Exploring the Amalfi Coast

Today was another adventure in scenery, old-world villages and hairpin turns. 

First thing this morning we met our lifeguard/bus driver for the day.  Antonio (not to be confused with the other bus driver also named Antonio) had the important job of keeping our bus on the narrow mountain road overlooking the cliffs of the coastline all day.  He did an outstanding job of maneuvering through the roads and villages with clearances that completely explain why nobody here drives an Escalade.

The image to the left is one of many rock formations that the Italians have named for their shape.  The outcropping on the right of the cliff is nick-named Madonnita--the "little Madonna" holding flowers.  This is the third image like this that was pointed out to us in the last two days--the first was in the white grotto on Capri and the second was in a hole in the mountain on the way to Amalfi. 

Our first stop for the day was the village of Positano.  Due to recent rule changes about buses unloading and loading, we opted to simply stop for a photo op at this village.  After taking in the view for a few minutes, we loaded up the bus again and continued on the road to Amalfi.

The group above Positano

 Just before Amalfi, the bus stopped at a ceramics store where students were able to do a little bit of souvenir shopping and stretch their legs.  The ceramics of this area are known for their hand painted decoration.  After this short stop, we once again loaded the bus and made our way into Amalfi for our first extended stop of the day. 




Amalfi is a town that is actually at sea level, so this was our first (and only) chance for students to put their feet into the Mediterranean Sea.  They had a great time skipping stones, feeling the sand between their toes and cooling off a little bit in the calm sea.  It wasn't really swimming weather, but for anyone who has braved the waters of Lake Superior, "It wasn't that cold"--Emily Durkot

 Once the students were finished on the beach, they had the opportunity to explore some more of the city itself.  Amalfi is known for its handmade paper, but apparently none of the students actually heard that part of the explanation on the bus--the word "beach" must have drowned out everything after that!  The handmade paper factory in town is one of only two places in Italy that make paper the old-fashioned way.  This type of paper is used for special invitations, keepsake journals and very special stationary. 

Drinking fountain - Amalfi style

Enormous Lemons!

Once again, many of our students ate a pizza lunch.  The pizzas were made to order in only a few minutes in the classic wood-fire oven.  As students waited for their food, they were invited to go and watch the pizza being made. 

In the early afternoon, we once again loaded the bus and began our trip from Amalfi to Ravello.  Ravello is known for its music festival that takes place in the summer, so advertisements posted throughout the village showed the type of world-class performers who will be taking the stage at this event.  One notable aspect of the music festival is that the actual performance venue is a temporary stage that is suspended over the edge of the cliff.  The concert venue itself is part of the Villa Rufalo (1270) where Richard Wagner apparently found much of his inspiration for his opera Parsifal.  

The view from Ravello

Ramon aka Wesley in the Villa Rufalo

Once we finished in Ravello, our bus continued back to Sorrento along the other side of the mountain chain--since buses are only allowed to drive one direction on the coastal road.  This drive was equally exciting, with sweeping views of the valleys between the mountains and eventually a view of the entire plane beneath the mountains.  We arrived back in Sorrento in the late afternoon, so students had some more time to finish up any final souvenir shopping or exploring of this town before we head to Rome tomorrow.

View of Mt. Vesuvius from Sorrento by night

Day 3 - Capri

What a beautiful day in Italy!  Today was sunny and close to 70 degrees.  I don't think we could have asked for better weather.  

We started out the day with breakfast in the hotel and then loaded a couple of small busses to ride down to the harbor.  Our hydrofoil arrived shortly after we did, so we found our seats and prepared for departure.  Some of the kids were a bit disappointed that the windows weren't clear enough to take good pictures, but we had plenty of photo-ops the rest of the day.  The ride was really smooth for the speed the hydrofoil goes--none of the kids really exhibited any motion sickness.

Immediately after arriving in Capri, our group decided to add an optional boat tour of the island to the day's itinerary.  The students were given a choice whether they wanted to go on a tour of the coast and caves of the island or spend more free time in the two towns--all 24 chose the boat tour.  Many students told me that this was the highlight of the day for them.  We all fit onto a single boat that slowly toured around the coastline.  Our guide explained the various geographic features, pointing out the baby elephant stone arch, the bronze statue of a fisherman, and the cliff off of which Tiberius would throw his enemies.  Our expert captain navigated in and out of several caves, one of which was only a couple of feet wider than the boat itself.  These caves, or grottos as they are called locally, are named for the various colors reflected through the water.  Two of the grottos were "red" because of the coral growing, one was "white" because of the limestone reflection, and one gave us a little bit of the blue reflection that is present in the famous "blue grotto" of the island.  Because of the time required and the additional expense, we were not able to go into the actual "blue grotto" but the caves we saw gave us a pretty good experience of the island overall.

Upon our return to the marina, we loaded into two minibuses and began the exiting trip up to the town of Anacapri (meaning “higher Capri”).  The single road that runs between the marina and Anacapri is probably no wider than a single lane of traffic on an interstate and it winds around up the side of the island.  The tiny buses, cars, and motorcycles nagivate the road with alarming precision and seemingly careless speed.  It is amazing that the traffic actually moves at all with the tight clearances between vehicles, pedestrians, and the walls and buildings surrounding the road. 

