That's amore!

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As Jamie had a work conference in Sorrento the week before my birthday, it made sense for me to join him on the Friday for a lovely, romantic, birthday, valentine escape to the Amalfi coast!

I flew in to Naples on Friday afternoon and caught the bus into central Naples to catch the train out to Sorrento. A group of (rowdy) schoolboys were on the train for most of the journey. Was really strange to suddenly smell citrus and then look up to see a couple of them peeling oranges. I can't remember the last time I've seen a teenage guy eat fruit. Makes absolute sense here of course. Jamie met me at the Sorrento station and we meandered back to the hotel, along the orange tree lined streets. The trees were so dripping with fruit that they almost looked fake (but they weren't - we sampled).

The next morning we set off for our agriturismo accommodation in Massa Lubrense - a short drive from Sorrento. It was very evident that it was offpeak (one of the places we had emailed about accommodation had told us they were closed that time of year as it was cold and windy and we should visit at another time). Our hosts were nice, but were almost a little surprised to have us hanging around there. Fortunately they had a special method for getting our cases to our room. The walk from car to bed involved about 50 metres of stairs - up through all the lemon trees.

Jamie, bless him, did all the driving. The roads along the coast were so winding, it was really disorientating. One minute the coast is on the right, then on the left... Throw in those crazy Italians overtaking in their mini fiats on blind corners, heaps of 3-wheeled trucks slugging along and the odd inopportune roadwork blockage, and Jamie did earn his beer at the end of the day. Was a beautiful coastline though, with houses built right into the cliff face.

On Sunday we chanced on a cute little seaside town and decided to lunch at a cafe down on the beach. Great decision. Was one of those no menu places, where the waitress susses where you're at and offers suggestions. We thought we'd kick off with the antipasto and were pfaffing about the rest, but she said we could see how we went with the antipasto. Mmmmmmmmmmm soooooooo yum! Best was the eggplant slices wrapped around smoked mozzerella and baked. Deluxe! Basically we gorged and didn't move on to the pastas and fish (which had sounded, and looked great). It really was a perfect meal with a gorgeous sunny day, bit of activity going on on the beach and the cafe lively (but not too crowded) with sunday socialisers.

On Tuesday we did the turistic thing, but skipped Pompeii to instead visit Herculeum - a town which had a similar fate. Was quite fascinating wandering around the streets and in the homes and shops of these people.

The showers were clearing when I'd arrived on the Friday and were starting to head back in on the Wednesday when we were leaving. The weather was definitely cool, but the sun shone the whole time, so the temp didn't seem to matter. I even got a slight tan! Wonderful trip, and definitely consoled me on my birthday!