25/06/2017 Departed our accommodation to catch the bus. When we went to get tickets we were informed that the bus is usually full and wouldn’t stop to pick us up. We played it safe and caught the train to Sorrento. This turned out to be a good move as there was a large queue to board the bus. We missed the first, the second went only to Positano and we managed to seat ourselves on the third. Only an hour later than originally planned. Got some nice views of Sorrento leaving and spent the next hour and a half winding around the clifftop roads. Arrived in Amalfi square to meet my parents who showed us the shortcut up to our lovely apartment. We were starving by then so grabbed some sandwiches down at a restaurant in Amalfi. Did very little after that until meeting with Laura and Geoff at their hotel for dinner. Was ok food but overpriced and I didn’t enjoy the service. Was late by the time dinner finished so we went to sleep.
26/07/2017 Decided to catch the bus up to Ravello the day before the wedding to check the place out. Laura was meeting with the wedding planner when we got there so we got to see all the venues for the wedding. Afterwards we went for a long walk down the mountain to get to Minori. Was a long way full of steps but at least we weren’t going up. Found a lovely restaurant by the water in Minori and managed to get service quick enough to make the next ferry back to Amalfi. After we cooled off and sat for a bit we decided to get some beer, meat and cheese from the supermarket before doing a little wander around Amalfi. Once we had thoroughly explored we grabbed some take away pizza and went home.
27/06/2017 The day of my sisters wedding. Mum left early and the rest of us had little to do so Amy and I went for a quick dip down at Atrani beach. Had some meat and cheese for lunch and otherwise did very little until it was time to get ready. Was so hot that I was already sweating by the time the car picked us up. Went first to Laura’s room but felt in the way of the constant photography so walked down to the garden to wait there. Took our seats and watched Laura come down the isle. Was a short and simple ceremony but very lovely. Walked down the streets behind the couple as the guitar men played to hotel Carouso for the reception. Had canapés under the olive trees and then sat down for a 4 course meal. The entree was sea bass but I still enjoyed it. Did a swap with Amy so I got to try both the pork and veal main dishes. After dinner the bar opened up and everyone went a bit crazy. Left the event feeling very drunk.
28/06/2027 Woke up earlier than I would have liked as we had a boat to catch. Got down there and waited for everyone to arrive from Ravello and then a bit longer while Laura recovered her bag from the taxi. As we set off it was really nice and I grabbed myself a beer. About half way through I started to feel sick. Not sure if it was a hangover or sea sickness or a combination of both. On the other side of the boat someone was already throwing up over the side. By the time we stopped for a swim quite a few people were throwing up over the edge. The swim refreshed me and my stomach settled down and I started to feel good. But there were so many people that weren’t doing well that we turned the boat around and headed back to Amalfi. We took Laura’s luggage back to the hotel and then grabbed a quick lunch before heading back to have a rest. Didn’t do much for the rest of the day until getting some lovely dinner in Amalfi and Amy buying some new shoes.
29/06/2017 Woke up, packed my bags and headed down to the car we had booked. Was so happy to be in a nice air conditioned car rather than having to catch multiple busses and trains to get to Rome. Arrived at our apartment and checked in. Sat around for a while until Russell and Kaitlin arrived and then went out to get some food. Unfortunately we had arrived during yet another public holiday so almost everything was closed. Amazingly the 24hr supermarket was open and also a decent size. Made sandwiches for lunch and Pasta for dinner. I was feeling really tired so didn’t manage to do anything else
30/06/2017 Woke up feeling less tired but still sore in the stomach. Had a quick breakfast and then left to get to Orvieto. Was surprisingly easy to get tickets given that we are in Italy. The train even had some form of air conditioning. Once we got to Orvieto we took the funicular??? up to the top. Wasn’t the most exciting of towns despite how cool it looks from the bottom but we did go on a tour of some of the caves beneath the city. Really interesting how many citizens carved caves and the multiple uses they have had. Had lunch at a cheap but delicious place that made huge meals. The next train was leaving soon so we didn’t stick around much longer. Got back to Rome and walked around the collessum and then back to our apartment via the shops. Had sandwiches for dinner and then went to bed.
1/07/2017 Everyone got up a bit later and slowly got ready before heading to the Vatican. I was a bit tired so I stayed put until they were done with that before meeting them near Castel Sant’Angelo. From there we walked to the pantheon stopping to get some gelato from what is considered the best place in Rome. We then swung by Trevi fountain and the Spanish steps which were much busier than I remembered. After that it was time to head home and find something for dinner. We looked up a close by aperitivo place which also had a nice beer range. €10 got us a drink and a huge selection of pasta, salads, meats and cheese and we all left satisfied. Played a little bit of briscola before spending hours trying to get to sleep because of the heat and mosquitoes.