Month: March 2023

On Friday, we made the almost 4 hour drive to the Rome Airport, waiting for our traveling companions to arrive on Saturday. After a very long rental car pickup process, we were on our way to Tuscany. The ancient villages appeared into view the further we traveled from Rome. After getting lost in the Tuscan hill towns, we finally arrived at our villa for the week.

Podere Pisinano is an old farmhouse at the base of a hill, with the medieval village of Montepulciano at the summit. The home is filled with antiques, modern upscale bathrooms, a nice kitchen, and tons of outdoor space to enjoy the scenery. As I work on this edition of the blog, I am seated outdoors in a covered portico with olive trees, vineyards and cypress trees in my view.

We spent the first evening unpacking, settling in and sampling some of the most famous part of Montepulciano, the Vino Noble.

Sunday, we had a relaxing morning at the villa, then made thee quick 5 minute drive to Montepulciano. What we thought would be 5 minutes, turned into 30+ as we found parking is scarce on a Sunday and we had two cars! After several attempts and splitting up, we all made it to the village.

Montepulciano is one those places that ooze Tuscany! The ancient narrow streets, all going up and up, are lined with wine bars and shops, restaurants and local artisans selling their goods. We had lunch on the main walkway, called the Corso. Some of us tried the local pasta, Pici, which is a thick, long and somewhat curled pasta, which was fantastic.

We continued walking through the village, visiting some churches along the way. We found a overlook, considered one of the best in the village, which looked directly down to our villa! We continued up until we reached the top of the hill and the Piazza Grande. The Duomo and town hall, which have been used as a backdrop for some films and TV, made a circle of medieval architecture.

In the Piazza, we stopped at Cantina Contucci, and two thousand year old winery! We quickly toured the caves under the city where the winery was based and sample six wines! Montepulciano is a red wine drinkers paradise (not super easy for a white wine drinker like me)!

We continued walking through the town and visited another ancient winery for more tastings. After shopping for some wine and expensive pecorino cheese, we went back to the villa to relax in the gardens and pool.

We were able to get a reservation at a restaurant our new Ischia ferry friends from Canada recommended, and this time found a parking spot for dinner. We dined on the terrace overlooking the Tuscan hillside. Some of us tried another version of pici, this time carbonara style, and ended with shared tiramisu.

Monday, our plan is to visit the neighboring town of Pienza, and possibly stop by a vineyard on the return. We are all excited for Monday’s bonus gift: a private chef preparing dinner for us at the villa!

Another early breakfast, and we boarded the Amalfi Coast bus to Positano. The 50-minute bus ride was crowded and took longer than we thought, as the driver had to circle back for gas!! Bob stood the entire trip; he would like noted!

Positano seen as we walked into town

Positano, named for the god of the sea Poseidon, was a favorite site for ancient romans who built expensive villas. It was an essential stop for ancient Greeks as they explored ancient lands.

We were dropped off at the edge of town and descended one kilometer with spectacular views the entire trip down. We arrived in a village filled with a labyrinth of shops, cafes and hotels. The upscale shops of ceramics, shoes, linens and jewelry lined the centuries old alleyways.

The village was very crowded, reminding us of Santorini, with many young couples, college students, but not many families. And a pair of aging college graduates!

We helped keep the Italian economy rolling with Italian suede shoes and linen shirt for Bob, and handmade sandals and earrings for Mary!

We had a lovely lunch beachfront, with the hordes of tourists, of pizza and caprese salad on the Spiaggia Grande Beach.

We toured the Church of Santa Maria Assunta which was built in the 12th century, sits upon Roman ruins and served as a Benedictine monastery. Above the altar, is a painting of a black Madonna brought from Constantinople in the 12th century.

Before leaving the village, we ran across a cart selling granita (lemon slush) where the family has been following the same secret recipe for generations. Bob said Adam and Eve gave the family the recipe!

We caught the bus back to Praiano, which was quicker than the ride into Positano. We played some backgammon on the roof terrace of the hotel and enjoyed a pair of Aperol Spritzs! If you followed September’s blog to the Lakes Region, you’d see we were into Spritz before it was popular!

We had our final dinner in the Amalfi Coast at the Hotel Margherita’s lovely rooftop restaurant. They gave us the best table in the house, which faced the sea and surprised us with an early anniversary dessert and Prosecco! The iconic view was memorable and unlike many we have seen.

Tomorrow we sadly leave beautiful Praiano, Amalfi Coast and Hotel Margherita as we return our rental car on the Rome Airport, spend the night, and wait on some “friends” to join us for Part Due’!

How do you drive the Amalfi Coast? You rent the smallest car available! Note how the hotel parked our car!!!

We started the day with a beautiful private Italian breakfast high amongst the cliffs of Praiano overlooking the blue water and fast appearing SUN!

Hotel Margherita logo in a cappuchino!!

We left early for the 21 mile trek, which actually took 90 minutes!!!! And we thought Northern VA traffic was bad!!! Lets not mention the tour buses traveling on the opposite side of the road, squeezing the road on both sides! Bob was in 2nd gear, UPHILL, the entire time, while Mary was on the passenger side, not more than 5 feet from the cliff. Boy, those seat belts give you a feeling of confidence! Or not. There were several portions of the road where local police only allowed on direction of traffic to pass, as the roads were too narrow and winding for two lanes.

