Stephanie's Adventures in Running & Travel: June 4th, 2009

Well... it was the last port on our cruise, and it was my favorite one. I guess it's good to end on a great note. Our last port was Naples and I had prearranged a private tour months ago. Again, I booked with RomeinLimo. \http://www.romeinlimo.com/ our driver was waiting for us outside the ship and his name was Raffaelo. He was the most adorable driver/guide we have had in all the years we have done private tours. He has lived in Sorrento all his life, so he knew everything there was to know about the area. I had been to Naples twice before, so I arranged a day mostly for my mother and the kids to see things that I thought would be important to them.

Our first stop of the day was Pompeii. Alex has been learning about Pompeii since she was VERY little. She was going to be a Volcanologist until she hit high school. She knew everything there was to know about Mt. Vesuvius and the city of Pompeii since the 3rd grade.

Pompeii was founded in the 6th century B.C. and was a very important trading city in Italy. Mt Vesuvius erupted in August 79 A.D. The eruption covered the entire city of Pompeii in 60 feet of ash and pumice. The entire city was lost until the 1700s... which is incredible if you think about it. An entire civilization was found by accident. The site of Pompeii is so incredibly interesting. Almost everything but the roofs of buildings are still in tact... paintings are still on the walls of homes and business... tile mosaics are amost perfect in the flooring. The plaster molds of people who died in the eruption are so moving to see.

The Forum area of Pompeii

Some of the amazing finds in Pompeii... the vases with the pointed ends were actually wine jugs.

Another view of the Forum.

This is one of the only buildings that completely survived the eruption. This is an old Roman bath and is very interesting to walk through. The paintings on the walls are so much better in person, and unbelievable to think how old they really are.

Here is a great photo of Mt. Vesuvius behind the forum area. They say if you draw an imaginary line from each side of the mountain, you will see just how much of the mountain blew up in the eruption. It was HUGE!!!

A gorgeous area inside the site of Pompeii.

Another great look at just how big this mountain used to be...

After Pompeii, we were on our way to Sorrento. My favorite town on the Amalfi Coast. The road through the Amalfi area is famous and is not something for the weak at heart. It is a crazy drive, made crazier by Italian drivers. Luckily we had Raffaelo and he was perfect.

This is the view just before you get into Sorrento. It is amazing!!! And the town is adorable.

Here is our group... we had everyone else in another van.

A fruit stand along the way...

This is the size of lemons in Sorrento... Sorrento is a FAMOUS place for lemoncello.

I had arranged a lunch for about 16 of us, high on the cliffs above Positano. I had read about the place and we had dined somewhere similar years ago. I thought everyone would love the view and also the style in which lunch is served. The mother and her two sons who own the restaurant make a bunch of food every morning, and that is what you eat. They just keep bringing food to the table. I wouldn't say it's the best food, but you can't beat the experience, the personal service it involves or the view!