Ciao! It’s birthday time for us, and we do what we do best…travel! We decided on Italy again and off we went, with two of Dicks daughters.
First stop: Milan. How can you go to Italy and not learn how to make fresh pasta? This was a really fun class, but the results were mixed. Some had nicely formed rows of pasta, and others a discombobulated mess, but it’s the taste that counts, right? Added sauce and it was delicious.
Our hotel in Milan was in the canal district which made for great end of day food and drink sitting at the outdoor tables along the canals. The crowds…crazy! Once nightfall arrived and lights lit up the area, it was like sardines moving from place to place.
Since we skipped northern Italy in 2014, we made sure it was on our itinerary this time. After our cooking class on arrival day, we embarked on a full day boat tour of Lake Como the following morning. The day started out rainy, then only cloudy, and the sun was out by noon. Our boat ride took us to Bellagio and Lugano. Bellagio was our absolute favorite! We had lunch here, of course pasta and beer. Italy is wine country but not for us, lol.
Up and out early the next morning on the Bernina Express, the red train through the Alps, to Moritz, Switzerland. The ride was long, but the scenery was stunning. Although a sunny day, the highs were only in the 60s.
A short flight took us down south to Sorrento. What a different weather experience! Sunny and hot. We went from jeans and light jackets, to shorts and light shirts. Sorrento would be our home base for our 3 days on the Amalfi Coast.
First day was a private boat tour with stops in Amalfi and Positano. The crew was so great, making this the favorite day of our trip. There was nothing better than sitting on the front of the boat, listening to great music, and boating along the Amalfi coast. Oh, and in perfect weather! Sure beat the public ferry we took here last time. Positano has to be the most beautiful city in Italy!
Capri was next. We skipped it our last trip so we were looking forward to it this time. A beautiful island, especially seeing it from the top of Anacapri. The ride up in the cable car was beautiful, we had a 360 degree view of Capri Island. Lucky for us the Blue Grotto was open, it closes frequently due to winds. Very cool aqua blue waters inside the cave! The boat ride around the island was equally beautiful with crystal clear water and gorgeous scenery. Our tour guide was so funny and outgoing which made for a great day.
To get another perspective, our last day we did the “top” tour of the Amalfi Coast, the ride along the Amalfi Road. How these cars and busses manage passing each other we’ll never know. An added bonus was visiting Ravello, situated up on a hill. A perfect small town! Our tour guide was very good, quiet, but knowledgeable and told us many stories. We found out in talking to him that his brother was our tour guide to Capri the day before. Small world. They were like night and day, total opposites!
We all had a great time, ate fantastic food, and created some wonderful memories!