Duomo in Ravello

We made it Ravello, high in the hills of Amalfi, and scored a coveted parking spot below the Duomo (which cost 11 Euros for 3 hours!). The Duomo was built in the 11th century, was dedicated to St Pantaleone and the facade was lost in an earthquake shortly there after. The bronze doors from Constantinople date back to 1179 and showcase 54 scenes from the Bible. The Chapel of St Pantaleone holds a small ampoule of the saint’s blood which is said to liquify every year on the anniversary of his martyrdom (July 27th for you St. Pantaleone fans!).

When we exited the duomo, the scenery was clouded since we were high in the mountains but cleared after we donated to many shops $$$!!

We had a quick lunch, and headed to the town of Amalfi.

When we finally arrived there, the congestion, due to drivers, buses, motorcycles and a cruise ship in port, made it impossible to find parking. We decided to return to the hotel, and caught the shuttle into Praiano.

We walked around, enjoying the iconic views, had a cappuccino and a Peroni, and walked back to the hotel.

As we sit on our balcony entering this blog overlooking the hill lined with lemon groves and olive trees, it is a breathtaking scene! It is difficult to image on a balcony being 1000 feet above the sea, which is only 150 meters in the distance (per Bob).

We had dinner at The Hotel Costa Diva in their lemon grove overlooking the water and boats. Our table viewed the lemon trees bathed in netting to catch any stray lemons that dropped from the tree.

Lemons so sweet!

Thursday, we hope to take the city bus to Positano, and maybe visit a winery in the afternoon. SALUTE”!!!

After a lovely final breakfast, we were whisked to the Port of Ischia, with advance ferry tickets to Sorrento. On board the ferry, we met a very nice couple from Toronto, who owned a vacation home in Tuscany (why didn’t we move to Canada to get that quality of life). The couple, who of course, travel to Italy all the time, gave us hints and suggestions for the second part of our trip.

Last breakfast on Ischia

The passage was quite rough with swells up to 10-15 feet, so much so, the crew passed out plastic grocery (barf) bags prior to departure. But our varsity stomachs championed the day.

Pit stop in Capri

After a quick stop in Capri, we finished the 85 minute voyage in Sorrento. We found the lift to the top of the port, and made our way to Hertz. Our Fiat Panda, the rental car of choice for us, was brand new!! We were on our way to the Amalfi Coast.

We passed through lemon tree groves with lemons the size of grapefruits. We loved seeing the olive trees, which had netting below to catch the olives as they fall for harvest. The roads were narrow, winding, and steep. As we reached further, the roads were on the edge of cliffs with views to remember.

The road to Amalfi

The traffic into Positano was unimaginable. Only one lane of traffic was allowed through the villages, therefore we were forced to stop for periods of time on the road. The 20 mile trek took us 90 minutes, but it was a pleasant and memorable 90 minutes, and yes, it did rain for a bit of it!

Positano in the rear-view mirror

Traffic into Positano

We arrived at the Hotel Margherita in Praiano, the next village to the east of Positano, and were given a tour and glass of sparkling wine.

Room view

Our room overlooks the Tyrrhenian Sea. We enjoyed some wine on our balcony, planned our Wednesday on the Amalfi Coast and basked in the sunshine for the first time since Friday!

We had dinner at the hotel which has a lovely roof terrace with a restaurant. But it was too cold, with the low 60s temperatures, so we had to dine inside, which was a disappointment.

We hope to visit Ravello and Amalfi tomorrow with clear skies and warm days!! CHEERS!!

The day from start to finish was windy, wet and cold. Really, we never had a minute without rain!

Natural honeycomb with dripping honey at breakfast

In the morning, we would not be deterred so we rented a car to travel to the other side of the island.  We first attempted to locate a vineyard that hosted wine tastings and lunch. It was not open. We tried to find a second winery. That one remained lost to us. After we gave up on that plan, in the pouring rain, we drove further around the island and south, to Sant’ Angelo d’ischia. Sant’ Angelo is a old fishing village now filled with upscale shops, beach clubs and some restaurants.

Caprese salad in the village of Sant’ Angelo

We had lunch at Casa Celestino, which overlooked the raging ocean and rain.

After lunch, we returned to the road, this time circumnavigating the entire island. On our way, we drove to the top of the mountain. One last attempt at a vineyard, but as we approached the last several kilometers, a dark cloud enveloped us and we were fogged in at the the top of Ischia. We found the vineyard, but it was closed.

Raging sea in Sant ‘Angelo

We returned to the hotel, walked into town for some so-so gelato, and then remained captive in the hotel due to a coastal squall that just won’t give up. We returned to O’ Sole Mio for dinner after a lull in the rain. It was a very local place and we enjoyed their hospitality and pasta (limoncello, too). With umbrellas overturning, and dodging puddles causing flooding sandals (ill prepared Mary for bad bad bad weather), we made it back to the hotel for our final raining stormy night. We have been amazed at the bad weather in very late May. It is at least 20 degrees below average, with locals in puffer coats, boots, scarves, and wondering what happened to spring!!! In fact, when we left dinner, it was 55 degrees (hence trouble with sandals weather)!

