4-7-09

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Woke up at 4:30, grabbed my bags and walked to the bus stop. I was there way too early for the 5:20 bus but that’s better than too late, right? I fell asleep on the bus by the time we got to Gran Vía! There weren’t many people at the airport so I got checked in right away and had time to get ready in the bathroom. I got some weird looks but come on - I’m definitely not the first person who’s done hair and makeup in an airport.
I boarded the plane and was surprised how luxurious an Iberia flight was! I guess I’ve been so used to RyanAir that all the amenities were a pleasant change. Free newspapers, quiet ride, comfy seats, and even food! I took a copy of the newspaper they gave out and the huge picture on the front page was the destruction of the earthquake. Not exactly a great sign.. Breakfast on my second flight was a delicious donut-looking pastry with powdered sugar on top. The guy next to me never put down his knife and fork. Who does that? He was a really nice guy and we had a little conversation before we landed but I was a little freaked out because he was nuts for almost the whole ride. (especially at the end) He even popped a couple of Valium’s. Ally would be so proud that I thought of the poem we read last semester, “Valium 10”! Turns out he couldn’t go a couple hours without a cigarette .. of course he’s European. Turns out he was going to visit family in Italy but has lived the last 30 years in Madrid. He spoke very highly of the Amalfi Coast like pretty much everyone else so that was a good sign!
When I got off the plane (and off the bus that shuttled us to the airport) I went out the doors to Mom and Dad!! They were waiting with open arms and holding an Edward Jones sign J It was so great to see them! All three of us were wearing fluorescent colors – I’m sure we didn’t stick out or anything.. After the initial shock and excitement of really being there with them, we settled down and grabbed a taxi to the train station. It was weird that we weren’t scraping for money and cutting corners – what a treat! When we got there we bought our tickets and Dad asked some guy where the terminal was. Turns out the train station and the Circumvesuviana lines are different so we had to go to the complete other side of the station. When we got there we gave him a couple Euros as a tip but he requested €5 since it was “very good help”. At first I thought he was just overly friendly or ambitious but then I realized this is what he does – scams on lost tourists. All he had to do was point us in the right direction and we would’ve found it.
So we hopped on the train which was more of a Metro/tram and rode it to the end of the line – Sorrento. The scenery was beautiful with orange and lemon trees and the sparkling Mediterranean. It reminded me a lot of the train to Nice, actually. Except with Mt. Vesuvius.. During the ride I talked Mom and Dad’s ears off all about Morocco and whatnot but they were glad to listen. I showed a few pictures and heard about everything they’d done so far on the trip then they broke it to me that going to Rome might not be such a great idea. Strike two.. Oh, well I wasn’t too upset – I’m sure I’ll get there someday. And, it definitely was a good choice looking back, I doubt I’ll go back to the Amalfi Coast anytime soon and I wouldn’t have wanted to skip anything we did there.
When we got there we wandered through this really pretty garden near the middle of Sorrento that’s filled with all kinds of bright flowers. It overlooks the main plaza on one side, the coast on the opposite, and in the middle it lines the huge gorge. We decided to grab a bite to eat at Mom and Dad’s favorite place and I will admit that I wasn’t blown away by the pizza. They did warn me that it’s pretty bland and nothing particularly special, but it was good. I guess I was just expecting something else – got my hopes up too high again.. After the meal we were served limocello (sp?) which is a little shot of lemon liqueur. It was, umm, interesting. Not something I need again anytime soon but not horrible. It’s tradition or culture or whatever you want to call it.
After that we climbed up to our awesome hotel. Jones really spoils us - frescoes on the wall, a beautiful view, slippers/robes, even real beds and a private bedroom with a private bathroom. Man, you forget how bad hostels suck until you stay in an amazing place like this! The one thing I will say that was wrong with this place is the ridiculous ½ shower door. If you’re going to bother installing a barrier for the water, at least get one that blocks the water. This is not rocket science.. After settling in a little bit we climbed up to this cute little church straight up from our hotel. The views were awesome and the church was absolutely charming. (Thanks thesaurus, you’re coming in handy today) I can’t believe how hiking doesn’t bother me at all anymore – I can climb up 10 flights of stairs without a problem now. Good thing, too because Sorrento was very hilly and there were tons of steps.
Next we went for a little paseo through the town and Mom and Dad showed me around. We did a little souvenir shopping and grabbed some gelato. Once again, not blown away – it was definitely delicious but I think the ice cream in Granada gives it a run for its money. We came back up to the hotel and saw the Holy Week procession. It was way different from what I had learned about Semana Santa in Granada, but there were some similar aspects. It was so moving how you didn’t need to know Italian to understand what was happening – some things are just universal. There were people acting the parts of Jesus and everyone else (I feel like I should’ve worded that differently, but he’s really the main character so why not just leave it, right?) and they moved from scene to scene reenacting the story. Members of the church and the general public moved along with the group, singing hymns together. I’m really glad we got to see it! Also, it made me so excited for Semana Santa in Granada.
Afterward we made our way back down and ended up at this cute little restaurant where we had a delicious dinner outside. I love that we can sit outside now, (in Granada too) I don’t think I’ve sat inside at a restaurant for a while! And don’t plan on doing it again anytime soon.. It was so nice to have a fancy sit down meal with Mom and Dad, not just because it was luxurious and free but because I got to spend some quality time with them. Dinner was long and late, how European are we? It was probably because I was jabbering so much but who cares! Afterwards we did a little more souvenir shopping then came back up to the hotel and crashed. (I just typed hostel instead of a hotel, I think the owners would be a little offended if they knew this fancy place was mistaken for a hostel!)