Category Archives: Amalfi Coast

Back to Italy

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Florence from Piazza Michaelangelo

We weren’t planning to visit Italy this year. Last year’s trip was on such a scale and the credit card bills were so large that we were genuinely planning a “stay at home” year.

But last year, on a whim, we had pencil booked a two week stay at Casetta Arienzo in Positano for August this year.

We ignored the time late last year when we usually book the early bird flights to Europe. We were mentally not going, we had checked out, so to speak.

Until an email arrived in May from the lovely people at Eden Roc Hotel asking us to confirm or cancel the booking for Casetta Arienzo. That changed things.

Or more accurately, we came to our senses.

Within a fortnight in May we arranged everything – flights (thank you Petra our lovely travel agent of 25 years), hotels (some old favourites and some new experiences), train trips, rental cars in Italy and all that goes along with a holiday.

We are going for a month, staying in Positano for two weeks, spending a week or so catching up with friends in Tuscany and making up the remaining time in Rome.

Time has flown and it’s now mid August and we’re flying out in a couple of days. We can’t wait.

Photos and more photos

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We’ve been home from Italy for just over a month. Time for us to settle back into home life, sort through all the photographs we’ve taken, and load a selection into a holiday gallery on SmugMug.

If you’d like to see some shots from the blog and some new ones you won’t have seen, click here.

All the photos were taken using iPhones – as opposed to the usual Nikon camera back and lenses I have lugged to Europe in the past. All in all, apart from not having any real control over the depth of field, they look pretty good.

The last breakfast

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Today we had our last breakfast at Eden Roc before we leave tomorrow hosted by the lovely Tony. It involved everything from Prosecco to poached eggs with Tiramisu and sweet treats added in there as well.

What a great way to start the day.

Superyacht spotting 2

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Important update – Nero has a slide!

Suddenly that 525,000 Euro is looking much better value.

Superyacht spotting

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No visit to Positano would be complete without some mention of superyachts.

When we arrived the bay was peppered wth these toys of the rich and famous but in the last few days the numbers have dwindled. Apparently they aren’t fans of rainy weather.

However, one turned up today which looked pretty special. It had wonderful retro lines reminiscent of the 50s and 60s.

Its name is Nero, it is 90m long and it can accommodate 12 guests in 6 cabins looked after by 20 crew. It is available for charter for 525,000 Euro a week – which is quite a lot of money.

But if you can find 12 people to split the cost it’s only 43,750 Euro per person or 6,250 Euro per day – which is still quite a lot.

Nero – available for charter from Burgess Yachts.

Casa e Bottega

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Today the rain stopped and the sun came out. The bonus was the temperature was lower than last week. So we set off at midday for the village to do some final shopping and have lunch at Casa e Bottega.

Casa e Bottega is a small cafe that also sells homewares made by local artists. Jugs, pots, bowls, table cloths, prints. We had lunch there last week and were keen to visit again before we leave this coming weekend.

The food was great and the staff were friendly, recognising us from our previous visit. This time we had the chance to talk to the owner – who also owns Palazzo Murat hotel and another restaurant in Positano. It was interesting that all the issues we have with tourism and hospitality in New Zealand they are grappling with here as well.

Our visit also gave Jean the chance to buy some things for the house as well as both of us having a great pranzo (lunch) – helped by the bottle of wine we managed to consume.

Casa e Bottega
Salmon Salad
Chicken Cutlets
Casa e Bottega store
Casa e Bottega fresh produce

Rainy days in Positano

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After two weeks of sun and heat the weather in Positano has changed. It’s rained since Monday. Yesterday on and off and today pretty much continually so far.

The temperature has also dropped from mid to late 30s to mid 20s. And the humidity has gone.

Life is more comfortable but also, there’s less to do. We made a trip to the village yesterday for provisions, dodging the showers. On the way home we called into Galli Bar for a drink (sitting inside). There was a discussion with the staff about the weather and the fact that their business effectively stops when it rains – but also that in Positano there is little to do on wet days except stay inside, drink and watch Netflix.

Which they were doing yesterday and we will be doing today.

Distant rain
Coming closer
And here it is

Recovering

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Saturday’s dinner at the hotel was a big night out. Sunday was a really quiet day – spent largely in bed recovering from matching his and hers hangovers.

Jean has discovered that her nemesis is Limoncello. Last night it was in the form of a Limoncello Spritz. Two of them after dinner made for a rowdy ride home (thank you Pascal for organising this) and a quiet day to follow.

We managed to get out of bed and to the local store for supplies around 7:30 – that evening.

It reminded me of something similar from our stay in 2011. It was late in the year – around the end of November – and the hotel was shutting. We had gone along for dinner but after that the lovely Carlo explained that all the opened wine stock had to be either drunk or thrown away. You can guess how that went – it was epic.

The next day no one felt great – hence the family photo taken mid-afternoon.

Positano – November 2011. Jean recovering from the hotel closing – Daisy and Poppy in support.

