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Hiking the Path of the Gods-Amalfi Coast

11/29/2016

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Yesterday was a party, fun day. We cruised  on the boat, lounged about on the boat, danced on the boat, sang on the boat, explored Capri and had an amazing lunch. So. Much. Fun.

Well, today promises to be fun as well, but....we're gonna sweat a little!
Today, we are walking the Path of the Gods. Our private van drops us at the start of the hike, where we start in the most civilized of ways...with an espresso and cornetto. One needs to build up the stamina for such a trek after all. There, we meet up with my favorite trekking guide, Tommaso. Now that we are in his capable hands, we can get started:
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The path starts out paved, and easy. And though the walk is never really "hard", the path quickly becomes just that; a sometimes packed dirt, sometimes rocky, path. Also very quickly, the beautiful scenery begins!

It should take us about 3 hours at a leisurely pace. It's hard not to do a leisurely pace, as we are always wanting to stop and take photos.

And any time any one has a question...What kind of plant is that? What kind of building is that? What island is that out there? .....Tommaso has an answer. 

The weather is sheer perfection for a hike. The visibility is amazing; the natural beauty simply spectacular. We stop often for a sip of water, and to let photographing stragglers catch up. 

We get to see terraced hill farming close up. We look waaay down there, and see the road our van took this morning to bring us to the starting point. 

We can't believe how lucky we are to be doing this.

We see beautiful rock formations and endless views of the Amalfi Coast. Below left, a farmer's "storage shed"! Can you imagine fetching your farming implements from there each day? We couldn't have chosen a more spectacular day for a trek.
We reach about midway, and find a statue of a madonna. There are also columns of balancing rocks built by previous trekkers. 
We cannot help but to stop and contemplate the beauty around us. As the morning moves on, water traffic picks up in the bay, reminding us....we're getting hungry!


Boy, do we ever deserve this! It's a freshly made lemon granita garnished with fresh lemon slices and fresh mint. At this moment, I don't think I've ever had anything more refreshing in my whole life. 



Next stop:
The beach! Do you think we're going to just lollygag around? No. We're going to the beach to EAT! We are starving and we deserve a fresh and fantastic lunch. 

Our van is waiting for us at the end of the trek. We pile in and are whisked down to the waterfront....
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What a day! What a day! What a day!
(No, that is not a typo....I really am saying that over and over in my head.) 

We've seen spectacular natural beauty.
We've invigorated ourselves with a healthy trek.
We've had a beautiful lunch on the beach.
We re-gathered in the evening after a chance at showers and a change of clothes, to participate in the local fish festival. Life is good. It is just so darned good.

Thanks to my colleague Tommaso for such a fun and educational hike. Thanks also to Ferdinando's Beach establishment for a lovely lunch, the best beach positions and for letting us save a table for the fish festival. You guys are the best!
We so enjoy sitting down in the shade of the beach establishment for a rest and our much deserved lunch. In addition, we've found out there's going to be a fish fest tonight...ON the beach!

To the left, you see the "fry guys" setting up the fish frying stations. And below, as the evening wears on, you see them hard at work. Looks like there will be no rest for us this evening!
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Amalfi Coast, Here We Come!

11/17/2016

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 The Amalfi Coast/Puglia Tour continues....

The group has allotted three nights to the Amalfi Coast, and I have decided to homebase us in the stunning town of Positano, where the buildings spill from the mountains to the sea.  We have so much to see and do and eat and drink. Let's get started!
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Though our time in Naples was a little bit cloudy and damp, once we arrive to Positano, all that changes....nothing but sunshine!
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​As a surprise for this special group, I've organized a full day, private boat trip to the Isle of Capri. (They thought they were taking the ferry for a short tour.)
We cruise our way to Capri, then spend the whole morning making our way all around the island at our leisure. With our small boat, we can nose right into little grottos to admire the rocks and crystalline waters. The weather in this late moment of September even permits us a swim! And then we get to go right through the rocks, and raise our wineglasses in salute as we do so!
Once we're done touring the island by water, it's time to tour it on land. Our open-air taxis await!
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Look waaaay down there! There are the rocks our boat went through on our way here!
The taxis bring us to the lovely town of Anacapri. Once there, we take the individual chairlifts to the tippy top for Amazing (yes, with a capital "A") views!
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By now, we've really built up an appetite (even though we had delicious snacks and Prosecco on the boat). Time to take the chairlift back down and go eat! We have a really wonderful Slow Food lunch waiting for us.
Well, we are filled to the brim, and our taxis and boat await. There's just a little time to do some shopping, then off we go back to the marina where our captain, Roberto is waiting for us. As the sun lowers, we make our way back to Positano.
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As we approach Positano, Captain Robbie gives us a farewell serenade with Bocelli music. (He never even told me he could sing!)

