I Have Itchy Feet

Fans of this blog, know that I can’t stay home for long. It's my curse. I have the travel bug, and when I get the urge to splurge, it's usually on a plane ticket. 

Which is how I ended up in Italy last month. Southern Italy, to be exact. Naples, Capri, Pompeii, Positano (on the Amalfi coast) and Salerno.

Italy was rainy and cold (maybe that’s why I got such a great deal on the plane ticket) but it was still amazing.

Take Pompeii, for instance. It was buried under lava by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 A.D. but it has been excavated to such an amazing extent that you can still see perfectly preserved amphorae (clay jugs) where wine and oil were stored in buildings:
  


And this amazing mural that adorned the wall of someone's home. Can you believe this is almost 2,000 years old??


One of the most interesting parts of the city was these stepping stones, which helped keep people’s feet dry when crossing flooded roads (and to avoid all the refuse people threw into the street). The stones are placed wide enough so that a wagon going down the street can pass in between them! Clever, and eminently practical:

  
Of course, Pompeii is (unfortunately) also known for all the lava-covered dead bodies of the people who were not able to flee the eruption in time. Very sad:


The Isle of Capri was very picturesque. On the one sunny day there, I was able to take a tiny boat into the Blue Grotto and see the amazing color of the Gulf of Naples reflected up into the cave. Can’t do this if you’re claustrophobic, though – you literally have to lie down in the tiny rowboat to squeeze into the mouth of the cave!


Despite all the things I did in Naples, Pompeii, and Capri, the tiny village of Positano on the Amalfi Coast was definitely the most picturesque part of my trip. Positano is built vertically up a mountainside…


And the view down to the sea is amazing…


The one lane streets are One Way, which makes driving and walking difficult…


But it makes the streets very quaint…


As well as the picture postcard-perfect apartments…


But going up and down stairs all day every day to get anywhere was KILLER… Stairs to go to lunch, stairs to go to the beach, stairs to go shopping. Heck, 111 steps just to get to breakfast!


But at least the stairs helped me work off some of the calories of all the delicious meals I had…


So now I’m home again, and dreaming of my next adventure. Any suggestions?

Jenna





4 comments:

Robena Grant said...

Wonderful! I adore Italy, but it has been way to long since my last visit. Thanks for letting me browse your photo album and for the fabulous memories your pictures evoked.

Pamela DuMond, D.C. said...

I've been there and fell in love with Positano. Heaven on earth. Remember it well. Thanks for the pretty pictures. Oh yes, I also remember all those dang stairs.

Lynne Marshall said...

Gorgeous pictures. Thanks so much for posting them. It looks like a dream (with steps). My fitbit would be thrilled right along with me.
Happy travels!

Carly Carson said...

Yes, lovely pictures. I suggest Croatia if you love beautiful coastline scenery and quaint towns.