Sorrento and Postitano

I attempted to put my weekend at Amalfi into one post, but there was too much to say and too many pictures to show that now there will be three posts. My last one covering Capri, this, and one on Pompeii. 

Sorrento and Positano

so like i said.. our hostel was located in Sorrento. Friday after spending an incredible fun and long day in Capri we returned to our hostel to shower  and get ready for dinner. There were two options for dinner. Do it on your own or take a bus to the center of Sorrento and eat at a suggested restaurant for €15  (€ = euro)  That option seemed a little pricey for us, so Christine Sanja and I chose to do dinner on our own. We found out that the hostel had a dinner menu with options from bruschetta, to salad, to pasta or swordfish for more reasonable prices €6- €9.. 

After dinner we went into town to meet the rest of the Bentley crew - we went to a suggested bar  that was okay, nothing special.. and then turned in for the night eager to see Positano in the morning!

We drove to Positano.. although the private shuttle and ferry gave incredible views it did not compare to the sights from the bus as it wound along the coast line 500ft above the water. We were dropped off above Positano and had to walk down.. lots of stairs.

Where the bus dropped us off

 half way down?

getting closer!

looking up at where we started

we finally made it!

 after quite a hike down we made it to the breathtaking coastal town of Positano. We had the day to ourselves, to relax on the black sand beaches, go on a boat tour that included cliff jumping and swimming in the royal blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea or shop in the various stores and markets located in town.  

Knowing me and my adventurous ways I could not wait to cliff jump! We had about 2 hours of beach/swimming time before the first boat tour. We jumped on the boat and they brought us along the coastline to an inlet with a small beach and numerous cliffs! Cliff jumping was fun, but they hyped it up to some crazy heights and it was nothing more than jumping off some boats in Onset Bay.. regardless after jumping a few times I swam back to the boat and took some pictures of my friends facing nerves and jumping

Positano from the water

Sanja and Larissa jumping

shelly showing off her front flip

loving the view - the boy in the fedora.. need to crop this one!

90 degrees, not a cloud in the sky there was nothing to complain about our day in Positano. We relaxed on the beach until 6ish when we hopped on a bus back to Sorrento just in time to shower and see the incredible sunset from the roof top terrace at the hostel

Larissa and I post sunset with the views of Sorrento in the background 

Amalfi Coast - Sorrento, Capri, Positano, Popeii

Move in to Florence - check

get settled and start classes - check

first official weekend.... Amalfi Coast!

After having about a week to settle into the Florentine lifestyle and attend a weeks worth of classes we were busily packing for the Amalfi Coast. The Amalfi Coast was one of the original resort destinations of Italy, rooting back to the ancient Roman Empire. The Amalfi Coast consists of the towns Sorrento, Capri, Positano and Amalfi. With stunning scenery, hill top hugging towns and historic ruins, Amalfi is easily considered paradise. 

thursday september 8th we attended our classes, packed our bathing suits and a small group of 17 Bentley students (we're a close knit group... ) had to catch a 7:30pm bus from Santa Novella Train Station (the main train station in Firenze ) We booked our trip to Amalfi over the summer and through a company called Bus2Alps. The trip included round trip transportation by bus, three nights at 7 hostel, breakfast, and transportation to and from the cities. 

After a 6 hour bus ride sitting next to a random kid and with a brat in front of me that "couldn't understand why I didn't want her to recline her seat so that she was in my lap" needless to say I was not a happy camper when we arrived in Sorento at 2am on Friday. We checked into the hostel and 11 of the girls were staying in the sunflowers room. At 2am the hostel looked nice, but everyone really just wanted to get some sleep in a bed. When we woke up for our 9am departure did we realize how nice it was. We learned that 7 hostel is a premium hostel chain throughout italy and greece. http://www.sevenhostel.com/en/index.php

Friday we started with a walk through Sorento to a small marina where we boarded a private ferry to Sorento's main marina. To catch the ferry to the island of Capri

Capri nicknamed the "island of dreams" is full of breath taking views from land or sea. We pulled in to Marina Grande ( translation: large marina )  and jumped onto a private boat for a guided tour of the island. We saw breathtaking views, glistening water and had an opportunity to enter the Blue Grotto.

