Amafi Coast

            I woke up early and loaded the bus to Naples.  Basically everyone just slept on the way there and three hours later we all woke.  Our program leader gave us a brief debrief and told us to be careful in Naples because it is known as the dirty south.  It is not the most safe of areas so were told to watch our purses and stay together before boarding the ferry to Capri.  The ferry to Capri was a big boat and the inside remained me a little bit of like an airplane.  The ferry was not full so we were on our merry way.  When we arrived in Capri it was pouring rain.  The plan was to take a bus to the hotel but apparently when it starts to rain everyone decides just to take the day off work.  We were also supposed to take a boat tour around the island of Capri but we were unable to because it was canceled due to rough waters.  Consequently we were stranded since all of the bus drivers and all of the people that work there left work due to rain!  So we waited for about an hour and then finally we got a hold of a taxi service that was running to take us to our hotel.  The drive to the hotel was breath taking.  We had to go up a huge cliff and we sure did but a lot of faith in that driver because we were right on the edge!  It was def a little bit scary.  We arrived at the hotel called Villa Eva.  It was a really cool nice hotel.  In order to get to the room we hiked through what looked like a jungle.  It was tropical and decorated really cute.  There were these really cool flowers that looked like a flower but were green and made of leaves.  I will add a picture of one.  We were able to pick our roommates so I was in a four bed room.  After we dropped our stuff we went up to the main shops of Capri and had lunch.  We were given margarita pizza.  After lunch we walked to a lemonchello shop to have a tasting.  The island of Capri is known for their lemonchello.  Limoncello is an Italian lemon liqueur that originated in Southern Italy. Limoncello derives its flavor from the peels, rather than the juice of the lemon. The resulting flavor is sweet and lemony, without a trace of bitterness.  Limoncello gained popularity more than a century ago, when Vincenza Canale, who operated a hotel on the island of Capri, offered her guests a small glass of lemon liqueur as an after-dinner drink, or digestive. The fame of the lemony nectar soon spread among travelers and guests who visited Capri, including several writers who were instrumental in sharing their love for Limoncello with their readers. Vincenza Canale's original recipe has remained unaltered over the past century, and her descendants continue to produce the liqueur known throughout the world as Limoncello di Capri. Limoncello is very easy to make, requiring only four ingredients: lemons, vodka, sugar, and water.  After hearing all of the fun facts of lemonchello and seeing lemons all over town I was excited to try.  I took my first sip and it was the most disgusting, bitter drink ever!  I coughed and my eyes started watering and well at least I tried it right?  After that we walked through the city of Capri some more.  Capri is a place where you can buy everything and more from the various artisanal workshops and luxury boutiques. There were numerous wine shops, delicatessens and craft shops where you can buy typical souvenirs such as a bottle of white wine made from the island’s grapes and a bottled of prized extra virgin olive oil, the famous colorful and creative Capri sandals and the equally famous canvas and cord shoes.  A bunch of girls got customed made sandals.  I do not need another pear of sandals especially since it was raining I need rain boots!  It was pretty clear I was from California since I do not own a rain jacket or rain boots.  After walking around the delicate town a little more we went back to the hotel to meet back for dinner.  We had a great three course dinner.  The first course was bruschetta, fried calamari.  The second course was seafood pasta.  The third course was a steak.  On top of the steak was a tomato dressing.  It seems like they cant get enough tomato in this country!  Even on top of steak.  The dessert was lemon puff balls.  Basically all of desserts had a lemon zing because Capri is so famous for their lemons.  Dinner lasted 3 and half hours so by the time we got back to the hotel it was already midnight. 

