Tag Archives: Italy

Good morning Positano

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Early morning in PositanoThose of you who know me, know that mornings and I aren’t the best of friends. Even with the added incentive of lingering jet lag, I still manage to miss a fair bit of this magical time of the day.

Luckily the lovely Jean is an early riser and this morning, from our veranda, she captured this early morning view of the bay. A view which I have never been up early enough to witness.

That this shot exists at all is tribute to the camera in her iPhone 6 which managed to capture the image in the pre-dawn darkness.

Cliff diving on the Amalfi Coast

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It’s crazy what you see online – I was just checking news from home and ran across this article and video about a young Amercian and his mates making a film about cliff diving along the Amalfi Coast.

Putting aside the health and safety issues around diving off cliffs (I never thought I’d see myself write that comment) it’s a great film and much of it was shot in and around Positano – our neighbourhood – and Capri – just a 40 minute boat ride along the coast.

But for those of you who think the divers are crazy, think again, they clearly know their limitations.

There are a number of shots of the stone bridge at Furore (first seen in the film with a red Fiat 500 crossing it) which is just along the road from our place. There are scenes of people jumping from the base of the bridge but none from the top – why is that?

Simply because the bridge is 28 metres (just under 92 feet) above the water and in July each year the true high diving experts dive from the bridge as part of the Mediterranean high diving championship cup. The jump takes 3 seconds and the divers hit the water at around 100km/h. If you want to be a spectator, the event is scheduled for July 12 next year – bring your own boat.

Images courtesy of Live Salerno, stuff.co.nz and YouTube.

The day of the cat

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Villa catThe news that a pair of animal lovers have arrived in Positano has spread quickly with our first feline visitor arriving on Sunday afternoon.

Clearly a cat that knows a couple of “soft touches”, this little girl wandered into the villa and made herself at home. As I write this she’s spread out on the front verandah enjoying some late afternoon sun.

 

 

Super view

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From the villa we have a view of the various super yachts that visit Positano. Some are relatively modest and some are a little over the top.

Often the yachts launch smaller craft, jet skis or motor boats for the use of those onboard, but this is the first time we’ve seen a waterslide as an accessory on a super yacht.

What will they think of next?

Journey’s end

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After 3 days travelling by plane, train and automobile we have arrived in Positano. Along the way we spent 3 hours in Auckland, 4 hours in Hong Kong, 25 hours in the air and a day and a night in Rome.

New Zealand farewelled us with chilling rain on a grey day and Positano welcomed us with sun, warmth and gentle breezes. The delights of jet lag haven’t quite left us yet so currently a late night is 8pm and a “sleep in” is 5am. We know that will change as the wonderfully pedestrian pace of life in Positano takes over.

As always everyone has looked after us superbly – from the welcome sight of the hotel driver at Rome airport to our room being ready for us at 8am when we arrived at Hotel Barocco. The ability to drop our bags and freshen up was a lifesaver – and no mean feat for the hotel as they were fully booked the previous night but still they managed to get our room ready in record time.

The trip south by train was blissfully uneventful and relaxing with none of the hassles that accompany air travel – although recent events in France and Belgium may change that.

The welcome at Eden Roc was as warm as ever with time spent catching up on events of the last year – had the changes to the hotel that were talked about last been made? No, too much beaurcracy and too little time  – maybe next year. Were all the staff well, who had left and who was new? All the usual characters were still part of the team – plus some new faces – it has been a good year. Were we in for good weather or was the recent rain going to dampen our holiday? No, the weather had settled and we could expect hot, dry days.

The afternoon was spent enjoying a late lunch/early dinner on the hotel terrace looking out over Positano and the bay beyond. Let the relaxing begin.

A twitch upon the thread

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Positano Panorama - small

We never intended to return to Italy for a holiday this year. After visiting last year there were too many other things that demanded our attention, so 2015 was going to be a “stay home” year.

And it remained that way until winter set in, the bleak weather started and “our place” lost  the sun for it’s enforced winter shading.

Then one evening after a long day at work we started to talk about some form of escape to the sun. Just a few days away – maybe Fiji or Rarotonga or at a push Tahiti. But each time we talked about it we came back to the place we would really like to spend some time in the sun.

So we’re off – two weeks in Positano and a few nights in Rome in late August and early September. We can’t wait.

 

Please come to Cesena – the response

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Foo Fighter Invite 2A thousand musicians playing your song is a powerful invitation. And it only took a few hours for Dave Grohl to respond.

In Italian – who knew? Click here to see the response.

Please come to Cesena

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Foo Fighter Invite 1The small town of Cesena in northern Italy is trying to attract the attention of the band the Foo Fighters. They want to the band to come and play a concert in their town.

They are really, really keen. See for yourself – http://www.rockin1000.com

 

Some randomness

Gallery

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This gallery contains 8 photos.

I have had a collection of random photos building up on my desktop for a while. Shots that I liked but which had no real story attached to them – other than they might be useful for a blog sometime in the future. Today … Continue reading →

To retouch or not to retouch

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A few years ago we found ourselves in the hiiltop town of Monteriggioni about 20 minutes north of Siena. It was late in the afternoon and there was a view through the Eastern gate looking out across the Tuscan countryside that just had to be photographed.

When I saw the shots on screen I was disappointed. In some shots the gate surround was almost black and the shot lacked colour and contrast. In others, when the exposure was long enough to show the gate surround the countryside beyond was over exposed. The obvious thing was to load the shots into Photoshop and do some work. Which is what happened.

One of the great things about digital cameras is that they store a huge amount of the detail lurking in dark areas of a shot. The area may look black but with a little coaxing the detail can be brought out. Usually without affecting the exposure in the rest of the shot. This is what I did along with increasing the contract and saturation in the shot.

