Distance Traveled from Messina: 167 Nautical Miles
Early wake up for our tour today: “The Amalfi Coast and Pompeii” (a full day of touring). This tour involves a boat ride from the town of Salerno along the Amalfi Coast to the city of Amalfi (some free time there), then back to Salerno for a bus ride to Pompeii for lunch followed by a walking tour of Pompeii. Daniela is our tour guide – her English is near perfect.
Heading out on our tour
Mt Vesuvius is under a cloud layer
On our way to Salerno, we pass the picturesque village of Vietre. The village got its name for the Italian word for glass because Vietre was once known for its glassworks. The town has switched from glass to ceramics.
The Village of Vietre
The bus takes us to the pier to catch our tour boat. The boat is comfortable enough and we grab seats on the upper level so we can take pictures.
Our boat to the Amalfi Coast
On the boat together
Leaving Salerno
The ride is a bit bumpy in this small boat but the only issue is the difficulty in taking pictures on a swaying boat. The Amalfi Coast lives up to its worldwide reputation and is very scenic – rocky cliffs dotted with homes and crops.
The beautiful Amalfi Coast
The Village of Cetara
A house built in the rocky cliff
Terraced Farming on the Coast
Our destination is the small village of Amalfi. We are here for some free time
Ellen near the entrance to the Village of Amalfi
The Cathedral of Amalfi
Me on the steps of the Cathedral
Fountain in the main square of Amalfi
Leaving Amalfi for Salerno
Lunch was at Luculus Restaurant right across the street from the entrance to Pompeii – the usual, cannelloni, wine, chicken (grilled veggies for me), bread, and lemon cake.
That’s when everything changed.
On my way to the washroom, I noticed that one of my passengers had fallen and was bleeding (she had hit her head on the door near the washrooms). The restaurant called an ambulance and indicated that someone from the restaurant would go with her to the nearby hospital emergency room. She insisted that I go with her (she had been at one of my talks and recognized me). She was pretty scared so I agreed to go with her to the hospital. The entire process, stitching her would (8 stitches no local anesthetic), waiting for a CAT Scan (TAC in Italian), consultation with a Neurologist, and signing her out, took about 3 hours overall. Also, there were no chairs in the ER room so I was standing or leaning most of the time. On the upside, I did get a chance to ride in a real Italian ambulance (siren and lights) and watch the Italian EMT and ER personnel at work. Not like the States. The passenger turned out to be OK – she had to buy a hat to wear home (she called me later to thank me for watching out for her).
I got back before Ellen and had a necessary Bloody Mary in the Passport Bar and waited for Ellen to get back from her tour.
Farewell Show: Sound Decision (A Cappella Group with great synchronized choreography [Jersey Boys, etc]); Paul Baker
Headed for Civitavecchia…
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