From Paestum, we continued on to Amalfi. When researching the trip, I read lots of stories about the harrowing drive along the Amalfi Coast. Believe me, everything you read about the drive is true. The scenery is breathtaking, but the road is very narrow and challenging. The worst part is that tourist busses drive the same road, and you risk scratching you car trying to avoid them. I personally felt that the road was safe because of its rock guardrails. And when you’re on the road, it doesn’t seem that high up. Again, the only problem is squeezing your rental car by large busses traveling in the opposite direction.

The Hotel Aurora and our rooms. The hotel is much bigger than it looks. I can't say enough about how friendly the staff was. The view from the window in my room and the view from Mark and Joe's Patio. Try to book one of the rooms on the top floor. They all have patios with great views of the harbor. The top floor rooms also have better furniture.

On nice days, breakfast is served on the terrace. Behind the hotel is a sheer rock cliff. Even higher up, is the road North to Sorrento and Naples.

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The four pictures above are of of Amalfi and its harbor. Amalfi is the coast's largest town. It's large cathedral dates back to the 10th century. It was an important marine republic in the early middle ages. At the height of its power in the 9th and 10th Century, Amalfi successfully competed with Pisa, Genoa, and Venice for trading routes and had outposts in all the major towns of the Mediterranean basin and continental Europe.

The unassuming portal in this picture on the right leads to Amalfi's main square and cathedral.

The Amalfi Coast is known for it's huge lemons and an aperitif called "Limoncello". Below is a picture of my brother Joe and my nephew Mark sampling Limoncello after our dinner in Amalfi. Limoncello is basically the essence of Amalfi lemon rind in pure grain alcohol. Served ice cold, it's very strong and tastes really good.

Unfortunately, when we arrived in Positano, we discovered that there was no ferry to Capri. So, we decided to hire a boat to take us the approximately 20 miles to the island. Somehow I knew that this was going to turn out to be a bad idea. A line of thunderstorms passed through the channel in the morning, and I could see whitecaps far from shore. I know that the boat looks big in the picture, but when crossing the channel to Capri, we encountered very rough seas with 4-6 foot swells. The seas were so rough that I couldn’t even get my camera out my backpack to take some pictures. By the time we got into Capri’s harbor, we were all soaking wet. It wasn’t the safest thing we did on our vacation either. Of course, we will always remember it as the most exciting part of our trip!

The picture on the right is a rare picture of the four of us. Starting from the left is my nephew Mark Fazzio, my brother, Joe Fazzio, my nephew Joe Fazzio, and me, Steve Fazzio. The picture was taken while we were still in protected waters.

Take my advice, check the sea conditions before you charter a small boat to get you over there. Even if you’re on large ferry, take motion sickness medication if you’re at all prone to seasickness. Don’t think that the Mediterranean is just a big lake. On some days the seas can be as heavy as the open ocean. I've been to Capri twice on seperate trips to Italy, and I've encountered very rough seas both times.