The Sweetness of Doing Nothing

I don't know the words, but there is an Italian phrase that translates to 'the sweetness of doing nothing.' I fully embraced this idea today.



Aside from a brief stroll through the town and a visit to the local market, the entire day was spent on the beach. The beaches aren't sandy, but are covered with layers of pebbles, and speckled with bits of blue, green, and orange sea glass. We all split up for a few hours, a few people shopping and a few hiking, and I just sat on the beach with a small loaf of bread, a wedge of soft cheese, and a bottle of wine. Eventually, as everyone else grew tired of shopping and hiking, they found me at my spot on the beach, and we had a pow-wow as the sun fell closer and closer to the water. As much as I've enjoyed Italy's large cities, especially Firenze and Roma, I think days like these, spent enjoying all of Italy's natural beauty and exploring small towns that aren't along the country's major transportation arteries, are my favorites.

Sent via BlackBerry

Sorrento & Onward to Amalfi

It wasn't extremely easy to find, but we did make it to our hostel last night. I'd hardly call this place a hostel, though. Within its stone walls are the Mami Camiila cooking school and the Bed & Breakfast. There are lemon trees lining all of the paths on the grounds. People come from all over the world to stay here for a few weeks or a few months to decompress and learn about Southern Italian food, which is dramatically different than the North's. Tonight we're having dinner in, four courses prepared by the students.

We're making hairpin turn after hairpin turn on our bus from Sorrento to Amalfi right now. Behind me are cliffs hundreds of meters high, and in front of us is a blue sky and crystal water as far as I can see.

This has proven to be a great time of year to visit this part of the world: the herds of tourists won't show up for a few more months and the weather's been fantastic.
Sent via BlackBerry

Sciopero

Now we're on a train from Roma to Napoli. All of the day's 'regionale' trains have been cancelled due to a sciopero, an Italian word that's proven very important: it means strike. The strikes are very specific, targeting certain lines, certain times of day, or very specific systems (like the computerised scheduling system). Today's strike hasn't affected the EuroStar or intercity trains, fortunately, but we did have to pay nearly double to travel the same route. When in Rome...
Sent via BlackBerry