Friday, July 15, 2011
Back in the USA
We arrived in the bay area earlier this week. We're staying in a central location which I will miss when we move back into our house. Everything seems so familiar and it's almost as if we haven't left. Sindhu is enjoying seeing her friends, she is also taking math and swimming lessons. Rushil is taking tennis lessons and I was thrilled to find a cricket camp for him which he will start this weekend. There are million things to do before the summer is out including reconnecting with our friends. I have to still post pictures from the Europe trip, I will get to that slowly.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Seaside in Sorrento
I am starting with Sorrento first because this is where we are. What is most distinct about this area? The lush lemon and orange groves that line the streets everywhere we go. If you have ever tried lemoncello, you should know that it is made here and is sold at every corner store. Freshly squeezed lemonade and orange juice are refreshing after drinking processed juices throughout the trip. The seaside and the steep hills are the backdrop. Unlike other cities in Italy, Sindhu pointed out that Sorrento has a modern feel to it, although Pompeii is just 30 minutes away. It is a popular vacation spot among the British and is laid-back compared to Venice and Florence.
The train ride from Florence to Naples is particularly picturesque up to Rome with fields and fields of bright yellow sunflowers and the Tuscany countryside lined with vineyards. Simply breathtaking! In Naples a private taxi driver tried to convince us that a taxi ride would cost the same as taking the local train by fibbing about the train prices. A taxi would have been easier but taking public transportation is part of the whole experience. Once we arrived in Sorrento, it seemed like the hotel was very close to the station so we decided to walk, but later realized we underestimated the distance, it was blazing hot, we were tired from the multiple train rides and lugging our baggage did not help. We were elated when we finally saw the hotel. Later, we walked that same route multiple times and it was just over a mile.
We are staying at Il Roseto (www.ilrosetosorrento.com). It is a small but quaint inn, family-run and our room is very comfortable with all the required modern conveniences. Sindhu becomes wistful when she passes by a hotel with a grand reception and asks me why we are not staying there. She likes the rooms and apartments that I booked but she would have liked if we stayed at a Westin or Marriott type of hotel.
Our first night, we walked to the main square and chose a restaurant because it had a big tv screen and we wanted to watch the Wimbledon semis with Nadal and Murray. Big mistake! The game ended soon after we sat down, the food and service was mediocre and the meal cost a fortune. The Rick Steve guide listed many other options just around the corner. After dinner, we strolled along the square, window shopped and sampled lemon cello.
Today we went to Pompeii. Our last trip there was almost 11 years ago, it was the tail end of our 6 week Europe trip, Sindhu was tired of traveling and we had to take turns seeing the place so I was not that impressed. This time around, it was a whole different experience! Prasad downloaded Rick Steve's podcast for Pompeii so we were armed with his guidebook and audio guide. Pompeii is a Roman city covered by ashes when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79AD. The city was forgotten under the ashes, therefore well preserved and was rediscovered in the 1600s. You get a very good idea of what Roman life was like 2000 years ago. Some of the most interesting aspects were the impressively long aquaduct they built, with elaborate schemes to supply water to the townspeople including lead pipes, the thought process for blocking carriages on pedestrian only streets, mandatory size for horse carriages , stumps they created for pedestrians to stand on when the streets were washed, the 3 different type of roman baths, the bakery, generally we were impressed with what seemed like a well organzed town. We only saw 25 percent of the city but that was more than enough, we were exhausted by the end of it.
Tomorrow the plan is to go to the Amalfi coast but apparently the buses are on strike. There is an option to go by boat but it will involve a lot of climbing, not exactly my thing. Let's see, maybe we'll be lucky and the strike will be over tomorrow.
The train ride from Florence to Naples is particularly picturesque up to Rome with fields and fields of bright yellow sunflowers and the Tuscany countryside lined with vineyards. Simply breathtaking! In Naples a private taxi driver tried to convince us that a taxi ride would cost the same as taking the local train by fibbing about the train prices. A taxi would have been easier but taking public transportation is part of the whole experience. Once we arrived in Sorrento, it seemed like the hotel was very close to the station so we decided to walk, but later realized we underestimated the distance, it was blazing hot, we were tired from the multiple train rides and lugging our baggage did not help. We were elated when we finally saw the hotel. Later, we walked that same route multiple times and it was just over a mile.
We are staying at Il Roseto (www.ilrosetosorrento.com). It is a small but quaint inn, family-run and our room is very comfortable with all the required modern conveniences. Sindhu becomes wistful when she passes by a hotel with a grand reception and asks me why we are not staying there. She likes the rooms and apartments that I booked but she would have liked if we stayed at a Westin or Marriott type of hotel.
Our first night, we walked to the main square and chose a restaurant because it had a big tv screen and we wanted to watch the Wimbledon semis with Nadal and Murray. Big mistake! The game ended soon after we sat down, the food and service was mediocre and the meal cost a fortune. The Rick Steve guide listed many other options just around the corner. After dinner, we strolled along the square, window shopped and sampled lemon cello.
Today we went to Pompeii. Our last trip there was almost 11 years ago, it was the tail end of our 6 week Europe trip, Sindhu was tired of traveling and we had to take turns seeing the place so I was not that impressed. This time around, it was a whole different experience! Prasad downloaded Rick Steve's podcast for Pompeii so we were armed with his guidebook and audio guide. Pompeii is a Roman city covered by ashes when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79AD. The city was forgotten under the ashes, therefore well preserved and was rediscovered in the 1600s. You get a very good idea of what Roman life was like 2000 years ago. Some of the most interesting aspects were the impressively long aquaduct they built, with elaborate schemes to supply water to the townspeople including lead pipes, the thought process for blocking carriages on pedestrian only streets, mandatory size for horse carriages , stumps they created for pedestrians to stand on when the streets were washed, the 3 different type of roman baths, the bakery, generally we were impressed with what seemed like a well organzed town. We only saw 25 percent of the city but that was more than enough, we were exhausted by the end of it.
Tomorrow the plan is to go to the Amalfi coast but apparently the buses are on strike. There is an option to go by boat but it will involve a lot of climbing, not exactly my thing. Let's see, maybe we'll be lucky and the strike will be over tomorrow.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)