Naples

Ah...Italy! On the itinerary today was Pompeii, Sorrento and Positano. We docked right at the heart of the Naples in front of castle built more than 800 years ago. Again, we have chosen to go with a private tour because of the number of people that we have in our party as well as the fact that we had 3 young children. We wanted to be able to control the pace of our tour, as well as the timing of our lunch and snack breaks.

Detailed street signs

We went to Pompeii first to beat the crowds and the heat. Rafael, our guide at Pompeii , was very skilful at manoeuvring us around the many big tour groups. He informed us that it would only get worse throughout the day. After Carthage, Pompeii seemed endless! It had the advantage of the city as a whole being buried in volcanic ash and thus preserved, rather than being looted and then being built on. The amount of information about the lifestyle and way of life of the time gleaned from the ruins really was amazing. We were surprised to find the 2 hours that had been allocated flying past.

We set off for Positano driving along the spectacular Amalfi Coast. Lunch was atop the hill overlooking the village. The view was second to none. We discovered that Mozarella was a specialty in Sorrento along with limoncello. I’ve never tasted ricotta and Mozarella that good before! Seasonal vegetables from the garden and fresh home-made pasta completed with southern Italian desserts and limoncello made for a big and wonderful meal. All this food was in preparation for a walk down to the beach in Positano itself. The stairs down and up again with a stroller helped burn some of the calories. The town was pretty but the beach itself was a little disappointing.

The Amalfi Coast

Stopping the minivan in the middle of a narrow winding road just to take a photo? "No problem!" Says Paolo...

The beauftiful streets of Positano

Malcolm not too impressed with beach at Positano

Next up is Sorrento. We stopped for gelato and proceeded to for some much anticipated shopping when we discovered that Elliot had lost his Key To The World card. So the next half an hour was spent back-tracking and searching the minivan to no avail. Fortunately at the port, he managed to somehow slip through the first check with the Italian authorities. Once we got to the ship, it was simply a matter of going to Guest services and another card was re-issued before we could say please.

The day was filled with warm Italian hospitality and amazing views. I only hope the photos will do them justice.