Spring Break: Sorrento, Capri, and Pompeii

So I was convinced upon leaving to go to Naples that nothing could be better than my time in Florence. Needless to say I was mistaken! After rushing to see David Tuesday morning Jenn and I got on yet another TrenItalia train embarking on the 6 hour journey to Naples. It was the most beautiful ride throughout Tuscany and then along the coast of Italy and we also managed to make friends with the 4 other Italians in our train car using sign language, their broken English, and our Spanish. We have been hearing warnings about Naples since we decided to travel there about safety and gangs so we were a little wary to even walk through the train station to buy our Circumvesuviana tickets for the ride to Sorrento. Luckily we had the nicest older Italian man, who spoke no English, who accompanied us to buy our tickets in the station for the Circumvesuviana. Don't worry this is not a scene out of Taken like my mom mentioned. We stayed in the train station and he walked in front of us constantly looking back to make sure we were ok. He obviously meant well and we were very thankful for him because Naples definitely lived up to its reputation in my opinion. The Circumvesuviana is exactly as it sounds, a train that goes around Mt. Vesuvius from Naples' Central Station to Sorrento. As we popped in and out of tunnels Jenn and I could hardly keep our mouth from dropping upon catching views of the sea and beautiful cliffs lining the coast. We finally arrived to our Bed and Breakfast in Sorrento, an old converted monastery, and found a beautiful surprise waiting outside our window:



We immediately dropped our stuff and headed for a lookout point we had passed earlier just in time to watch the sunset. We had a beautiful view overlooking the sea and cliffs with the city of Naples and Mt. Vesuvius in the distance. It was absolutely breathtaking.



After we had a great dinner of seafood pasta and gnocchi we returned to our hostel to decide what we were going to do with our next two days in Sorrento.



Our time in Sorrento fell during the off season so there wasn't much action around Sorrento so we decided to spend the next day walking around and exploring Pompeii. I am not usually very interested in archeological type museums but Pompeii was probably one of the coolest places I have been. When Mt. Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D. it erupted in a very unique way in which it covered the entire city with ash and debris that hardened over time and preserved the city in an amazing way. We were able to see mosaics on the floor, frescos on the walls, carvings in the walls, and parts of buildings that were still standing in a place that is older than anything I could ever imagine. We walked through places including the old amphitheater, government buildings, the forum and much more. It took us more than 4 hours to walk through the city but we enjoyed every minute of it. Here are some of my favorite pictures throughout Pompeii:


I thought this one was appropriate because I am sitting on the remains of the old Business and Law Center of Pompeii!













After we finally made it through the entire city of Pompeii we took the Circumvesuviana to the center of Sorrento to do some shopping and check out the beautiful town. Since it was the off season it was a little calmer than usual but no cheaper. We walked through the shops for a long time and loved being in a relaxing beach town for a little while. The shops lined quaint little side streets and featured items mostly out of our price range although Jenn managed to find a dress for her cousin's wedding and I found a pair of T-strap sandals that happened to say Sorrento sandals on the heel! We loved the beach air and the breathtaking coastal views! We decided to stop for some Bruschetta and wine at a restaurant with a beautiful view of Mt. Vesuvius and the sea which was perfect.







We returned back to our Circumvesuviana stop and picked up some bread, cheese, and wine and headed for our lookout point near our Bed and Breakfast. We sat on a bench overlooking the sea, the lit up city of Naples, and Mt. Vesuvius while eating bread and cheese and drinking red wine with the sounds of Lynyrd Skynard and Kenny Chesney in the background coming from Jenn's Ipod. Now I would have to say that in that moment I really didn't feel like a real person and thought I was in heaven. That was confirmed when we saw fireworks in the distance over Naples and then a shooting star right over the sea..."Is this real life?"

The next morning we woke up early and had breakfast before embarking by boat to the island of Capri that is about an hour across the sea from Sorrento. We had seen an ad hanging in our hotel about boat tours to Capri so we decided to try it out. Little did we know we were about to basically have a private boat tour around the island of Capri. Captain Francisco picked us up at our hotel and took us down to the little port to board his nice boat for the day. We were on the boat with only on other couple from London staying in our hotel. Captain Francisco had stocked a cooler with drinks, packed our lunch, and come prepared with music fit for a boat tour. We started our trip along the coast of Sorrento and then across the sea to Capri.



Unfortunately I ended up christening the Mediterranean after problems with seasickness but even that couldn't ruin the day.


Our Captain's attempt to help my seasickness, let me drive the boat!

Capri was a beautiful and exclusive island. After we arrived to the island we circled in by boat to admire the cliffs, the grottos Capri is famous for, and the million dollar houses spotting the cliffs.



Capri is basically a beautiful rock sitting in the middle of the Mediterranean and we got to see every breathtaking view of it!


Us on the boat with Capri in the background!

After circling the island Francisco let us off on the island for 3 hours to explore the exclusive shopping, wonderful views, and wonderful character of the island. We first rode the bus to the top of the island, Ana Capri, and walked around the shops at the top. Unfortunately it was too foggy to ride the chairlift to the highest point of the island but I can imagine how amazing that would be in the summer time. After admiring the shops and views from Ana Capri we rode the bus down to the most exclusive shopping found on the island. The jewelery was enough to make my heart hurt but I had fun nonetheless. We finally took the Funicular train from the shopping area back down to the port and climbed back on the boat for the trip back to Sorrento. Watching Capri disappear in the distance was very sad but I am hopeful one day I will be back, hopefully in the summertime, because it is truly one of the most beautiful places full of character and wonderful views!
















Us with Captain Francisco!

We both loved our time in Sorrento because we actually felt like we were on Spring Break for a couple of days being beside the beach and tasting the beach air. We needed some relaxation too as we had whirlwind trips in Milan and Florence and were about to fit all we could into 3 days in Rome. Next stop Roma!