@ZivBnd anxiously awaiting the next installment! Hope all is well…
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@ZivBnd hopefully just missed a bus.
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Gretchen, Digga, thank you for your concern! I was just doing a quick visit to Agropoli and Paestum and did not realize that I had not posted. That and the food in Agropoli was pretty good, but not great. LOL!
I got a way packed CD bus from Cuotto (S. Forio) to the Porto d’Ischia,
got the Caremar ferry (slow and old but comfortable)
then walked from Porto di Pozzuoli to Pozzuoli Termine to get a commuter train to Napoli Garabaldi Termine, took the underground walkway to Napoli Centrale station, got the IC train Agropoli and I was off and running at … Well, I think the IC’s do 300kph/200mph but whatever they do it was fast.
I got to Agropoli in less than an hour and took the wrong walking path to my AirBNB but it was scenic in a less touristed sort of way. LOL!
My first meal in Agropoli was potato pizza and a mediocre arancini. You know you made a mistake when you think your own arancini are better…
Later I visited Bar la Crepe for Happy Hour and got a delicious plate of a little bit of everything local, Tagliere Cilento. Very nice! The owner/host was a good sort.
Walked home all of 50 yards back to my apartment, liking this location.
I woke up to a beautiful day and had a very good meal at a prepared foods place called Mimi and Coco. I had a barley salad with rocket and a slice of Lasagna Aubergine (is that a dish name?). Very tasty (though not spiced enough) and very filling. And the staff are great. For 10€. Definitely want to go back, they have a pork tenderloin dish some days that I REALLY want to try.
Walked up a very nice pedestrian street that I failed to find on my way in the day before, love these walking areas! Hit the Bar Premier for a very good afogato! Double shot of expresso and two scoops of pistachio gelato. Keeping it real!
Got the local train to Paestum, visited the museum and I was thinking, “Not sure what the fuss is about.” The museum had a basic primer on Doric, Ionic and Corinthian design elements and a few nice objects but not a great collection. The history kind of fascinated me. Paestum is on the West side of Italy and was settled by Greeks in the 5th Century BC from an earlier Greek colony, Sybarisis (sp?), that was made on the East side of Italy. Colonies were a growth industry back in the day, apparently. But the museum was only ok.
Then I stepped 20 yards down the road and saw a beautifully intact Doric Temple of Athena. Wow.
Now I like me some fancy Corinthian design, but as a rule, the simplicity of the Doric is just amazing to me and after visiting the Acropolis, I though I had seen the best, but the Temple of Athena is amazing. Not as historic and not quite the location of the Acropolis, but the condition is better.
So I sat and soaked up the sight for a while but I knew there was more so I walked a bit and found the twin temples of Hera. Just amazing! I had broken my own “rule” of always visiting important places as soon as they open, trying to avoid the crowds but I was lucky enough to be surrounded by a small mob on that day. Just a beautiful place!
I would like to come back and see it again after doing more reading about it. I heard a few comments that it was “lost” to everyone but the locals for a thousand years, cut off as much by swarms of mosquitoes and indifference as it was by its remoteness. I was not sure of the accuracy of those stories but respected the sources and found out that its existence was in fact not widely known.
So I walked back to the train station where I promptly missed my train. Some things never change. I sat for a half hour and another one arrived so the tragedy was a minor one. LOL!
I got back to Agropolis after the lunch places had closed but the hostess at Rupe Vineria saw me looking hangdog and hungry and let me in after she asked the cook if he was willing to cook another meal. So I ordered local seafood, the pulpo and potatoes for the starter and cuttlefish and beans (Sciatti e fagioli?) for the second. Plus an Aperol Spritz. Loved these dishes!
Walked about a bit and found the other tourists in this town, up on the headland, and here I thought I was the only touron in the place. 
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Another great report! Do you speak and understand Italian well?
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I practiced Italian for 4 months befire my last trip and did not successfully use it except for the occasional “Vorrei un doppio espresso” and invariably the waiter/barrista would either answer in English or give a long answer in incomprehensibly rapid Italian.
The only foreign language i used relatively effectively on my last trip was speaking horrificly bad Spanish with my Italian taxi driver.
I have nearly given up on learning a foreign language. I learned more Polish/Czech in 6 weeks of talking to waitresses and hotel clerks there than i did in 4 months of Italian lessons.
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I’ve been learning Italian for a few years now on duolingo (the iphone app). Daily exercises have brought me to a level where I can now hold a basic conversation. Though I still make the occasional mistake, especially if all of a sudden I need/want to start speaking Italian. Last Saturday in Amsterdam, a waitress at a bar was Italian I thought, so I asked her: “sei italiano?”? 
She did not correct me… Kind person. When you need to speak Italian all day it gets easier. 
(It should have been ‘italiana’)
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Ziv, baby, you are one great “Touron” and one humorous reporter!!!
“You know you’ve made a mistake when your own arancini are better!!”
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I have Amalfi in the rear view mirror and this may surprise many of you, but i got lost, kind of, trying to find an old castle above the town. It probably would have been wise to ask directions, but I have an app for that.