Tuesday, we take the morning ferry to Sorrento, where we pick up our rental car (and hopefully better weather) and begin our Amalfi Coast leg of the trip.

Rain was in the forecast, and it did its best to arrive as scheduled! After a late breakfast at the hotel, overlooking the beautiful flowers and soaked pool, as promised, we visited the Aragonese Castle. A 15-minute walk from our hotel, the Aragonese Castle came into view through the pouring rain. It rained the hardest all day as we walked to the castle!

raining day at the castle

This fortress was built in 474 BC by the Greek, Hiero I. Over the course of the centuries, many different groups, from the Arabs to the Normans, held the castle. The Ischians took over the fortress in the 1300s. The fortress was also transformed into a prison and held many political prisoners. Since the early 1900s, the castle has been empty and open for tourists.

A view back to Ischia Ponte from the fortress

The castle holds many small chapels and churches. A small convent for the Poor Clare nuns prospered at the castle beginning in 1575. The convent housed around 40 cloistered nuns, mostly first-born daughters of noble families, who were sent there by their families so that the family estate could be passed down to the family’s first male heir.

Beneath one of the churches, a cemetery for the nuns is found. They had a macabre tradition of placing the nuns’ bodies on stone chairs exposed, where the other nuns would pray over them for years. I could go into grim details, but its rather sad.

  The sad resting places for the devoted nuns

One of the chapels, the Church of the Madonna della Libera, was built after the last eruption of the volcano, Mt Epomeo, in the 1300s. The towns people prayed to Mary and dedicated the church to her, as Mary protected them. The painting above the altar depicts the Madonna with hands outstretched as she was blocking the lava.

The Madonna Chapel

After touring the castle, the rain eased up and we had our favorite Italian lunch of quattro Fromaggi pizza and Caprese salad at restaurant overlooking the castle and the Bay of Naples.

 Lunch!

We did a little shopping, as the rain began again. We returned to the hotel and tried out the Roman bath in the basement of the hotel. I need one of those in my basement!!!!

The Roman bath at the hotel… luxurious!!!

We had dinner a 1/2 mile away from the hotel, on the beach. The house wine in the pitcher carafe is still the way to go! I tried pasta with mussels and limone sauce while Bob had another quattro Fromaggi pizza, this time, all to himself!

Pasta with mussels

4 Fromaggi pizza for Bob

Mixed salad, Ischia style

Dinner view

We sat on our balcony, as the rain ended at dinner time, and enjoyed the view of the castle, the pool and a bottle of Ischia wine! Tomorrow, we are hoping the rain holds off since we are renting a car to explore the island!!!

Night view of a church by our hotel

Castle view at dusk

Our journey to Italy was on a very looooong Friday of Memorial Day Weekend. Our 3pm flight from Dulles sent us through Frankfurt with a 4 hour delay (mileage plus tickets made a 4 hour stop over acceptable), then on to Naples. Each flight was absolutely packed with very little room to stand or walk around. Lots of families with small children traveling the long weekend, even to Germany!!!

Our Four and half hour layover in Germany was not so bad as we had access to a very good Lufthansa lounge.

Mary arranged for a private taxi to meet us at arrivals in Naples. The driver loaded us up his luxury van, drove us at a chaotic pace to the ferry terminal. From there, we dashed to the terminal while the driver, in his fine Italian suit, ran to get us tickets, as the next ferry was leaving in 8 minutes. We loaded on the ferry, had a peroni and watched Ischia appear through the clouds and haze. Upon disembarking, the advance planning had another taxi driver waiting for us and squired us off to our hotel. This plan was extraordinary, as it removed a lot of the stress late in the trip.

Our hotel, The Hotel Villa Durrueli, was overbooked and required us to stay in a different room than was reserved. We will be moved to our room with the better view tomorrow just in time for the rain! No unpacking so we tried out the roof terrace!

This was a beautiful spot, with chairs and tables lining the terrace! The view was over Ischia, the neighboring island of Procida, Naples and Capri in the distance, but the focal viewpoint was the castle known as Aragonese Castle. The castle is built on volcanic rock and was constructed in 474 BC. We hope to visit the castle tomorrow.

We checked out the hotel pool and found a poolside bar where we spent some time chatting with a British couple from Essex, who are here for a wedding tomorrow at the castle!

We then headed into town for a lovely dinner at a restaurant the bartender at the hotel recommended. We tried a few local dishes including a local fish, white wine and a local dessert called Baba’, which is sponge cake SOAKED in rum!.

We finished dinner with a complimentary liqueur called Rucola, which is made from ‘rocket’ the European term for arugula. It was raining as we walked back to our hotel, heading to bed after a long couple of days.

Sunday’s plans are up in the air due to the forecast of rain! And the rain is supposed to last into Tuesday!!!

The town of Ischia Ponte