Sorrento to Rome

Montecassino: On our way to Sorrento we stopped at the Commonwealth cemetery for soldiers who died in the four assaults on the German forces who had holed up in the hilltop monastery. It was moving to see the rows and rows of immaculately kept graves and look up and see what an imposing obstacle the Allied soldiers faced.

Sorrento: Our drive took us past Naples where we looked out on the Bay of Naples in one direction and up at Mt. Vesuvius in the other. Sorrento is on a peninsula on the South side of the Bay of Naples reached by a winding hillside road. Sitting on the window seat was a bit unnerving as we twisted and turned our way past hotels and villas perched on the edge of cliffs.

Our hotel was also on a cliff overlooking the sea and we had a great view from our room. There was a large terrace one level below and we watched a wedding – from appetizers to the groom cutting the cake with his military sword! It was a beautiful setting and an elegant affair.

We visited a factory that made beautiful inlaid wood work (from large furniture to small coasters) and then took a ferry to the fabled Isle of Capri. It is a very rocky island about 25 minutes from Sorrento by hydrofoil. It was packed…with locals and tourists. It is popular destination for weekenders from Italy as well as cruise ship passengers plus the tours. You take a funicular from the port to Capri town and the views are panoramic. Lots of mega yachts in the harbor along with colorful fishing boats. Shopping was mainly high end name brands or less expensive souvenirs. We again enjoyed people watching from a café plus a split of wonderful white wine. (We knew Italy had great red wines, but we found an equal number of very nice whites.)

We took the boat back to Sorrento and later went to dinner at a restaurant in the old port of Sorrento. The best part of the meal was the pizza – thin crispy crust! It was brought to the table on a three-foot long peel and presented with great enthusiasm. The emphasis was on seafood as this is a fishing port.

Pompeii: Not far from Sorrento we visited the ruined city of Pompeii. Vesuvius dominates the skyline over Naples and is still considered active, although heavily monitored. Pompeii was a seaport prior to the eruption which filled in the Bay of Naples for a mile. Again we had a great local guide who gave us a good overview of what life was like in the first century AD. We saw laundries, bakeries, shops, homes and streets with the first “speed bumps” causing chariots to slow. As a port city it was visited by sailors from all over the Mediterranean and the street stones even gave directions to the “Red Light” district. The site is very large and would take a full day to traverse, but we got an excellent introduction to the major features.

Rome again: All roads lead to Rome and so did our tour. Our last night in Rome featured a dinner at a restaurant with opera singers entertaining. It seemed appropriate. We exchanged email addresses with our new friends and have already been in touch with some.

The tour was an excellent introduction to a fascinating country…a very busy 12 days but we saw so much more than we had imagined or would have been able to do on our own. We hope you enjoy our memories and photos of this wonderful vacation.