Sorrento Moon (Sorrento - Amalfi - Ravello)

The concept of the Amalfi Coast and visiting one town after another seems so simple, dear reader. It is not and our attempts at travel have been hampered by the blockade and lack of fuel on the Sorrento peninsula. Thankfully that is over and fuel and tomato supplies are returning to normal.

From the comfort of my chair in Redfern, I pre-booked many of our experiences. I did this to spread the cost but also to ensure we didn't miss things we really wanted to experience. The problem with this, as always, is you don't know what you don't know. Is it easy to manage the Naples metro? Are the trains from Sorrento the best way to get around? Do the ferries operate everyday to the islands? Sometimes the answer can only be discovered through experience.

Today's excursion was to Ravello via Amalfi. As I mentioned previously, the ferries had not been operating at full capacity and neither had the buses. After some discussion, we opted for a bus transfer to Amalfi and then another bus up the mountainside to Ravello. Spoiler alert, IMHO (and Jayne's) Ravello is overrated. I would not be lying awake at night lamenting the fact that I never made the mountain top had I missed out. Despite the views.

Anyway, October 25 arrived and at some point in the half light, it dawned on Jayne that daylight saving had ended. Yay, we scored an extra hour, but were also awake well before required. As a result, we decided to catch the early bus. The 8:30am bus to Amalfi was also the first bus of the day - it was Sunday. No breakfast today, that would be on the road somewhere.

Amalfi beach.

Tickets, cash only accepted for some reason, were purchased from a very disinterested attendant and we joined the very long queue that stretched the length of the bus and beyond. It was a bus, not a coach and standing was allowed. That meant cramming as many people on board as possible. We made it on board although not into a seat.

From Amalfi port.

The journey seemed long and unusually circuitous in parts. At one point we headed towards Naples and down a street that required a three-point turn, I jest not, to pick up passengers on the other side of the road. We then turned towards Amalfi once again. While it was not 'all stops' we did stop frequently to pick up other passengers and occasionally to let someone off.

Looking up from the port area.

It was crowded enough to ensure that if you lost your grip you didn't fall very far because there was someone very close by. If I'd had milk in my bag it would have been butter by the time we reached Amalfi. The close calls between the buses are legendary on that road and we edged past a number, close enough to touch. The good news was a lot of people alighted at Positano so we scored seats from then on. This gave us an even better view of the perilous cliffs plumeting to the sea, as the bus wound its way along the coast road with only a low stone wall between us and oblivion.

Amalfi was already crowded when we arrived, thanks to cruise crowds that were slavishly following the paddle. Ravello was our initial target and we located a private bus that guaranteed you a seat for €7 each. A nice earner when you consider the public bus from Sorrento cost us €3,60 each.

A random shot from the open air bus to Ravello.

After a short wait, it was a 30 minute trip up to Ravello, including a lengthy contraflow, and we had to make a decision about how long we would stay there because there was bus siesta in the middle of the afternoon. This was compounded by my paranoia that ensured we purchased our return ferry tickets before we left Amalfi. The second last ferry departed at 3:40pm (sunset is now just after 5 pm) and that bookended our day. Again, you don't know what you don't know. We purchased seats on the 12:15pm bus which gave us a little over an hour at Ravello. Otherwise we would have been stranded there till 2:30pm, assuming everything ran to schedule, which in our experience, is not always the case. We did check out a back up plan involving taking a taxi but that was going to cost €60.

Looking towards Salerno.

First stop was a café for an espresso and panini. Good coffee and great panini but we would have happily shared one had we known how filling they were. Then we went into the Duomo which is distinguished by the mosaics inside.

The tiled pulpit.

The stairs to the pulpit.

There are views across the valley to other tiered mountainsides. Very picturesque. And a villa which we didn't have time to explore. The narrow streets containing the shopfronts sold much the same stuff that is in every second store in Sorrento. Obviously ceramics are big and featured prominently. As did cats. They were everywhere (sorry Min, no pictures).

Across the valley.

The gateway to the Villa Rufolo.

The view driving up and down the mountain provided some spectacular coastal views. Maximum respect to the cyclists who rode to the top.

Back in Amalfi, it was even more crowded. Again taking our lives in our hands, we crossed the main road into the piazza that housed another Duomo named for Sant'Andrea, the apostle Saint Andrew. The steps were steep and crowded with people having a rest or taking selfies. It too has a Byzantine influence and is a church built on the site of numerous other churches. The last religion standing wins.

The Duomo of Amalfi.

Byzantine arches.

We paid for entry and tried to dodge the tour groups and their loud-speaker guides, not always successfully, although they tended to move on more quickly than we did. There were frescoes dating back centuries, some still in excellent condition, others only partially visible and religious artworks in the museum before you enter the church itself.

One of the many frescoes.

Again I was surprised by the crypt. It was much more ornate than I expected. A painted ceiling with lots of gold and an extremely ornate altar with a large bronze statue of St Andrew. My favourite piece was a painting of one of the saints with a finger to the lips to endorse the "silence" sign. Naturally the tour guides ignored this.

The ceiling in the crypt.

St Andrew.

Shhh!

Inside the main cathedral above the crypt, a side altar behind bars, houses the relic of Saint Andrew's skull which is venerated in celebration each September on his feast day. On that day as well, manna, a thick liquid is said to be collected from his tomb under the altar as a continuing sign of his protection of the town.

St Andrew's wasn't the only skull on display.

Sadly the bell tower was receiving some special attention and was shrouded in blue plastic and scaffolding. A pity, because the fish scale tiles would be worth seeing.

The bell tower.

We wandered the very crowded streets for a little. There was nothing much to see, the usual tourist shops and lots of places to eat and drink. Back towards the port we walked and turned towards Atrani. It was supposed to a 5 minute walk according to one pundit but would have been closer to 15. We didn't go all the way because there was no footpath and while some were happy to disregard their personal safety and walk two and three abreast with their back to the traffic, we were not.

Ceramics are everywhere.

Just beyond the halfway mark we stopped and made our way back towards the port. However, en route we were suddenly distracted by a sign advertising birra all spina. It was a message. We had time so we grabbed a table and were entertained by watching the death defying pedestrians while we enjoyed a beer.

Another sculpture by Roggi who featured at Matera.

The ferry journey back to Sorrento was a longer, if less death defying, affair than the bus trip but it also provided a different perspective from the water. Jayne was a brave soldier and stayed by my side all the way to Sorrento despite becoming increasingly cold as the sun dipped and the wild chill increased on the open deck of the ferry. 

Here are some random shots from the trip back up the coast. In reverse order because of Google.

Our apartment building in the background to the left of the Hotel Vittoria.

Vesuvius near sunset.

Interesting stair case.

A church.

Buildings cling to the cliff along most of the coastline.

Back in a twilight Sorrento, we disembarked the ferry at Marina Piccola and headed up the cliff stairs to home and a quiet evening on the balcony. Tomorrow would be an early start and another adventure in taking the train to Napoli for our food and history tour, starting with a 7 am Circumvesuviana train which hopefully would not be as crowded as the Amalfi coast bus.

Despite returning home after sunset we have yet to see the Sorrento Moon that Tina Arena sings about.

Alla prossima.