Friday, April 13, 2012

… to Naples, Italy …

… and take a jetfoil ride to the island of Capri. The weather, for the first time in 97 days, was terrible: cold, windy, and rainy. After the 45 minute ride to the island, we took a minibus to the hilltop town of Anacapri. Almost deserted in the wet, chilly weather, the town is usually charming, filled with lovely shops and restaurants. In fact, it is sometimes compared to Taormina!

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No one had dressed adequately for the weather. Umbrellas were quickly undone by the wind, and the streets were littered with inside-out umbrellas. I haven’t seen that many broken umbrellas since my days at Ohio State!

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We walked through Anacapri, to a nice department store which was warm and dry. Unfortunately, we couldn’t stay there for too long, so off we went on another trek to the Villa San Michele, a historic villa built on the site of an ancient Roman villa from the first century, and filled with lovely antique furnishings from around the world. The villa visit was an alternative to riding the scenic cable cars, which were not operating because of the weather.

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A minibus took us back down the mountain to Capri and lunch at La Pigna, a nice Italian restaurant. Here we had cannelloni, a local specialty, roasted potatoes with rosemary, and chicken parmesan, with local red and white wines, and chocolate nut cake for dessert.  

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After lunch, soaked to the skin and miserable, most of our group asked to return to the ship, and did so. Our small group of about 6 people opted to stay in Capri to explore the narrow streets, shops, and plazas. After an hour or so of walking around in the driving rain, we sought refuge at a pizzeria, and had a nice snack of pizza and caprese salad.

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We capped off the visit with a  funicular ride down the mountain to the port, and the jetboat ride back to Naples. Frank and I fell asleep on the boat – it was dry and kind of warm – our snoring woke us up! Back on the ship, we couldn’t wait to get out of our wet clothes and go spend some quality time in the thermal suite, followed by a nap. It’s so good to be dry! However, tomorrow may hold more of the same, as there is a large low pressure system over much of the Mediterranean for the next few days.

1 comment:

  1. Loved the pictures from Athens. The one of Frank & Mike with the city in the back ground is super.
    The food looks great in Katakolon, and the potty plaques do look like they could have made in Pa.
    So sorry the weather in Naples was so bad, but the shops look like fun shopping…
    Enjoy your last few ports….
    Miss you both.

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