The Blue Grotto is one of the 7 Wonders of the World. It is a sea cave, on the island of Capri in which sunlight passing through an underwater cavity creates a blue reflection illuminating the water. We pull up to where the Blue Grotto is and there were so many small wooden row boats manned by an oarsmen which is the only way you can enter the Grotto.  There is no head room so you have to lie down on the bottom of the boat to clear the entrance way. The oarsmen approach the cave entrance, duck down and pull the boat through by chain at the top of the entrance.

  
so that's outside.... now check out what inside the blue grotto looks like!

After spending sometime in the Blue Grotto we exited the cave and got back on the private boat for the rest of the tour around Capri since the majority of sights are inaccessible by land. We were able to see green and white lagoons, orange coral, wild cliffs and the Faraglioni.

the Faraglioni are the three 80-100 meter high stacks, that have been formed by the erosion of the wind and sea. The Faraglioni di Mezzo is the middle stack that has a natural archway in which boats can sail through.


We arrived back to Marina Grande, thanked the captain for the tour and had about 5min before we about a 30min hike halfway up the island. 30min of stairs in 90 degree heat = one thing. lots of sweat... everyone was wishing they could jump into the water when we got to the middle point. You easily forgot that you were profusely sweating once you noticed the incredible view.

whats the saying? if you can't take the heat get out of the kitchen... how about if  you can't take the heat do not climb up stairs for 30min... lesson hopefully learned when Kiley fainted at the midway point. She fainted in my friend Christine's arms. Christina, our friend Sanja and I waited with her and ambulance. While they gave her an IV and checked her out. . The rest of the group continued up to Anna Capri in a bus. Thanks to her fainting we were able to ride to the top in a "topless taxi"

(taxi drivers in italy are seriously skilled. there were about 3in between our taxi and this BUS)
up next: some incredible views from the ride up!

We reached Anna Capri, had lunch walked around at the shops, did some Limoncello tasting (it originated in Capri) and saw custom leather sandals being made. We took a topless taxi back down the island and spent the rest of the afternoon at the beach. 

At 5pm we headed back to the Marina for a ferry back to Sorrento.

(Marina in Capri and sun set in Sorrento)
Thats just the day 1! Positano and Pompeii to come!

Buon Cumpleanno - Marco!

September 6th was il cumpleanno di marco!  we went to leave for class and found a note on the door from Anna Maria explaining how it was Marco's birthday and asked if we would cook his birthday dinner for him. Knowing this Christine and I thought of a great gift idea.... Cannella gelato (cinnamon gelato) and a card. 

After class we came home and were eager to start cooking! Anna Maria called us in la cucnia (into the kitchen) she passed out aprons and we began to cook. We were making some of Marco's favorites: including a meat dish, zucchini, bruschetta con gorgonzola ,miele e noci (bruschetta with gorgonzola cheese, honey and walnuts). The meat was carpaccio, prosciutto, cheese and salve. The meat was cut very thin. We layered the carapaccio, then the prosciutto, cheese and salve. We closed it with a toothpick, then cooked it a frying pan until the meat was browned and the cheese was melted. 

(please excuse my appearance it was very HOT in the kitchen) 

The bruschetta was delicious. We cut the fresh baked bread, added a spread of Gorgonzola cheese, topped with a walnut and then drizzled with some honey. Then broiled the bruschetta until the cheese was melted and bread was toasted. 

we sauteed zucchini and made two deserts. A vanilla pudding cake with fresh blackberries and a Walnut cake that I am determined to make at home... tops my favorite desert list for sure. We finished cooking, set the table, and wrapped Marco's gifts. Anna Maria got him a few small things, we wrapped the gifts, shut off the lights and waited to yell surprise! Marco was in fact surprised, thrilled for the birthday celebrations and grateful for the gifts that we had given him.. Just a few more days then it would be time to celebrate my birthday! turning 21 in italia stay tuned.. 

EU - European Union

THanks to the EU traveling throughout Europe has become extremely easy.  The EU developed a single market in which various standardized laws apply in all member states. With this passport controls were abolished with the policy aiming to ensure "free movement of people, goods services and capital." Not only were passport controls but a uniform currency was established. Which means you do not have to exchange currency when traveling from country to country and if you have changed from dollars to euros you know the complications that can arise in the situation... 


to sum it all up, I will be traveling throughout Italy and Europe as much as possible and am grateful for the laws that the EU has put forth in aiding travel among countries... they only downside? Exchange rate. fortunately now it is very low, it still portrays the U.S. dollar as weak compared to the Euro. 


