Pompeii, Sorrento, and Rome....oh my!

So we are finally back from our first real adventure out of Florence and we came back with more than we left with...CAROLINE!  But first let's start with our trip...

We left for Sorrento on Sunday morning, with first a stop in Pompeii.  The weather was up and down in the south with large ominous clouds one minute and blue skies the next, but we managed to stay dry the whole time.  We first arrived in Naples where we had to pick up the Circumvesuviana (small metro train) to Pompeii.  Court and I were also pretty beat from the train ride down so when we got to Pompeii we stopped in one of the few cafe stands outside of the ruins.  I needed a good cappuccino and panino before walking around and it also gave Courtney the chance to try their freshly squeezed lemonade.  I was only sad that we weren't in the Spring and she couldn't see the humongous lemons and oranges that are usually hanging from the cafes.  We headed into the ruins and found out that it was Cultural Heritage Day and we got in for free!  We were so excited!  Since it was my third time going to Pompeii I opted to not get an audio guide and just walk around with Courtney.  It is always amazing going to Pompeii and seeing how well preserved it is after more than 2,000 years and just imagining the life that went on here.  To add to our experience, those ominous clouds I mentioned before were surrounding Vesuvius and could help you almost imagine what a dark cloud of ash coming at you could look like (on a much smaller scale of course).

View of Vesuvius from the forum

What is sad about many houses in Pompeii - well besides the giant eruption that wiped out everyone and everything - is that many of them were in the midst of being renovated.  Apparently Pompeii was booming at the time because of their port being a huge player in Mediterranean trade and many residents who were wealthy were expanding their properties, but of course many didn't have the chance to finish.  The renovations were also a result of the earthquake in 63 AD, just 16 years before the eruption, that caused extensive damage to Pompeii.  Both Courtney and I really enjoyed the House of the Gilded Cupids.  It seemed to be the best preserved house from what we saw and you could really imagine people living here.

Main garden in the House of the Gilded Cupids

Ok so now off to Sorrento, one of my favorite places on earth.  Our B&B was the opposite way from the train station as I have usually stayed and it turned out being a pretty good ways from the main square of Sorrento (about a 20 minute walk).  I think that's basically our thing though, since it's the same in Florence that we live further away from the center and it turned out to be the same in Rome...oh well, walking is good for us!  As soon as we finally found our place we set off for downtown so I could try and show Courtney why I loved it so much.  We reached the cafe my parents and I always go to when we come down - we would usually go every day...twice a day even - to see the end of the sunset.  The cafe overlooks the white cliffs of Sorrento with a view of Capri, Ischia, Vesuvius, the Bay of Naples and of course the Mediterranean.  There is no place like it.  Since we missed the sunset we vowed to come back the next day and set off to explore the small streets.  It was pretty crowded so soon we got hungry and settled on this cute little restaurant in the heart of the city (it's a small city so it's not so hard to find the heart!)  I finally got my Carbonara and couldn't believe it had taken me this long to get my favorite dish and Courtney finally got her seafood risotto!

MMmmmmMMM

Everything was delicious except that I accidentally ordered us a liter of wine (I was so used to it before when I lived with 4 other girls!) and halfway through the wine it started to taste soapy.  Court and I didn't want to leave so much left so we swallowed our disdain for it and drank down as much as we could - still leaving about a fourth left.  We went back to the hotel and got to bed, ready for our big day in Capri!

The next morning we had a fantastic breakfast at the B&B equipped with fried eggs, cappuccino, rolls and spreadable cheese.  It was fantastic!  We then headed off to the Marina to catch our ferry to Capri.  We had no way of knowing the weather besides what we saw outside and while it was cloudy, we didn't expect it to really rain so of course we left our umbrellas at home.  BIG mistake.  The ferry over was extremely choppy, so much so that the deckhands passed out barf bags and many people took them...thank god no one we saw actually used them.  Courtney and I were fine and enjoyed the bounciness, likening it to a roller coaster.  As soon as we arrived at Capri we got our tickets for the Funicular and headed up the mountain to the city.  And as soon as we got there the skies opened up and rain was pouring.  Not only did we not have umbrellas, but we also weren't really dressed for a torrential downpour - me in a skirt, sandals, and white tank top.  We tried in vain to find an umbrella stand, but ended up settling on a cafe to wait out the storm.  Thank goodness the weather broke up and it turned into a pretty nice day, with some later threats of storms as well though nothing major.  

We picked up our tour of the island by heading to Marina Piccola with the famous 3 rocks and the gorgeous blue water.  It is so pretty over there and it will be hard for me to pick just a couple pictures to post.

This is actually a view of the 3 rocks, aka Faraglione, from the highest point of the island

We then took a bus to Anacapri, which is a higher point on the island.  We did some exploring, but the best thing we found was a chair lift taking us to the absolute top of the island!!  It was one seat per person and it took about 15 minutes to get to the top.  The views were amazing!

chair lift!

view from the top

Once we made it back to Sorrento we rushed home to get ready for an aperitivo at the cafe for sunset and  then a traditional 4 course Italian meal (I have done this twice before, once with my sis and once with my parents at the same excellent restaurant - it's my thing now I guess!).  The sunset did not disappoint and we each had Prosecco to commemorate our time there (I also do this everytime).  I toasted to my parents because, at least for my dad, this is probably his all time favorite spot on earth.  

Cheers mom and dad!

After the sun finally set and it was getting pretty chilly we set off for our dinner.  It didn't disappoint again!  We started with an antipasto of frutti di mare with grilled octopus, squid, clams, and mussels.  I figured that we should do seafood since it's amazing here.  This was definitely not something I would typically order, but I really liked it and the octopus was actually really good (Simona, you should appreciate that!).  Then I got carbonara again for my first plate and mussels for my second (Kelley, can you believe I ordered mussels???).  Court got lasagna and mussels, very good!  I learned from my past experiences that you have to be very careful what you order for your second plate and mussels really are the best choice.  When I was here with Kel I ordered carbonara and chicken with potatoes, it was a disaster and I thought I was going to explode.  We skipped on a dessert because we were very full, but we did get a nice glass of limoncello - Court's first!  It was chilled perfectly and was the best I've ever had.  Our waiter was sad to see us go because Courtney had worn him down over the course of our dinner.  He seemed very surly in the beginning, but a few giggles later from Court and he was all ours! :)

After that we headed back to the hotel to pass out, but not after we had a glass of wine with some of the cooking class students who also reside at our hotel (there is a class offered through the B&B).  They were from Chicago and were perfectly nice, aside from some pompousness on one's part.  The next day we were off early for Roma!

I realize I wrote a lot and I'm only halfway through the trip so I think I'm going to leave Rome for another post! a domani!