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.
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| 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.
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| Drinking fountain - Amalfi style |
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| 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.
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| The view from Ravello |
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| Ramon aka Wesley in the Villa Rufalo |
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| View of Mt. Vesuvius from Sorrento by night |