I guess the test of the finished shot is whether it represents the scene as I remembered it at the time? And yes it does.

 

 

Aaahhh … Positano

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Positano from the seaRegular readers will know that Positano on Italy’s Amalfi Coast is one of our favourite places to visit. We’ve taken many picture of the view from the village looking out to sea and of the village from the beach, but it’s not often that we venture onto the water and see the village from the sea.

Good news though – it still looks great.

This picture is actually from a few years ago when we were returning from a day tour along the coast. Thanks to Gennaro and Salvatore’s boat hire for many great days on, and in, the water. As I look at the photo I can still hear Capitano Salvatore singing as we make our way home at the end of the day. Multo bene.

2014 – the year that was

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It was a fun old year at our place. As always there seemed to be a lot happening but when I look back at the photos we’ve taken, our trip in August and those puppies – well Bella mainly – seem to dominate.

Togetherness

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Old Couple in PositanoFrom the balcony of our hotel room in Positano we could look across the road and see the back yard of a small villa which was perched on the edge of the cliff overlooking the bay. An elderly couple live there and every evening they sit outside, side by side and enjoy the sunset.

Sometimes one gets the other a drink and sometimes one or the other nods off to sleep. But every evening they are there, sitting next to each other.

We first noticed them years ago and every time we visit Positano we see them again, each time a little older, a little slower and a little frailer. But always together.

Beware of Via dei Condotti

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Louis 4One thing Jean was set on buying, even before leaving home, was some form of sleeve or holder for her MacBook Air. She was waiting until we reached Rome so she could visit Via dei Condotti and the Louis Vuitton shop.

Via die Condotti runs from the base of the Spanish Steps to Via del Corso – 4 blocks of premium shopping. Every European luxury brand is on the street. Gucci is on the corner at the base of the Spanish Steps. Valentino is next. Then it’s Prada and Dior. A little further down is Louis Vuitton. It just keeps going.

We headed into Louis Vuitton’s three storey shop and were greeted warmly (well Jean was as she had one of the shops fine products over her shoulder) and asked what we were looking for. Yes, of course they have laptop sleeves and bags. Yes we’d be delighted to follow the staff member to look at some options.

The shelves are full of product all perfectly displayed. The staff (who seem to out number customers by three to one) are immaculately groomed and dressed, and the store is spotless with none of the usual retail clutter you see elsewhere.

None of the bags on the shelves are used as samples. If you are interested in a bag, a sample is available from drawers below the shelves, each bag in a special holder to protect it. The staff also wear gloves to handle the merchandise.

Of course if you purchase an item, it arrives already wrapped from somewhere else in the store.

Our modest “laptop sleeve” rapidly turned into a messenger bag. But which size – there were three –  and which pattern – modern or traditional?  The price started to climb.

In the end a selection was made, aided somewhat by a glass of champagne, and was charged to Jean’s account. Yes, scaringly, ever since she bought her first bag 6 years ago, Jean has an account.

God help us all.

 

Air New Zealand versus Cathay Pacific – our experience

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Travelling to London via Hong Kong and then back from Rome to Auckland via Hong Kong gave us the ability to compare the Premium Economy class offerings on the two airlines. And although it’s called the same name, the reality is that the offering is quite different.

Air New Zealand were one of the first airlines to offer this “better than economy but not business” class when they phased out first class and promoted business class to lie flat beds.

The general Premium Economy offering is simple – greater legroom and wider seats in a separated cabin area with a range of added comforts – a dedicated check in, better food and drink, amenities packs, welcome drinks – all which vary by airline.

With Jean and I being tall, the key benefit is the added legroom. This is even more important given the distance we travel and the time we spend onboard.

Until this trip we have been dedicated Air New Zealand customers and have seen their Premium Economy offering evolve over the years from a basic “greater legroom” product through to the specially designed seat pods that they introduced about 4 years ago.

But two years ago Air New Zealand made changes to their Airpoints programme which removed any advantage for us booking and paying for their Premium Economy seats. So this trip we threw ourselves on the open market and simply went for the best deal we could find – which turned out to be Cathay Pacific.

We discovered our trip was, in fact, a codeshare between Cathay Pacific and Air New Zealand so our trips between Auckland and Hong Kong were on Air New Zealand metal and the legs between Hong Kong and London/Rome were on Cathay – the same Premium Economy class but very different experiences.

In terms of legroom and seat comfort there was not much in it. Cathay had 8 seats across the cabin, Air New Zealand had nine – but the Air New Zealand seats felt wider. Legroom was expansive on both.

The cabin ambience was better on Cathay mainly because the plane (an Airbus 350) was new versus Air New Zealand’s 777 which was in need of a refit or replacement with one of their new Dreamliners.

The service was much better on Air New Zealand. Meals were better quality and served on china, not plastic, and there were cabin staff dedicated to the premium economy section. If you wanted something, it was there, immediately.

Cathay Pacific, on the other hand served standard economy food on plastic plates – and wine from plastic glasses. The cabin staff served both premium and economy cabins, but they still managed to answer our calls quickly and efficiently but did slip a couple of times.

Because of the comparative ages of the planes, Cathay’s entertainment offering was more comprehensive and higher quality with touch screens and excellent screen clarity. Air New Zealand struggled to compete but, talking to staff, things are looking up with upgrades to the 777 fleet just around the corner and the first Dreamliners already operating across the Tasman.

So who wins? Air New Zealand by a small margin – but when they are flying with better planes it won’t be a contest. They just know how to do things well, and to make passengers who have paid extra for a little comfort feel it’s money well spent.