We flew into Naples in early June 2018 from Rome.
It took about fifty minutes. There is a dedicated bus to Sorrento right outside the airport. The cost was about $10.
If you go by bus, make sure you seat on the right-side to see the beautiful coastline. Going back to the airport, you sit on the left-side.
A taxi would have been $100. Besides the price difference, the advantage of a taxi is your fare would have taken you straight to the hotel. It took about 15 minutes to walk to our hotel from the train station, Hotel Plaza.
Hotel Plaza is regarded as a four-star establishment. We were always greeted by the friendly staff.
We upgraded to a balcony room overlooking a very busy street. It took an ambulance once 15 minutes to get through this street. We hope no one died on the other end.
We were next to an historic ravine.
We would have “Happy Hour” eating olives and drinking Limoncello while enjoying our view.
It was, indeed, pleasant room.
Hotel Plaza had a roof-top bar and pool. It was here one could see the Gulf of Naples.The infinity pool is definitely inviting. When the children arrived, though, it was time to leave.
The elevator was extremely quick at the Plaza. We were on the third floor with a balcony.
The breakfasts at Hotel Plaza are amazing. Service was quick and everything you would desire.
I liked the breakfast “Almond Pie” for sure.
Our hotel was just a stone’s throw away from the famous “Piazza Tasso.” We enjoyed seating at the Fauno Bar—people watching obviously. The olives were delicious.
We did notice a number of unleashed dogs. These dogs were not afraid of people and did not bite. These dogs had to belong to someone.
Sorrento thrives on tourism. Limoncello is a product that is sold throughout.
One of the better places to purchase Lemoncello was the Giardini di Cataldo. There is an actual lemon garden that can be seen.
Quaint alley’s, café’s and shops decorate Old Town Sorrento.
We found the Italians to have a good sense of humor.
It was hard not to notice this one balcony that was trying to hide from the rest of society.
We did find one restaurant tucked in an alley, Restorante Da Gigino. Prices are extremely reasonable.
Kathie had Salmon and enjoyed it.
We supplemented the meal with fresh mushrooms and string beans.
I had probably the best Spaghitti Vongole at Da Gigino’s. For $13 dollars, I had thirty clams.
We did get some gelato at Fresco’s, a mom and pop type of place.
One day we made a trip to Pompeii. That journey is covered in our “Sad Pompeii” travel blog.
On another day, we took the “Hop-on-and-Hope Off” bus to Positano.
The Road is notoriously narrow and many areas along the cliff. We did not want to drive this famous road.
We can see why people love Positano. On a beautiful sunny day, it is spectacular.
We were dropped off on a high road and walked into Old Town Positano. We were not the only ones doing this.
Many weddings take place along the Almalfi coast.
We did make it to the church by the beach, Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta.
We could not resist an ice cream from Positano Paradise. Europe in general has the best pistachio ice creams in the world.
There are a number of other famous villages along the Almafi coast we did not get to on this trip. A few days later we did make it to the Isle of Capri which is described in another blog.
We decided to take the ferry back to Sorrento and see the coast where the peninsula juts out.
The young dock hand was quite friendly. It was easy to notice his trim and muscled body.
The famous actress, Sophia Lorraine, was born not far from Amalfi.
One of our last views of Positano.
As we were rounding the coast, we saw Mount Vesuvius in the distance.
On the main street of Sorrento, we found a mom and pop style pizzeria. Not fancy or expensive, it was where the locals ate.
The chef was extremely friendly.
On our fourth day we rented a car to head south to ancient Greek Temple site known as Paestum. Coming out of Sorrento, we were presented with a traffic jam. It seemed the only people getting anywhere were the motor scooters.
The journey to Paestum is about 60 miles south consisting on of traveling on their “Autostrade”—turnpike. Most people were going normal speeds—not like in Germany. We did pass this interesting wagon:
Paestum is an ancient Greek city along the coast of southern Italy. The village existed since 600 BC. A large wall encircled the complex.
There are three well preserved Greek Temples in the complex.
Kathie and I took a moment to relax by one of the café’s nearby.
I took a picture of these beautiful pink roses.
There is a very large museum close by. Various artifacts are displayed.
One of the more famous artifacts is a painting of “the Tomb of the Diver.”
It seems a common theme in Italy is waiting for the bathroom.
Our last day in Sorrento we enjoyed walking again around the city. There are two ports: one for the ferries, and the other for fishing boats. The harbor for the fishing boats is quaint.
We had a lunch time meal at Porta Marina. Once again, I had Spaghetti alle vongole.
The other port is a bit difficult to get to. The cliff is quite dramatic here. Many of the fancy hotels and restaurants are along this cliff area.
One had to either take an elevator down; walk a long downward path; or take a taxi. We walked and later took the elevator up. Somehow, we pressed the wrong buttons and the elevator never moved causing almost a panic attack with Kathie as she has claustrophobia.