Exchange rate (currently) $1.32 = 1euro.


I knew a few of the girls i was going to be abroad with and understanding the expenses of being abroad as well as the exchange rate (over the summer it was somewhere around $1.7 = 1 euro) with the potential to go up we booked two trips that we all wanted to do and could pay off before we even stepped foot on European ground. We booked Amalfi Coast for sept 8-11 and Oktoberfest for sept 22-25th! I don't want to say much about either place (until i go) if you're really curious, here are the websites for the places... http://www.amalfiscoast.com/ and http://www.oktoberfest.de/en/.


I'll be back soon with some details and pictures from Amalfi :) 

Lorenzo de'Medici - scuola

by now i'm sure you're all beginning to wonder if I'm "studying" abroad or on a 4month vacation. Regardless of what you see in my blog and have stalked out on facebook, I am going to school at Lorenzo de'Medici Institute

http://www.ldminstitute.com/en/florence/about

 At Lorenzo de'Medici classes are held lunedi - giovedi (monday - thursday) Bentley requires students to enroll in a 6 credit Italian class that meets every day for an 1hour and 15min. All of our other classes meet once a week for 2hours and 30min. My other classes include: 

International Marketing, 

Global Business and Society (a global economic management course), 

Literature course called the Grand Tour of Italy,

Criminal Thoughts: Behind  the Italian Mafia.

My classes are really interesting... taking an International Marketing class abroad and a global economics class with professors that are Italian allows one to have a different perspective on some global economic business issues. The Grand Tour of Italy a tour that began in the 1700s in which people in their (late teens early twenties - like me) would travel abroad to gain life experience. Then there's my Mafia class, what could get better than learning about the Italian Mafia in Italy? 


promise my next post will be a little more exciting! ciao 

Getting to know Firenze

its unbelievable that I have already been living in Firenze for just over 2 weeks, at times it seems like months and others I'm already wishing time would slow down.. . There is just so much to do and see. Anna Maria has been a huge help in showing us sections and places of Florence that we might have otherwise ignored. I mentioned the trip to the Art Gallery as well as Piazza del Michelangelo, she has since taken us to a section tucked away from the tourist groups surrounding the duomo called Sant'Ambrogio. 

Sant'Ambrogio is near the Piazza Ghiberti and is home to the Sant'Ambrogio Market. It is a market that is frequented by Florentine housewives and very few tourist. There is a central building of the marketplace that houses shops for meat, fish, cheese and various salami.  Outside the building there are grocer trollys with some of the freshest vegetables i have ever seen. Other sides of the building there are counters arranged with clothing, shoes and countless trivial items. check out the vibrant colors of the vegetables.. .

In the same area as Sant'Ambrogio there are some of the most famous restaurants in Firenze. Owned, and operated by famous chef Fabio Picchi are Ristorante Cibreo and il Teatro del Sale. Translated - Cibreo Restaurant and the Theater of Salt.  il Teatro del Sale is a dinner theater where they also serve breakfast lunch and dinner accompanied by a Cabaret show.  Anyone is welcomed to visit il Teatro del Sale but you must be a member of the association to eat there. As with any club/association there are various levels of membership  but the most basic at 5euro valid for one year grants you all that il Teatro del Sale has to offer.  When you walk into the grand "back" room you see the stage, if you turn to the right you notice that they have opened up the kitchen for all guest to admire the art of cooking. 

Anna Maria brought us here for breakfast and we had the opportunity to not only become members, watch them prepare food, enjoy a delicious breakfast but also meet Fabio Picchi himself!  If interested in anymore information regarding il Teatro del Sale, Ristornate Cibreo or Fabio Picchi here is the website http://www.edizioniteatrodelsalecibreofirenze.it/. 

I'd have to say one of my favorite things ( which if you've been following from the beginning or continue to I'm sure i'll have a lot of favorite things) is the amount of walking I do. We walk everywhere, besides being in Marco's car for the 5 min ride up to Piazza del Michelangelo its been weeks since I have been in a car. my walk to my 9am class is one of my favorites, the streets are quite, sky crystal clear blue and everyone is just beginning to start there day. here are some of the incredible views I pass on my way to class.. one day i'm afraid they might be the reason I walk in a few minutes late!