Dinner at Eden Roc Hotel

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Saturday night we dined at the hotel. They have made major improvements to the restaurant in the last few years and it’s paying dividends as the patronage has increased considerably.

One new addition to the facilities is Terrazza Paradiso, a terrace sitting above the rest of the restaurant, open to the air and with a spectacular view of the village and sea below. The lovely Carlo, who runs the Adamo ed Eva restaurant at the hotel, managed to get us a table on the Terrazza for a magical dinner which ended with two drunk kiwis being driven home afterwards.

This meal was also the debut of one the dresses Jean bought in Sorrento when we visited on Friday.

Walking to Positano

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On our regular walk from Casetta Arienzo to Positano we see some spectacular views. This one is a bit different – it’s the Positano cemetery which you can see at the top of the picture – located on a hill high above the village.

A day at the beach

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Yesterday we visited Fornillo Beach and the Pupetto Beach Club. Fornillo Beach is one bay around from the main Positano beach and, as a result, a lot quieter. It’s quite a hike to get there as you walk around the coast on a path that rises and falls with the terrain and in today’s 39 degrees it tested our stamina but we made it and settled in for the day.

Beach clubs are common in Italy – a relaxed restaurant at the back of the beach and rows of umbrellas and loungers in front going right to the waters edge. There are staff constantly patrolling the loungers taking orders for drink and food – or lunch can be had in the restaurant if desired.

The Pupetto Beach Club is part of the Pupetto Hotel which is partly set in the cliff and partly hanging off the cliff above Fornillo Beach. The hotel looks great – we got an unofficial tour as we walked through it to get to the beach club looking at bit out of place in our beach attire.

Lunch was the least Italian meal we have had – cheeseburger and fries and a chicken salad. It tasted great and we needed that.

Walking home

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Casetta Arienzo is about 800m from Eden Roc hotel and the intersection where the road through Positano village meets the main road to Amalfi. From here we can walk down to the village or stop at the hotel for breakfast, a day by the pool or dinner – or all three.

We do this walk pretty much every day so we forget how spectacular it is – with cliffs on both sides, the ones above us reaching skyward and the ones on the other side falling down to the sea. This afternoon I grabbed a shot of the cliff above the road as we walked back to Casetta Arienzo. Behind Jean the view to the ocean is equally spectacular.

Walking home this evening
The view behind Jean

This week is hot

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Italy – and other parts of Europe – have had a warm summer. Each day this week the temperature in Positano is reaching around 39 degrees. That is warm.

It means that life has to adjust accordingly with more time spent doing very little and more time spent in the shade or in air conditioning.

Yesterday was a case in point. We were planning to have lunch at Casa Bottega in the village. It was a walk of about 1km down hill to get there so we geared up with water and hats and the minimum amount of clothing we could wear without being arrested. Casa Bottega is a small cafe with great food and air conditioning. But it is shut Mondays, something we only found out when we arrived at the front door. It was about 1pm and it was hot, really hot.

New plan – Jean has spotted another cafe on the walk which we returned to called Ohimà. It had both an inside and outside area. The kind waiter asked us “inside or outside” with a wry smile already shepherding us towards the inside with its cool air conditioning.

It took us 10 minutes to recover from the heat – to take in water and for our clothes to dry off.

Lunch was great and an excellent way to wile away an hour or two with great authentic cuisine and wine – before we head out to take on the heat again – walking up hill to our place.

Luckily mid way between the restaurant and home there is Li Galli Bar. It has spectacular views across the bay and friendly staff we have come to know. It straddles the main road through the village with the kitchen on one side and the tables on the other. So every drink or meal or chair or umbrella has to run the gauntlet of the road. This is expertly managed by the staff and we have yet to see a casualty of any sort.

It is the ideal place to break the walk home – but yesterday the heat meant a short stop – just sitting still in the shade was exhausting. The staff even suggested we head somewhere cooler after our drink, no “altro giro” today.

With the same weather forecast for the rest of the week it will mean more days by the hotel pool and less exploring the area. No great sacrifice there.

Hot!
Delightfully cool Ohimà restaurant
Ravioli
Beef and onion jam pasta
Gelato
Killing time in the air con
Li Galli Bar
Li Galli Bar

Two views from the casa

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It’s Sunday evening. We have spent the day around the hotel pool relaxing. Back at our place we are sitting enjoying the view – and having some Prickly Pears that Tony from the hotel gave us this afternoon, and a drink or two.

In one direction it’s the beautiful view we all know, in the other it’s laundry day.

Misting to keep cool

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The temperature here is around 32-34 degrees at present – which is quite warm. To counter this, some restaurants and cafes have fan systems which spray mist into the atmosphere to make customers more comfortable.

La Zagara, about half way between the beach and our place, is one such cafe. We stopped there yesterday afternoon to break the long and hot uphill walk, and to partake of a cold beverage or two.

Not sure if it was the misting or the drinks, but we felt much better after our stop.