Delicious (and gluten free) Sorrento

March 11, 2015March 11, 2015 / Greg / 2 Comments

After being in bustling Rome and Naples, spending five nights in Sorrento was like a vacation within a vacation. Even with the day trips we were taking, the pace of life slowed down significantly, especially in the evenings once we returned back to Sorrento. And evenings in Sorrento meant dinner and wine in Sorrento. On a couple of those evenings, we decided on a picnic like meal in the inner courtyard garden of our apartment, just off Piazza Sant’Antonino. Not a bad place for a meal!

On Canadian Thanksgiving evening, we stopped by the grocery store and picked up a nice spread of smoked cheeses, some cured meats, gluten free cookies, bread (for me), paprika chips (a European tradition for us) and a bottle of prosecco. We’ve now had a few of these al fresco Thanksgiving dinners in Europe over the years. There’s something special about eating under the stars…

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A southern Italy home away from home

March 6, 2015 / Greg / 2 Comments

Sorrento was our home for five nights while we toured around Campania. We chose here for the ease of bus, ferry and train connections to Capri, the Amalfi Coast and Pompeii, but also because Sorrento is a lovely little town in its own right. After the big city experiences of Rome and Naples, we knew that this vacation needed something a little quieter and relaxing for a few days. If life ever takes you to Sorrento and you don’t have a money tree in your front yard back home, stay at the Villa Elisa just off Piazza Sant’Antonino. It was the perfect home away from home and came at a very reasonable rate for this part of Italy.

We gave ourselves a full uninterrupted day to explore Sorrento as well as seeing bits and pieces of it as we came and went from our day trips. Throughout our stay, we passed through the main square in town, Piazza Tasso, many times. While bustling at night, during the day, it was quite peaceful as most of the town’s visitors were off exploring other locales. It had everything a proper European square should have – ample bars, attractive architecture and a lot of people watching possibilities.

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A day along the Amalfi Coast

February 26, 2015 / Greg / 1 Comment

One day isn’t really enough time to experience all the Amalfi Coast has to offer. In the spirit of “one day is better than no days” my wife and I got aboard a very early morning bus leaving Sorrento for the ninety minute ride to Amalfi. It was great to leave the driving to someone else on the narrow and twisted roads, allowing us to just stare out the windows at the pristine beaches, cliffside towns and jagged rocky hills falling down to the sea.

The drive went by in a flash, and we climbed out of the bus on the waterfront in Amalfi. Of the towns along the Amalfi Coast, Amalfi is considered the least picturesque, which is a little unfair. I mean, this isn’t exactly the kind of place that hurts your eyes…

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Touring Capri

February 17, 2015February 17, 2015 / Greg / 1 Comment

After a spectacular cruise around the Isle of Capri, we had the rest of the day to explore the island on foot. We took a bus from Marina Grande up to the town of Anacapri, about a ten minute ride away along cliff-hugging winding roads. The bus let us off in a public square beside Mount Solaro where we made our way over to the chair lift station and headed up the mountain. The ride up the side of Mount Solaro was a peaceful fifteen minute trip. The air was perfectly still and quiet and there were numerous interesting gardens and houses beneath you…

… and the sweeping vista of where the western end of the Isle of Capri met the Tyrrhenian Sea off to your right:

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Marina Grande

February 12, 2015 / Greg / Leave a comment

Favourite 2014 travel photos. Capri, Italy. October 2014.

A cruise around Capri

February 9, 2015 / Greg / 3 Comments

Of all of the places we were to visit on our fall trip to Italy, the Isle of Capri was the one I was most excited to see. We planned this as a day trip from our base in Sorrento and booked ferry tickets for an early morning trip over and the last boat back. We got our full day on the island started with a cruise around Capri, leaving from Marina Grande. This main arrival/departure point for the island was beautifully bathed in the muted light of an early morning just before the sun came up over the island’s rocky cliffs:

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On top of Mount Vesuvius

February 2, 2015February 2, 2015 / Greg / 1 Comment

Shortly after wrapping up our visit at the ruins of Pompeii, we hopped in a military-style vehicle for an incredibly bumpy ride up the side of Mount Vesuvius. Bumpy really doesn’t describe the trip… concussion-inducing might be a better descriptor. I’d complain a bit more, but sitting in front of us was a woman from the UK and her dog as well as a two year old. We expected the dog to get carsick, but he was a real trooper and the two year old slept through the entire ride, so no complaining from me. On the left below was our transportation. On the right, the incredible dog who beat everyone to the top of the mountain once we got out of the vehicle:

Once freed from our spartan chariot, we started our climb the rest of the way up Mount Vesuvius toward its peak. It is a fairly leisurely walk to the summit, throughout which you’re afforded million dollar views out over the Bay of Naples and the towns that line the water. As we neared the top we stopped for a few minutes to look out over the water toward Sorrento and Capri:

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The ruins at Pompeii

January 27, 2015January 27, 2015 / Greg / 2 Comments

Traveling in the fall has many perks, among which is the ability to see some incredible sights without the crowds. Fresh from a great first night’s sleep in Sorrento, we took an early thirty minute Circumvesuviana train ride to Pompeii arriving there just as the ruins opened for the day. With literally no one else around we stood looking out across the forum with Mount Vesuvius looming about 8km away in the background. Standing here, it was hard not to imagine the power of the eruption of the volcano that buried Pompeii.