Amalfi

Wouldn’t you know it, we had a bit of a walk this morning. Because the streets are so narrow, Umberto wasn’t able to drop us off at the hotel, so we had to walk down to meet him today. It wasn’t a bad walk, even in the rain.

Kathy really helped keep our group going. Each and every day, once we were loaded in the coach, Kathy picks up her microphone and with a twinkle in her eye says…”Buongiorno!” Everyone always says “Buongiorno back. Then she follows it up with “Buongiorno Umberto!” And we all say “Buongiorno Umberto!” Umberto always smiles and says “Buongiorno!”. Then a peppy voiced Kathy would give us a run down of the day’s events. She was also very good with making us little maps or giving us handouts to read on the language, wines in the region or a geography lesson. I guess when you have 40 people on the bus, you really have to keep them entertained. Otherwise, the natives could get restless..

Sorrento – The city of Sirens. After a long bus ride, we checked into the Hotel Vesuvio. We didn’t have much of a view, but we did have a patio with a table and chairs. Our little terrace garden had a lemon tree and pretty flowers. The floor in the room was decorated with pretty blue and yellow tiles. Not much time to sit and take it all in. We had to get right back on the bus for our Amalfii Coast Drive.

The roads twist and turn up this mountain. The view is spectacular. I have always been an admirer of the Caribbean Sea, but the Mediterranean is in a class by itself. It was the most beautiful blue I have ever seen. Parts of it were as dark as the sapphire in my wedding ring.

From the window, of our bus we saw 2 large rocks called Li Galli. The name “Surrentum" derives from the myth of the Sirens whose singing allured the seamen and got them to lose their way. According to the legend Odysseus and his comrades escaped them by plugging their ears with wax. The mermaids, so humbled, were turned into rocks called today Li Galli. Odysseus tied himself to the mast to avoid being tempted by the beautiful song of the Sirens. Another tidbit on Sorrento is that the patron Saint of Sorrento is Sant'Antonino

		Amalfi Coast Wednesday, June 5th
		The 6, 7, and 8 routine today. The hotel breakfast wasn’t much today. Cereal, juice and hard rolls. It had started raining by the time we left the hotel this morning.

Wouldn’t you know it, we had a bit of a walk this morning. Because the streets are so narrow, Umberto wasn’t able to drop us off at the hotel, so we had to walk down to meet him today. It wasn’t a bad walk, even in the rain. Kathy really helped keep our group going. Each and every day, once we were loaded in the coach, Kathy picks up her microphone and with a twinkle in her eye says…”Buongiorno!” Everyone always says “Buongiorno back. Then she follows it up with “Buongiorno Umberto!” And we all say “Buongiorno Umberto!” Umberto always smiles and says “Buongiorno!”. Then a peppy voiced Kathy would give us a run down of the day’s events. She was also very good with making us little maps or giving us handouts to read on the language, wines in the region or a geography lesson. I guess when you have 40 people on the bus, you really have to keep them entertained. Otherwise, the natives could get restless..


	After a 2 ½ hour ride, Kathy picked up the microphone to tell us we were passing the small town of Tido. The University of Kentucky voted this town the best city to live in Italy. This is where Kathy lived while she worked at the cooking school. From the highway, it looked similar to the other medieval towns of Assisi and Siena. It sat on mountain with a large stone wall around it. We soon passed another town called Ternie. St. Valentine is buried there. It is also where the gun that killed John F. Kennedy was made. Another 2 hours passed and we made a stop at the Autogrill for lunch. Dave and I had sandwiches. Dave also picked up a double espresso. Back on the bus for another 2 hour journey. We discovered that Venice flooded the day we left. The Piazza San Marco was under a meter of water. What luck we have had! First the gondolas were on strike just before we got to Venice and then the day we leave it floods! I sure hope the luck holds out for us.