One Year Ago: A miniseries of our trip (part 3)

 Day 7(Oct 5): Pompeii

We took to ferry north along the Amalfi Coast, to the town of Sorrento. The view along the way was breathtaking- white buildings clinging to the cliffs above a bright blue sea. We were even able to spot our own little flat when we passed it.

Sorrento: beautiful city! We would have liked to spend more time there. 

From Sorrento we took a train north to Pompeii. 

Pompeii was destroyed by the eruption of Mt Vesuvius in AD 79.  It was covered in approximately 20 feet of ash, leaving the city hidden and well preserved until it was discovered and unearthed in 1764 by Francisca la Vega. Because it was hidden so long, it was left in tact, down to the very colors of the frescoes.

Pompeii was perhaps the most fascinating of all our destinations on our trip. Because of its history, it is much more well preserved than Rome. It is as if time was stopped in its tracks and you can wander through the homes and roads of a people who might just be away on vacation. You can see where roads were in the process of being repaired and where temples were being rebuilt from the earthquake that had destroyed much of Pompeii in AD 62. We could have spent much more time there than we did, however, we became weary and headed home before we had seen even a fraction of what there is to discover at Pompeii. 

Mt Vesuvius in the background

 A cast of a human body- these were made while unearthing the city by filling 'holes' with plaster. This was what was left! Below is the rebuilding of a temple that was never completed.

You can still see where the chariots left their ruts int the roads. The road below on the right is partially repaired. It never was to be completed! 

One of many frescoes

Days 8-10 (Oct 6-8): Amalfi

We spent the next few days relaxing and enjoying our time in Amalfi. We explored the town, swam in the sea, and watched from our little flat as the sky erupted in lightning and our little home was shaken by thunder during a two day storm. It was really quite fun to be there during such a storm, and we enjoyed the time to relax and read. 

The sky during a temporary clearing, in which we went to town and did some shopping.

After the storm had cleared, we spent part of a day doing some souvenir shopping and gelato eating. 

The famous limoncello gelato at our favorite cafe where we most often bough cappuccino and brioche. 

Day (Oct 9) : Pathway of the Gods at Positano

It was a bitterly cold day when we headed out to do a hike on our last day in Amalfi. The storm had brought the end of the warm days in Italy, and from that point until we flew home, it was quite cold.  Anyway, we got on a bus headed north from Amalfi to Positano. We managed to get off at the right stop to begin a hike we had read about in our guide books- "Sentiero degli Dei" or pathway of the gods. We were both very tired and the cold, bitter wind made us a little unsure of whether we wanted to do the hike or not, but we started out anyway.

View of Positano as we began.

The steps that were the first part of the hike.

We went up and up and up for a long time. 

 It was a beautiful view.

Reading about the hike to determine whether we would try to do the whole thing or turn around at some point...

 We ended up hiking to a small town in the mountains and turning around there and heading back. It was a lonely hike, though it may have just been the chilly wind that caused us to think that. Had it been a warm day, perhaps we would have finished the hike, but we were not up for the adventure of trying to find a bus and getting home from a new place. (the hike was a town to town hike)

A little taste of how tight the space was for the buses... 

And so, we said goodbye to the Amalfi Coast our little flat and on October 10 (our anniversary) we headed back to Rome.