Visit To Positano

Today I'm going to talk about Positano.  Situated on the Amalfi Coast, Positano is a beautiful village crammed into the Cliffside.  To get about the place, you can either use the very windy road, or take the many hundreds of steps.  Trust me, you will be fit by the time you have finished your day trip here.

From Sorrento, you can travel to Positano by bus or by ferry.  My friend and I opted to take the bus as we had been using a museum pass which included free bus travel.  Be warned, the buses operate roughly every hour - and I mean roughly.  As a result. the buses are absolutely crammed when they reach the bus stops, so be prepared to stand with someone's armpit in your face for most of the duration - think you're on the London Underground during rush hour and you've got the next nearest experience!  Travel aside though, the pain is worth it.

Collegiate Church of Santa Maria Assunta is situated in the Centre of Positano and looks rather ominous when you stand below it to take a photo.

If you like shopping, there are a wide number of shops dotted up and down the roads and steps.  Take plenty of money with you as you're bound to see something you like.

My friend and I headed down to the beach for some rest and refreshment.  There are a number of little places you can visit to grab a drink and a snack if you would like.  The beach itself seems very pleasant but can get rather crowded at peak times.

If you head off to the right, you can access a pathway which takes you to another beach around the corner.  It is well worth the trip as it is quieter and has its own fort to guard you while you sunbathe.

If you would like some hints and tips about Positano and the Amalfi Coast, try this website.  It has a range of locations and ideas, plus bus and ferry timetables.

http://www.positano.com/

Next time - the Villa Oplontis

Vesuvius and a detour to the winery

Hi there,

Apologies for the delay, Christmas and the New Year didn't really give me much time to devote to my travel blog.

This time, I'm looking back at my visit to Mount Vesuvius and trip to a local winery.  The winery was beautiful and had a great selection of wines available, many of which were tried and tested.  On the slopes of the volcano, it had access to extremely fertile soils.

But you're probably most keen to hear about Vesivius itself.  Standing at around 1200 metres, you get a wonderful view of the Bay Of Naples and the surrounding area.  If you have good eyes, you can make out where Pompeii was situated.

Originally called Mount Somma, it managed to blow two thirds of its top off before becoming the Vesuvius we know today.  The last time there was an eruption here was in 1949 and the villages closest to the volcano were evacuated as a precaution.  However, if Vesuvius erupted now and they tried to evacuate the area, it is still likely that there will be an awful lot of casualties when you see how densely populated Naples is now.

Make sure you're wrapped up warm if you go up to the volcano top, as it is blowy up there which makes it feel cooler.  You can watch the steam flowing back out of the cracks in the crater, where rainwater has worked its way in then been heated by the active magma further inside the volcano.

The picture above shows what Vesuvius looks like from Pompeii, but imagine that hill being two thirds the size again.  It would have been an imposing mountain, standing solitarily in the landscape.

The people of Pompeii and the surrounding area never realised the mountain was actually a volcano.  They had suffered a small number of earthquakes leading up to the eruption, but because nobody had ever seen Mount Somma erupt or made any recording as such, the population were completely unaware of the warning signs.  It must have been pretty frightening when it actually blew.

Next time - my bus trip to Positano.