The next morning we woke up and it was pouring!  The hotel had an included breakfast which consisted of croissants and cereal.  Capri was filled with cats everywhere.  I loved it!  There were two kittens that lived right next to our hotel room and they were adorable and we brought them in our hotel room for a little to protect them from the rain.  We were supposed to do the blue grotto and go to Postiano but the fairy to get to Postiano was cancelled due to rough waters.  However, the ferry to get to Sorrento was still open so we had a quick change of plans.  Sorrento was fun and we went and had a quick tour of the town and hiked up this hill and had breathtaking views.  They had a row of all designer stores.   In Sorrento we saw the basicalla of Saint Antionio.  In a crypt below is located Saint Antonino? s grave, a Saint known for its spiritual connection with the sea and its inhabitants.

 We had a delicious sit down lunch.  I ordered a calzone and it was the first time I had one.  The wind really started to pick up so our boat home was an hour late due to rough seas.  I would like to emphasize the word ROUGH.  So after spending the day in Sorrento everyone loaded the boat back expecting it to be like the way there.  The crew men were jokingly asking if anyone wanted a sick back and were have a great time joking around because they knew that we were no aware of just how rough the waters wee going to be in order to get back to Capri.  From the moment we took off the waves were huge!  We were all sitting inside and from the window you could see waves bigger than the boat.  I have never been in a boat that rocked so much and when broke through the waves we could hear the boat crashing against the water.  It felt like our boat would almost be horizontal at some points.  I LOVED IT.  It felt like we were on a giant jet ski.  However, some people did not have so much fun.  About 20 minutes later about 10-15 people were throwing up.  It was pretty gross but I just put my headphones on and enjoyed the ride.  When we got back no body was really hungry after such a ride so we just stopped at the grocery store on the way back to the hotel.  We got nutella, wafers, Pringles, cheetos, and some peaches for dinner to bring back.  We were all exhausted so ate our snacks had pillow talk for awhile and went to bed.  The next morning we woke up early.  I put on my hiking clothes because I was planning on hiking Mount Vesuvus in Pompeii.  Also it was not raining!  We ate breakfast at the hotel and got back on the ferry to get to Sorrento were we were going to bused to Pompeii.  On the bust ride there we were told that mount Vesuvius was closed due to strike so were going to be getting a tour of Pompeii instead.  Pompeii is the Home of the world's most famous volcanic disaster when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D., Pompeii is now a significant archeological site that provides an amazing glimpse into the daily life of an average Roman town over two thousand years ago.  Pompeii actually ended up being really cool and our tour guide gave us a lot of information on the ancient ruins.  Since the city was destroyed by a volcano we saw bodies covered in lava stuck to the ground pretty cool.  We also went to a really good pizzeria.  The hand made to pizza right in front of you and then put it into a brick oven.  After spending about 4 hours in Pompeii we started our journey home.  On the way home we stopped at a mozzarella cheese factory to taste and see how it was made.  We watched them make buffalo cheese milk.  It is a mozzarella cheese made from milk of the water buffalo rather than from cow’s milk.  Mozzarella cheese is a sliceable curd cheese originating in Italy. Traditional mozzarella is made from water buffalo (not North American buffalo or bison as many mistakenly think) milk, and its flavor is highly prized. Water buffalo milk is three times more expensive than cow's milk and is costly to ship.  Since these animals are herded in only a few countries, primarily Italy and Bulgaria, most mozzarella is now made from cow's milk. Water buffalo milk is very high in fat and not easily digestible in its raw form. As such, it is used exclusively for making mozzarella and not as a beverage. Mozzarella contains 40 to 45 percent fat, although there are now lower fat, skim versions available.

This cheese is not aged like most cheeses and is actually best when eaten within hours of its making. The process of making mozzarella is called pasta filata, which means the curds are heated in water or whey until they form strings (hence the term "string cheese") and become elastic in texture. The curds are stretched, kneaded until smooth, and then formed into round balls to make fresh mozzarella cheese. Surprisingly it is supposedly really easy to make.  Look it up!  After the tasting we all got on the bus and headed home.  I arrived back to Rome at 11 at night.  On Monday I spent the day studying, going to the grocery store and laundry.  I had a midterm today and it went well.  And that was my weekend excursion!