Once we were in Anacapri, students were given some free time and a chance to eat lunch.  Most of the group took the opportunity to ride a chair lift to the top of the island.  Those who are afraid of heights bravely faced their fear for the chance to experience the view from the top.  Looking out over enormous cliffs, students were able to see the entire island and the full panoramic view of the surrounding Bay of Naples.

Our day on the island ended with an hour spent in the town of Capri.  Here students were able to spend some more time wandering through the small town shopping for souvenirs, eating more gelato and taking in the ambience of Capri.  Rather than take another set of minibuses back down to the marina, we rode the funicular (an inclined train—this one running on a cables system) for the descent.  Our return trip to Sorrento offered students a chance to get the pictures of both Capri and the Sorrento coastline because the second hydrofoil was equipped with a viewing deck and places to sit and stand outside during the trip.

We are back in Sorrento now—students are once again exploring the town before we eat a late dinner.  After reading my blog this morning one of the kids told me that it seemed like just a list of foods we ate—so why not just give you a view of the highlights from today?

1.     Pizza Margherita – one of the lunch options that we had at lunch today.  Everyone who didn’t order it had major regret.

2.     Lemon ice with orange juice—a glass of lemon slush (anything with lemon is great here—the lemons are everywhere) with fresh squeezed blood orange juice added.  A little sweet, a little sour--delicious

3.     Caprese Salad—Good anywhere, but especially good in its namesake area.

4.     Tonight’s lasagna—we haven’t eaten it yet, but I can imagine!

For any car enthusiasts out there--here is the first Ferrari sighting of the trip--this Ferrari California was parked in downtown Sorrento before dinner tonight.  

Day 1 (and 2)

We have just finished the "second" day of our Italy trip--all of the students are safely in their hotel rooms--hopefully getting some sleep for the day tomorrow!  Here's a brief recap of the last two days...

We left Park Center on the bus without any problems and made it through traffic without any real delays.  After getting checked in, we had about an hour to waste in the airport before we boarded the plane.  Once we were aboard, the kids settled in for the 8 hour flight and we were soon on our way.  A few of the kids slept for an hour here or there, but the overall excitement for the trip and the general commotion of the airplane kept most people awake.  Before we left from MSP we knew that the transition between planes in Paris was going to be quick, but our plane was a few minutes early into DeGaulle, so we were able to get through security and passport control in just enough time to get in line for the next plane.  More kids (and a few of the chaperones) slept on this plane.

Our luggage all arrived at the right place, and we met our tour guide, Loradona, at the airport.  Our first stop was Frescatti, on the outskirts of Rome.  The kids had about 45 minutes to wander around the village and find something to eat--some had their first Italian pizza while others enjoyed a local favorite--a pork sandwich porqueta.  The sweet tooth indulgence began in earnest with numerous servings of gelato savored by many of the kids.

With this brief stop completed and our hunger momentarily satisfied, the group loaded the bus for the 4 hour trip to Sorrento.  Everyone pretty much fell asleep as soon as we were on the highway, so the trip went by quickly.  As we started to wake up, the bus arrived in the outskirts of Naples.  Mount Vesuvius loomed to the left and the Bay of Naples lay beneath us to the right.  Unfortunately, we hit Naples during rush hour so the single, narrow road into Sorrento took a bit of time and a lot of skill to navigate in the big bus.

Students checked in to the hotel rooms and then the entire group walked down to the square 3 blocks away.  With a variety of souvenir shops, clothing stores and restaurants nearby, students were allowed to explore a little bit of Sorrento on their own before returning to the hotel for dinner.  Our hotel served us a three course meal complete with ravioli (delicious), turkey, potatoes and peppers, and a traditional Sorrento lemon cake.  Can't wait for tomorrow's lasagna!

Landed

We have safely landed in Paris and all made it through security and passport control. Not much sleep so far but ready to start seeing and doing things! 15 minutes of free wifi in the airport so watch for those Facebook updates.

And we're off!

Time to finish up the packing and hug Mom and Dad goodbye!  We are leaving tomorrow after school.  If you are not coming to school tomorrow in order to prepare for the trip, make sure that you are here at Park Center by 2:15 (earlier would be better!)  We will load our bus and try to leave as close to 2:30 as possible so we make it down to the airport in plenty of time.

DON’T FORGET YOUR PASSPORT—YOU WON’T BE GOING ANYWHERE WITHOUT IT!

Drink plenty of water and get some rest tonight—we don’t need anyone getting sick because they are not well-rested or well-hydrated.

3/25

We are almost ready to go!  Just a few reminders before we leave:

1.        Make sure that you have sent me a copy of your passports by Wednesday

2.       Start packing—the weather looks like it will be in the 50s and 60s—check it out as we get closer to the actual dates

3.       Make sure that you are ready to load the bus by 2:15 on Friday.  If you are bringing your luggage to school, I will lock it in the practice rooms at the beginning of the day.  We will also lock backpacks and things in a practice room so that you don’t have to bring your school books to Italy.  I will be back at school on the Saturday after we return at 1:30 pm to make sure you can pick up your stuff.

Before we go

Hello Parents and Travelers, this blog is set up as a way for me to communicate with you while the PC Band is travelling abroad.  I will do my best to post updates and pictures of the group daily so that you can keep up to date with everything that is going on with our group.  For now, I am using this as a reminder forum--before we go I need two things from every traveler--$5 for the bus to the airport and a copy of your picture page from your passport.  Please make sure that the picture and numbers are visible in the copy.  Thanks!

Mr. Schroeder