Pompeii. After our long bus and train ride, we arrived in Pompeii, and walked through the truly overwhelming city with our audio guide. This was a bucket list item for me. It was something I had grown up hearing about, and knew I had to see someday, and what better day than on my birthday with the love of my life!
Sorrento
After a long day in the sun, we made the long journey back to Sorrento. I told Javier that I wanted fish for dinner, so he asked around and we found a great little recommendation with excellent food. I should mention that when Javier asks anyone where to eat, he always says, “I want to eat where your grandma would eat” or something to that effect. For this place, he asked the girl at the information center for a place that her boyfriend would take her. 🙂 When we were done eating, they brought out a dessert with a candle and wrote “Happy Birthday” on the plate, in
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Happy Birthday Love!
chocolate. When the dessert came out, Javier got the attention of other tables and asked them to join him in singing happy birthday. It was wonderful. I was dirty, smelly, and tired, yet felt so special.
The next day, we made the even longer journey to Herculaneum where we took a guided tour for the small city. There we learned that the part exposed is only a small percentage, something like <25%. Which means more than 75% of Herculaneum is still buried, and by the looks of the buildings all around, it will probably stay that way. We enjoyed Herculaneum much more than Pompeii. The city is slightly more intact, and still has some of the original paintings and tiles. Speaking of…I was shocked when we walked into the bathhouse and actually stepped on the tiles. There was nothing to cover and protect the beautiful mosaic. Many places we have visited, preserve rugs, tiles, stone, etc using a plexiglass-like covering. But here, everyone just walks all over the original tiles- unbelievable!
Herculaneum
After this, we took a quick, and I mean quick trip up Mt. Vesuvius. We hopped in a van that sped, somewhat recklessly, up the mountain and got us there in about 20 minutes. We ran the rest of the way to and around the crater. We read that it takes about 30 minutes to walk from the drop off to the crater, but we only had an hour, so we decided to make a run for it. At the top we peered in and tried (and failed) to see the bottom. Part of the side wall of the crater was steaming, which gave the whole place an exciting feel, like at any moment that steam could turn into
Vesuvio GoPro
something more. We barely made it in time for our shuttle back down the mountain, where we were thankfully stuck behind traffic most of the way, and therefore didn’t have to fear for our lives. That night…I have to mention this because it was so good…we didn’t know where to eat, so we asked the owner of a small wine shop where he liked to eat. He gave us not only the name of a place, but the name of the dish to order as well- a delicious plate of fresh pasta, mushrooms, and shrimp in a heavenly cream sauce. Well, let’s just say that we went, and it ended up being my favorite meal in Italy. 🙂
The next three days were spent in Positano. We
happiness.
considered going to Amalfi, or Capri, but our little town was so amazing, we didn’t want to leave. We laid on the rocky beach, which made things a little tricky at times, swam in the sea, read books and relaxed. We explored our town, walked through the shops, ate delicious food, and watched the sky turn shades of purple, orange, and pink as the sun set. It was absolutely perfect. I couldn’t have asked for a better birthday or a better person to spend it with. 🙂
To see more pictures of Italy, click HERE.