Naples, Pompei, the Amalfi Coast, and Capri

Naples
Has been a very enjoyable last few days here in Southern Italy. I spent Monday afternoon and evening in Naples and hung out with Renee's cousins - had a blast. Her cousin Celene was the best tour guide and took me all over town on the back of her motorino (scooter), which made for a true Napolitano experience. I had no idea Naples was such a pretty town. I did have some idea that the town claims to have the best pizza, and I confirmed that claim at Da Michele.

Tuesday I took the Circumvesuviana train to a town outside of Sorrento called Sant'Agnello (one hour south of Napoli) - beautiful, tiny coastal town and a perfect base for visiting the ruins of Pompeii, the Amalfi Coast, and the island of Capri.

Pompei
Pompei was a very cool experience as there is so much of the town still intact despite Vesuvius wiping out the population almost 2,000 years ago. There are countless well-preserved structures amid dozens of city blocks, some very detailed and colorful mosaics inside different (roofless) houses, and even a couple victims on display (the victims were people or animals that were killed after the eruption but their forms appear almost frozen by the ash that enveloped the city).

Spent all day up and down the Amalfi Coast yesterday: it is a 40 minute bus ride to Positano and another 50 minutes to Amalfi. Positano is the prettier of the two towns, but both are gorgeous. Huge cliffs jutting straight into the ocean in front of tree-covered hills, and the towns are full of multi-colored houses built on the rock with small streets that wind along the hillsides through the town. So pretty (pic to the right).

Green Grotto of Capri (we swam through that)
Today a group from my hostel took a boat trip to the island of Capri. Was a blast. Capri is a pretty island off the coast of the mainland here, and the coastline looks similar to the Amalfi coast. But we had two local Napolitano guides and our own boat with food, beer, and biscotti, and this means of transport beat any bus or train I've been on. After spending a few hours on the island, our guides returned and picked us up at the marina, then we went around the island and explored the three different grottos along the coastline. The grottos are naturally formed caves in the cliffs along the ocean that are each named for the colors they produce when the sun shines through the openings. Awesome. Lots of swimming, a little bit of jellyfish (though no sting victims), and plenty of sun. Great day. Will be bummed to leave Italia but I've already come up with a laundry list of excuses to return.