It is Sunday and the Gino Sorbillo’s is closed. It would have been the perfect thing after spending the day seeing the Amalfi coast. Oh well, I had a great dinner of pasta with pumpkin that Giovanni made.
I took the train to Salerno, nice water front park, not much else to see. From there I took a bus to Amalfi. I was not prepared for the view from the bus. It was unbelievable. The Italian coastline is gorgeous. My first reaction was that I have to return with Patrícia. It is so incredibly beautiful and romantic. Every twisting mountainous corner of the road revealed more postcard perfect views. The water far below was azure blue, every valley had a cove with a lovely beach, the houses clinging to the rugged mountain sides all looked liked magazine houses, lemon orchards, and oh my…it was almost too beautiful. I have to go back with my lovely Patrícia and stay in one of the many little hotels dotting the coast, rent a scooter, maybe a boat...
Amalfi lived up to its reputation but the problem is that the cruise ships stop there and the city caters to the cash rich hoards that fill the streets with clockwork regularity. Positano was equally tourist heavy, yet slightly more attractive. The best part was the coastline itself. I found myself gasping at how beautiful it was.
Another bus took me to Sorrento, touristy yet more sensible and much bigger. The local football team won some important game and the streets were gushing with team spirit and an ungodly amount of noise. Convoys of fans cruised the streets in cars and scooters waving huge banners and flags, blowing whistles and horns, and showing off some impressive vocal cords. It was an entertaining chaos.
I was on my way back to Napoli when I was kissed by an Italian guy on the train. I started talking to Favio, a 28-year-old Italian criminal lawyer, about the train destination and then we kept talking. His English was only a little better than my Italian. We managed to have a good conversation anyway, causing him to miss his stop. He was very excited to talk to me and when he left he kissed me on both cheeks. It was my first time; I felt honored and just a little less like an outsider. I would never have thought that I would have good memories of being kissed by a man on a train. Life is strange.