Today has truly been a Bella Giornata. We've had so many memorable experiences. We've seen such natural beauty, eaten fantastic food, danced, sang and laughed our hearts out. Thank you to my wonderful colleagues in Italy for making the day so special. Thanks to Robbie, Lavinia and Vicenzo. Until we meet again!

Tomorrow....we work for our food!
Stay tuned for more fun adventures with the Bisaccia Family.
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Pompei: Past and Future Collide

11/10/2016

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Continuing the Amalfi Coast/Puglia Tour....

After leaving Napoli, our next stop are the ruins of Pompei. This is such a fascinating place, made even more so on this visit, by the temporary addition of a vast number of modern art sculptures by the artist Igor Mitoraj. One gets this crazy juxtaposition of ancient and modern. Click here for more information on this artist and this particular exhibition: http://www.continiartuk.com/igor-mitoraj-exhibit-ancient-site-pompeii-2/
There is an incredible amount of history and information that can be dispensed at this wonderful site, so it takes a really good guide to make the ruins of Pompei come to life. Good thing we have just that! Emiliano walks us through history and we are fascinated by all he has to say. And to top it off, after the drizzle in Napoli, the weather has become perfection!
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Wow! It really warmed up...we take a rest on the stairs of the amphitheatre and have a sip of water while Emiliano finishes up his explanations. Then, it's on to Sorrento for lunch!
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Stay tuned! Next stop....Positano! And my goodness, but we had some glorious adventures there! I can't wait to relive it....in my next blog post.
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Naples: A City Well Lived In

11/5/2016

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Continuing the Journey on the Amalfi Coast/Puglia Tour:

Naples is really a city like no other. I always call it a "city well lived in". Why? Well, it has a reputation for many things; chaotic traffic, petty crime, chaos in general...all somewhat true. Rome has all those things too, but Rome always feels so touristic, while Naples feels like you're just witnessing life happening. 

Here, the group is posing around the famous Pulcinella statue. Pulcinella was a classic character from Italian theatre. Represented as a "fool", the character in fact rather thumbed its nose at government rules and bureaucracy...I guess that explains a few things right there.

Lest you think Naples is all negative connotation, nothing could be further from the truth. Its streets are simply fascinating; filled with history, great food and traditions, and beautiful art. Naples is full of things to see and deserves any amount of time you can afford to spend there. 

​Here are a few things I found while wandering:
Turns out we were in the nick of time to help the city finish celebrating the Miracle of St. Gennaro (This occurs on Sept. 19, and we arrived on the 20th). Here's a link to an explanation: 
​https://cruxnow.com/global-church/2016/09/19/famed-blood-miracle-san-gennaro-unfolds-naples/
We were visiting the Church of St. Gennaro and got to see the liquified blood! The priest below is holding the ampule and people were welcome to come and give it a kiss. Also notice the shape of San Gennaro's hat...below on the right, on the bronze bust.
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Of course, because it was such a special time, the pastry shops were also creating something special to help celebrate. I tasted a San Gennaro hat-shaped pastry....it was delicious! There was even an explanation of what was in it.
A lovely tradition in Napoli is called Caffe' Sospeso, or "Suspended Coffee". What it means, is you can pay ahead for a coffee for someone who will need one and not have the money. So if a coffee shop advertises this service, I can pay for a coffee for someone in need. At any time, someone who can't afford one, or forgot their wallet can stop in for a "free" coffee....not on the house, but on whoever chose to pay for one. So civilized.
We saw many sights on our walking tour with our officially licensed guide, but what better way to take in the traditions of Napoli than with a pizza lunch?

And to end the evening? We made our own karaoke party!
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Oh those knuckleheads! Maybe everyone was a little rummy from having just arrived to Italy yesterday. Or maybe, this is just a fun-loving group! 

You'll see in the days ahead.....

Next stop: Pompei and then the true Amalfi Coast begins!
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The Amalfi Coast/Puglia Tour: Day One

11/2/2016

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There is no better compliment than having a group sign on for a second tour with me. I was so lucky to have the Bisaccia family to travel with back in 2014. And this year, they were kind enough to ask me to organize their second trip to Italy. 

Back then, it was Rome, Tuscany and Umbria...this year, it's the Amalfi Coast and Puglia! Here we go!
The gang arrives to Italy just in time for lunch. (My kind of people.) After I organize their pick up from the airport, our first stop is to the delicious Trattoria Consolare in the tiny town of Ferentino. The chef has organized some special fall themed dishes just for us. Welcome Back to Italy!
Post lunch, our first overnight stop will be Naples (Napoli). So everyone climbs back into the van for a snooze as we make our way there. Once there, we check into our hotel which is perfectly located for all the sightseeing we want to do tomorrow. Get a good night's rest everyone! Tomorrow, we start walking....
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