05/05/2022: Capri

The day before yesterday we had decided to splurge on a semi-private day trip to the island of Capri. It was pricey, but the alternative was a ferry and then figure out how to get around on your own. The day trip was an 8-hour trip that first goes along the Sorrento coastline, then across the bay to Capri, encircle the island seeing all the sights, and then stopping at Marina Grande (Capri’s Marina Grande, not Sorrento’s) for a few hours of personal time on the island, and then coming back to our Marina Grande. It was great that the tour started and finished steps from our Airbnb. So at 9:00 a.m. this morning we set off with 10 other people for a day on the water. Christine was ecstatic! She loves being on the water.

The coast is quite rugged on the Sorrentine peninsula, but that doesn’t stop people from building amazing villas high up on the rock face. Augustino and Andrea, our boat captains, said that now, though, the peninsula is protected and no new building is permitted. Along the coast you can see the remains of Roman watch towers and other small fortifications.

There was a small waterfall that we motored up to and I reached out to touch it.

Then it was across the Bay of Naples to Capri.

Capri is essentially two giant rocks with some lowland in between where the town of Capri lies. It doesn’t really look like much from the water, to tell the truth, but I guess it is a pretty swanky town. Another town, Anacapri, is up at the top of the cliff to the right of Capri and just seeing the road that goes up there made us not want to take the bus up there. The island rock is incredibly impressive. I said to Christine that I haven’t been in such awe about rock since we were at Zion National Park. There were lots of big rocks there. But Capri is quite impressive.

One of our first stops was at Capri’s Blue Grotto. We’ve been spoiled by Malta’s Blue Grotto and when I saw the chaos around the entrance to Capri’s Blue Grotto, I didn’t want to pay 28 Euros for us to go into the cavern. There’s a tiny little opening that a small boat squeezes through and you get oared around the cavern, along with several other small boats, and you’re back out in just a few minutes. Augustino acknowledged that for the price you pay, it really isn’t worth it. Besides, you have to get out of your boat and into the tiny little wobbly boat that gets oared into the grotto. So we passed.

We continued around the island and went past a nice lighthouse, Punta Carena, that has been active since 1867. I love lighthouses!

Then we stopped to admire another grotto, the Green Grotto. This one didn’t cost anything and it was very pretty. Smaller boats could pass through the hole in the rock, but our boat was too large. Nevertheless, it was a lovely spot.

We then arrived at Capri’s Marina Grande where we got off the boat for some free time to explore. Everyone else on the boat went by minibus to either Anacapri and Capri, or both. The big attraction is shopping, but we’re not shoppers so we decided to explore the area around Marina Grande. And there is essentially only one way to go . . . UP.

At first, we took a steep set of stairs to another level, but then decided to walk along the road rather than climb several sets of steps. The road is 1-1/2 car widths wide. You know what that means. With buses, minibuses, delivery trucks, cars, motorcycles, and scooters (all speeding), it was quite hair-raising at some points, especially around the hairpin turns. Everyone toots their horn approaching the turns, a good thing, because they are definitely blind curves. However, we had a lovely walk up the hill sometimes having to press ourselves up again a wall or step into an entrance way of a villa when a vehicle approached. When there weren’t vehicles coming or going, it was quiet and the views were stunning. The flowers and trees were lovely and I always like peeking through gates and entrances and seeing people’s yards. We had a great time.

Christine loves taking photos of flowers, and I’m glad she does because the colors are beautiful.

We eventually headed back down the hill to Marina Grande where we had coffee and tiramisu at a nice harbor view restaurant. It was relaxing to just sit and enjoy the surroundings.

At 4:00 p.m. it was time to get back on our boat for the trip back to our Marina Grande.

We had one more stop to look at the White Grotto, a sea cave that has stalactites inside and around the outside. Then off to Faraglioni, three towering rock formations. We motored through the hole in one of the rocks.

It was a great day and we’re very glad that we paid the fee for this tour. Augustino and Andrea were entertaining and told us a lot about the area. By mid-day, the overcast weather had cleared and the sun came out for our walk and ride back across the bay. We enjoyed talking with some of the folks on the boat, sisters from the Chicago area, and a woman from Hyannisport, MA. The only part we didn’t like is the very, very loud music the guys played from time to time. Other than that, it was a wonderful day.