Our Honeymoon: Amalfi Coast

After we finished exploring Pompeii, we hopped back in our Rome in Limo van to head off to our day’s second stop, Sorrento.
Sorrento is located southeast of Pompeii on the Sorrentine Peninsula overlooking the Bay of Naples.  It was 40 minute ride to Sorrento from Pompeii. 

Along the way, our driver pulled over at a scenic overlook so we could get some amazing pictures of the Mt. Vesuvius with the Bay of Naples in the foreground. 

The vibrant bright homes fit so well next to the deep blue ocean.  Truly one of the more beautiful landscapes I’ve ever seen.
Even 30 miles away the sleeping beast was still lurking in the background. 


From here, the road became a little treacherous as we started the descent to Sorrento.  

When we arrived in Sorrento, our driver dropped us off in front of this overlook onto an Ancient building called the Deep Valley of the Mills.  Looking at this picture still makes me a little queasy.  Boy was that a far drop. 
We had about 2 hours free time so with our tummies growling we headed straight to the center of town to find lunch. 
We passed right through the main square, Piazza Tasso. 
We decided to head down one of the major streets Corsa Italia to look for a street side café. 
Along the way of course, Mr. A took about a zillion pictures.
Eventually, we found a small sandwich stop and ate a quick pizza. 
Then it was back to sightseeing.  First up of course was the cathedral. 

Next to the cathedral we found this beautiful hidden courtyard.  It was like something out of a magazine.
Further past the cathedral was an overlook to the bay.  Again, I posed for a picture with Mt. Vesuvius.  It just never really seems to go away. 

The harbor view was gorgeous and the breeze coming from the ocean took the edge off the heat. 
We then headed back to the heart of town to take some more pictures. 
This one is one of my favorites.  I love how this city looks like it’s carved out of the side of a mountain. 

 Another famous sighting in this southern Mediterranean area is arches covered with growing vines.  They made my heart swoon. 
We also went to the major shopping/market area on Via San Cesareo.  Since Sorrento is known for their limoncello, everywhere we looked we saw gigantic lemons. 
Having successfully avoided buying something, we headed back to our tour van so we could drive over to our final stop, Positano.
The drive from Sorrento to Positano runs along the Amalfi coast on the famous Amalfi Drive, which is carved out of the side of the coastal cliffs.
This drive is notorious difficult because of the small width of the road and its abrupt hairpin turns.  Since the drive runs right along the coast, there’s only a tiny guard rail between your car and the Cliffside.  If you are scared of heights, I would not suggest looking down.  The drop is terrifying.
Instead, just look straight ahead.  The landscape is like something out of a dream.

Like he did before Sorrento, our driver pulled over at a scenic overlook so we could get an overhead view of Positano. 

I couldn’t wait to get down there. 
When we arrived in Positano, our driver dropped us off at the top of the town and told us to follow the road down to the ocean.  

There is only one road that goes through town and larger vehicles cannot fit so we were on our own. 

We followed the Via Del Mulini through it’s twists and turns admiring all the beautiful sweeping vines. 

Along the way, the street was littered with shops and restaurants. 

We made a quick stop at the church in town, Santa Maria Assunta.  The church contains a mysterious 13^th century Byzantine icon of a black Madonna.  Legend has it that the icon landed on Positano’s shore because some sailors were facing a terrible storm in the Mediterranean while in transporting the icon.  The sailors heard a voice from above telling them to put down the icon.  The sailors diverted to the closest town, Positano, and unloaded the icon and the storm abated.  The icon has not left Positano since then.  

 From here, I could hear the ocean waves beckoning me and we ran the rest of the way to the ocean. 



It was quite a sight to behold the huge hill we had just descended.  

We stood around taking about a thousand pictures.  It was one of the most unique cities I’ve ever seen with houses jutting out of the Cliffside. 

We loitered around at the beach until we knew we had to start the crazy climb by up the cliff to meet our tour group in time.  
I really didn’t want to leave.  After all the hustle and bustle of Florence and Rome, there was something so soothing about the sound of crashing waves.  It was so peaceful and quiet and quaint.  I just wanted to stand there forever.
But alas, we had to leave.  And thus began the climbing.  I’m not going to lie.  We totally took a break half way up.  Going straight up hill is not joke.
We made it back into our van and settled in for the hour trip back to the cruise ship in Naples.  We made a promise one day that we would visit Positano again and the rest of the Amalfi Coast that lies beyond it.  It’s the kind of place you could lose yourself completely in and feel good about it. 
What You've Missed:MonacoPisa Florence
Ancient RomeVatican Museums  Sistine ChapelSt. Peter's Basilica  Pompeii
Up Next: Sicily