Amalfi Coast and Pompeii

Today we took a day tour - a long one, picking us up in the lobby at 6:45 am. It was in a nine passenger van, with a driver/guide (Andrew was actually Italian), a couple from Wisconsin, another from Connecticut, two women from Toronto and New Jersey, and us. We drove out of Rome, past Vesuvius (that's it behind us, with its top blown off), then out to the Amalfi Coast.

This part of the trip required us to say "Oh, ah, isn't that beautiful!" It also made us pleased to be in a van, rather than a bus, with an Italian driver who was used to the road. We drove down the coast a bit to Amalfi, where we stopped for a gelato. The driver recommended we try lemonchello gelato, which we did, but we both prefer regular limone.

Then we drove farther along the coast, with stops here and there at tiny look out spots to appreciate the stunning views. And to buy freshly squeezed lemon juice. We carried on to Positano, where we walked down to the beach, and had a lunch with wonderful Caprese salad and pasta. Following lunch we wandered back up the hill, looking at some of the shops on the way.

There was just a little more drive along the coast, and then we zipped inland to Pompeii. We were met there by another real Italian guide who gave us a tour of Pompeii while Andrew rested. This part of the trip required us to say "Oh, ah, isn't that interesting!" I'm too tired to regale you with all the excitement about Pompeii, but here is a photo of the main square, a street, and a wall fresco.

After all of this it was after 6 pm and we headed back to Rome. Our driver was zipping right along, until we ran into a huge traffic jam, for some unexplained reason, in the middle of the countryside. We inched along forever, then got gas because we'd used so much, then continued on. We never got home until 10:30, which was an hour and a half later than the plan. So we skipped supper, except Aidan got herself her daily Cannoli.Tomorrow we're off to Florence.