From Rome we headed south to the Gulf of Naples to meet Patrick’s friend Jon, the captain of a charter sailboat that was docked at the town of Castellammare di Stabia for the month of July. The journey there was more difficult than we expected, as our train from Rome broke down several times, and we missed our connecting train in Naples. When we finally made it to town several hours late, it took John and his girlfriend Eva nearly two hours to find us because we were dropped off at a little known station in town (the agent at the main station even told Jon that there was no other station). When they did find us, they took us back to the boat and made us a delicious dinner of fresh salad, fresh bread, and a huge slab of fresh mozzarella di buffalo.
The following day we rented scooters and rode up to the top of the mountain (Monte Faito) overlooking Castellammare di Stabia for a spectacular view of the Gulf of Naples and Vesuvius, and then rode to the Amalfi Coast – truly one of the most breathtaking places either of us has ever seen. The coastline there is dramatic, and dotted with picturesque towns whose yellow and pink buildings give off a warm, inviting glow at sunset. We stopped along the coast first at Positano for coffee and a swim in the refreshingly cool and clear waters of the Mediterranean, and then at Amalfi for dinner and drinks. The next day we rode up and down to the coast, leisurely working our way back to Castellammare di Stabia, while making time to stop at the Grotta dello Smeraldo (a beautiful sea cave with a strange tour), at a beach for another swim and a seaside lunch, and for several coffee breaks (of course). It was really wonderful spending two days with Jon and Eva, made more special by the setting.
We also made an excursion to Pompeii. The ruins there, unlike their dismantled counterparts in Rome, preserve daily life in the Roman empire: well-worn carriage tracks are clearly visible in the stone-paved roads; there are political ads painted on buildings; shelves and terracotta food vessels sit in shop fronts suggesting their former wares; the brothel walls are covered with suggestive paintings providing a “menu” for the non-Latin speaking customers. Though the destruction caused by Vesuvius is also on display in the form of casts of people and animals in their last moments of life, the city has been recreated to focus on life before the eruption, and we left with a better understanding of life in the Roman empire, not just that fateful day nearly 2,000 years ago.
Click the photo below for our Gulf of Naples and Amalfi Coast photo album.
The following day we rented scooters and rode up to the top of the mountain (Monte Faito) overlooking Castellammare di Stabia for a spectacular view of the Gulf of Naples and Vesuvius, and then rode to the Amalfi Coast – truly one of the most breathtaking places either of us has ever seen. The coastline there is dramatic, and dotted with picturesque towns whose yellow and pink buildings give off a warm, inviting glow at sunset. We stopped along the coast first at Positano for coffee and a swim in the refreshingly cool and clear waters of the Mediterranean, and then at Amalfi for dinner and drinks. The next day we rode up and down to the coast, leisurely working our way back to Castellammare di Stabia, while making time to stop at the Grotta dello Smeraldo (a beautiful sea cave with a strange tour), at a beach for another swim and a seaside lunch, and for several coffee breaks (of course). It was really wonderful spending two days with Jon and Eva, made more special by the setting.
We also made an excursion to Pompeii. The ruins there, unlike their dismantled counterparts in Rome, preserve daily life in the Roman empire: well-worn carriage tracks are clearly visible in the stone-paved roads; there are political ads painted on buildings; shelves and terracotta food vessels sit in shop fronts suggesting their former wares; the brothel walls are covered with suggestive paintings providing a “menu” for the non-Latin speaking customers. Though the destruction caused by Vesuvius is also on display in the form of casts of people and animals in their last moments of life, the city has been recreated to focus on life before the eruption, and we left with a better understanding of life in the Roman empire, not just that fateful day nearly 2,000 years ago.
Click the photo below for our Gulf of Naples and Amalfi Coast photo album.
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