Wednesday, November 01, 2006

September 2006 - Positano, Italy

We arrived in Positano on a high-speed ferry. The water was a little rough but better than the alternative (another puky bus ride for Casandra). According to legend (so much of this country's history is based on legend), the Greek God Poseidon created Positano for Pasitea, a nymph he lusted after. History says that Positano was actually founded by ancient Greeks looking to escape the malaria of Paestum (a town 15 miles down the coast). There's not much to do here but eat, shop, hang out at the beach and soak up the breathtaking views. The vast majority of Positano's shops are fashion boutiques.
Our suite at the Residenzia La Tavolozza, a cute bed and breakfast, has great views of the Duomo, the town and the sea. Below, you can see its colorful dome through our window. And if our window looks big that's because it is. Somehow, despite booking at the last minute, we ended up in the "Royal Apartment". Our suite was not only large and comfortable but Celeste (the owner of the B&B) served us breakfast in this sun room every morning.Here are the amazing views from our balcony. We couldn't stop taking pictures!
We have about 20 more like these. And here are some views from our balcony at dusk.

Another 20 pictures later, we made it out to dinner at an open-air restaurant in a garden overlooking the sea. The restaurant was dimly lit by candles and the stars. The food was nouvelle cuisine and a wonderful break from Italian food. Below, we try to snap a quick pic without looking like the Beverly Hill Billies.The next day brought bluer skies so we headed out to the beach.The crystal clear turquoise water is deceptively cold.
After a quick swim and a nap on the beach, we went for a walk and discovered how many kitties there are in Positano. As if accustomed to being admired by tourists, all the kitties stopped and posed for us.

This girl is just shameless!!!
On our walk, we also discovered countless look-out points, begging us to stop and take more pictures.

In the evening, we returned to our favorite look-out point and discovered that a make-shift restaurant had been set up there. So we had to stop and have dinner. Below, in the background you can see Positano's city lights that sparkle up the mountainside.
The following day we set out for Capri via Sorrento because the ferry was not running on account of bad weather - the Italians are shameless about making up excuses to avoid working (see weather below). So we said goodbye to Positano from the horribly crowded public bus which picked us up at our scenic look-out spot. We, of course, made time for one more picture.

After a one-hour white-knuckle ride on the cliff-hugging roads leading to Sorrento, we arrived in yet another beautiful Amalfi Coast town.

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