On the train down to Sorrento, there was a saxophone player accompanied by an accordion player who, for some reason, I found totally charming. I tipped them and took a picture of them. By the time we were on the return trip I was tempted to trip them as they walked by. It’s a long hard day being a tourist….
Bought tickets for the ferry to Capri—so cool just to see SORRENTO - CAPRI on a ticket, and waited in a little park for departure. There was a little truck set up selling lemonade and they had a radio playing Michael Bublé “It’s a Beautiful Day.” The ferry to Capri was fun and relaxing and beautiful. Capri is a big giant butte (haha!) looming out of the water. We escaped from the throngs of tourists right away—funiculares are for wimps, right? Instead, we walked to the town above, which was the longest and hottest staircase on this planet. At the top, we found a charming restaurant overlooking the water, got a great table by the edge, flopped down and prepared to refuel. Our waiter whistled “Fly Me to the Moon” as we settled in. I will later realize he was, indeed, on the moon, or at least some other planet….
In Italy, the food comes when it’s ready, so half a table might be eating while the other half hasn’t gotten their food yet, but it’s all good and leisurely, so once you realize you can’t go by your usual rules of etiquette, it’s cool. The kids got their pizzas first, so I said, “Please, go right ahead. Don’t let it get cold.” But then my lunch never ever came :( I later Googled this restaurant and found it to be rated #83 out of 84 restaurants on Capri. So, I guess it could have been worse. They acted surprised, but now I know it’s a daily thing, forgetting people’s meals….. The bill included a 5 euro water we did not order, and it did not include my wine, so I mentioned this and proposed that it’s probably a wash anyway, the wine and the water probably being about the same, but no, I got to pay 3 euros more for the trouble.
We had to jump right on the ferry to Sorrento after this too-long lunch experience, so it was kind of a short visit. We’re all glad we saw Capri, but it’s just not the same beauty of Italy we see elsewhere. All the Gucci and Prada stores, and the tourists everywhere, not the traveling experience we like best.
There was a British/Italian wedding happening in Sorrento when we got back. I love love love watching these, and we usually see a handful every year. The kids find it embarrassing, though, to be anywhere near me because I take pictures, which they think is intrusive. But these newlyweds were fine with it. I mean the type of people to have a destination wedding are the type who don’t mind the spotlight too much. They pretty much had full-blown paparazzi.