The Amalfi Coast

Monday July 16,  Boat tour of the Amalfi Coast.

Our boat tour began from Sorrento.  After breakfast we caught the commuter train from our location to Sorrento.  There are a lot of people who commute to Sorrento!  The train was standing room only!  We were met at the train station by a van to take us down to the marina.  For those unfamiliar with

Sorrento, it is a town build on the steep and rugged coast line typical of most of the coastal towns and villages of this area of Italy.  The narrow streets continuously curve, turn and switchback.  You are either going down or up!  It was a rather quaint and picturesque town.  I think it would make a wonderful seaside retreat to put your feet up and spend some time (if you had some!) contemplating life (or for some of us, your next meal!). 
The street leading to the marina was a series of switchbacks that our van had to stop and back up in each turn to get around it.  Some in the van, you'll have to guess who, may have had a tad bit of anxiety during these maneuvers!  We checked in at the tour office and waited for our boat.  Our group numbered 12.  There were a young couple from California, a grandma, mom, dad and son from England, a young couple from Denmark and the four of us.  We were guided to our boat, a fairly large cabin cruiser captained by Massimo, who I think may have been a true Roman!  He wasn't much taller than Munchkin and according to our Colosseum guide was likely the average height of the ancient Romans!
When we got underway, Massimo requested some of us to have a seat on the bow of the boat, to help distribute the weight.  I volunteered and myself the young couple and the Brit father took a seat on the cushions up front.  13 on this boat was not a bit crowded. 
We headed off on our cruise.  There were a lot of yachts anchored along the Sorrento shores.  Some quite large.  We went by the Royal Clipper anchored just off shore.  This is a small cruise ship from
the Star Clipper cruise lines.  From far it looks like a "tall ship" as this cruise ship has masts and sails!  Not far along Massimo guided the boat into a small cove where there was a small waterfall cascading into the sea.  As he edged the boat closer I stepped forward to the bow peak to put my hand into the falling stream.  Well Massimo is a master of his craft and he gently put me completely into the falls!  The water was cool and refreshing!  I was wearing my tilley

hat, so didn't get my hair wet!  It didn't take long for the rest of me to dry once we resumed our cruise.  It was another hot and sunny day!  A bit later Massimo again drew close to the cliff and slowly put the entire boat into a small grotto.  I didn't stand up in the front this time, as there was a strong likely-hood of losing some bark on the top of the bean if I had of because of
the swells moving the boat up and down!  There was a bit of wind and as a result we did run into some rougher water. 
Our cruise took us from Sorrento around the tip of the peninsula (Punta Campanella) with the Isle of Capri off the west and east along the famed Amalfi Coast line.  We stopped at both Positano and Amalfi.  Both of these towns are like Sorrento and build up the side of a steep and rugged shoreline.  At Positano we lost the Brits!  Unfortunately Mom Brit came down with a pretty sever case of sea sickness and couldn't stay on the boat any longer.  I felt sorry for her as the journey back for them was now by bus on the snaking coastal road, not the best for someone suffering with motion sickness but I guess for her the lesser of two evils. 
At our stop at Amalfi, the young couple from California left us.  This was a planned stop for them and they would be staying a few days in Amalfi. 
So our return trip to Sorrento was just the 6 of us.  On the way back Massimo tied up a nice spot and myself and the Danes took the opportunity for a dip in the sea!  It was very refreshing!
The cruise was a fantastic way to see the Amalfi coast!  I think it was a better choice than either renting a car and driving it or taking a bus tour.  Driving the coast would definitely have given you a different perspective of it, however if we had of driven it ourselves, the driver would not have been able to see much and the narrow winding cliff side road would have definitely created some anxiety for some!  The view of the coast from the sea was spectacular and I'm glad we opted for this tour.
The train back to Pompeii was not nearly as crowded.  After this full day tour, the Vittoria was a welcome sight.  The bed was very comfortable and was occupied early!