Saturday May 11 - Amsterdam to Naples to Sorrento

Vesuvio on the way to Sorrento

I packed my back-pack with as many of the lighter-weight clothes I could stuff in and left my suitcase at luggage storage at the Amsterdam airport. An easy two-hour flight into what looked like a small airport followed (Naples airport is deceptive—it’s quite large); a tiny, stiff espresso at the counter powered me up for the half-hour wait for the Currieri Viaggi bus to Sorrento. During the wait, I sat on my back-pack, soaking in the sun, enjoying a 10 degree hike in temperature. The bus, modern and air-conditioned only cost 10 euros--the bargain of the century. The ride clung to the coast roads, and was absolutely spectacular. Tufa cliffs soar steeply from the sea, often 1000 feet or more. Homes, hotels and motley other structures are embedded into the cliffsides, cantilevered and precariously perched as if to dive in. This is earthquake country, and so much like home in some ways it’s reassuring.

Sorrento from above

Sorrento is Sausalito on steroids; the same sort of dwellings spill down into steep ravines, but many more of them. A lovely, lovely old town with narrow twisitng lava-stone cobble streets and archways, and likely a restaurant and shop per person. It’s crowded and commercial, yet never fails to be charming. Perhaps it’s the jewel-like setting.

My foresight in bringing only a backpack paid off when I got to the train station in Sorrento, where the bus dropped me off. The Hotel Ulisse was more than half-way across town, a good half-mile or more from the station. I got used to the walk, as I ended up doing it at least twice a day—thank goodness only twice with the heavily loaded backpack.

That night, I strolled on the narrow road from the Hotel Ulisse down to a little fishing village which is part of Sorrento and apart from it: Marina Grande. Dinner was  delicious; a perfectly cooked spaghetti pomodoro with fresh cherry tomatoes at the Five DiLeva Sisters restaurant (a tiny place with clear vinyl sheets for walls). 

The Five DiLeva Sisters

It was windy, but fun to watch the beautiful sunset and the people who live in this tiny village greet each other, the boats bob in the water, the stray cats search among the ropes and nets for morsels. 

A quiet evening in Marina Grande

When I returned to the hotel, I had planned to stay put; then I discovered that Sorrento had REALLY come alive. The town takes off after sunset, when it’s still warm and all the streets are lit, filled with tourists and regulars. I attended the main street passigiata, strolling the Corso Italo with everyone else, stopping by the peaceful convent of San Franchesco. I couldn't wait to explore more.

Courtyard of the convent of San Franchesco

See more images of Sorrento, Pompeii and Herculaneum on my website gallery page