So instead of walking up a few hundred stairs to a historic Martello tower, i walked up a few thousand stairs to the middle of nowhere. See the red arrow? The tower i meant to go to.
The black arrow? The cliff face i went to. Apparently there are a few Belvederes in the area and i hiked to the wrong one.
It is kind of funny, now…
Ouch. My legs still hurt.
When i got back with 8800 new steps on my pedometer app i deleted my AllTrails app and got an outstanding orange and lemon crush at A’Sciuli. Owner is great, juice is great and it is just 10€. Ouch.
Then i visited Deli Coast, similarly just west of Amalfi’s main square for a locally sourced Piadina w salami, mozzarella, cherry tomatoes and rocket. Delicious! I had the ham Pinsa there as well but forgot to take picture until i got half it back to my apartment.
Deli Coast is phenomenal! Better than the crowd fave Cica!
I also visited Bar Della Valle for lunch and got a huge draft beer, pasta and the fried seafood funnel so popular at Cica, and Amalfi in general. Fairly good at both places but i think i have exceded my fried food allotment for the month.
I mixed in two photos from my previous AirBNB in Amalfi, it had phenomenal views of the area!
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We love you, Ziv! You must be the BEST travel partner! Get yourself to Cetara…asap!!
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Thank you, Erica!
Cetara really does look good, i have two “want to go” highlights of cafes there.
Armatore and Punto e Pasta both look good, i am sure there are more!
Sorry about your aching legs but it made a great story! And you must have gotten lovely views from up there.
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Ziv: If you plan to go to Cetara, give us a heads up…please!! Just before and after sunset will be lovely…just walk down to the sea from the bus stop, about three blocks or so… Before you go, read up on “colatura” aka garum, the town’s most renowned product. I also the saw the remains of the manufacture of this
Roman commodity when I went to to the archeological site that was once an important Roman trading center:
Bolonia, on the Med east of Cadiz…in Spain…
https://www.cheftalk.com/threads/garum-colatura.7630/
Cetara boasts many great places to eat for such a small town. I love Aqcuapazza but it might be the most pricey of the options there…see if you can chat up one of the two owners and ask what they would recommend on a budget, if you have one…for that place you would need to book ahead of time but the whole town is, like I said, a film set…
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Nah, don’t do that. AllTrails is only as good as its participants/data (we love it). Redownload it and report the error. Plus, extra steps is always good (as long as it doesn’t cause major health issues).
Thank you for your ongoing reports! Love, mama Onion.
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the sunflower guide to the Amalfi coast is great - and the tourist offices in the towns have trail maps you can use easily.
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I zipped through Rome with only one destination in mind for a 2 night stay, the Vatican. I am not a fan of crowds, which makes my choice of Amalfi a bit hard to understand, but in all my visits to Rome I have never gone inside the Vatican. I love Greek and Roman sculpture and pottery so it has been a goal to do this for some time. I have been switching from AirBNB to hotel each time I visit Rome, in part because I like to be close to Roma Termini due to early flights from FCO and have been disappointed in all my choices until now. I got a reservation at Augusta Lucilla Palazzo which is just 4 blocks from the train station but in a bit better part of the neighborhood than some of my earlier choices. The desk clerks were professional and friendly, the room was small but modern and clean and had an adjustable bed that was very comfortable. This will probably be my hotel going forward. At just 120€ it was a bargain for Rome.
I took the bus from Amalfi to Salerno and it was a sweaty mess as usual, they dropped us 3 blocks from the train station which was not too bad. I missed a fast Trenitalia by a few minutes which I regretted because I have the wifi setup for Trenitalia. But there was an Italo Tren just 45 minutes later so it was no great loss. Hopped off to the familiar Roma Termini scrum, security was a bit more noticeable that day, lots of the black beret troops with assault rifles. The walk to Augusta Lucilla Palazzo was super short, which was welcome. My calves are still yelling at me a bit from my cliff climb. Checked in to a nice little room and immediately went to an early dinner across the street at Amedeo. Very nice ambiance inside, so so service. Started with a rather good ravioli dish and the universally attractive Aperol Spritz. I have never made one at home, but I have to imagine that I might next summer. The Spritz just does not seem appropriate in Montana in October, not sure why. The main was a very nice tuna dish served with a side of roasted vegetables that were merely ok. A good, not great 64€ meal, and a welcome end to a moderate travel day.
Back to my comfortable room and a very restful sleep with me feet elevated a bit. Love that “Smart hospital bed” option!
Woke up early and had a few tarallini and a glass of mineral water and i was off to the Metro, which was jamming! It was only one step short of Tokyo underground crowded. 7€ for a day pass, not bad. Now that I remember the Mac keys to enter a Euro symbol, expect to see plenty in this post…
Anyway, I got out at Ottoviana (sp?) and hit a sidewalk cafe for a cappuccino and a fig bar. Now that is a balanced meal!
Then it was off to stand in line so that I could stand in line a little further along. The Vatican is a victim of its own popularity and it is a zoo. I was grumbling a bit as I walked down the hall of busts.
Then I turned the corner into the Greek sculpture room that I have forgotten the name of.
Wow.
That is an amazing collection of artwork! The degree of skill exhibited by so many of these artists is amazing. I simply do not have the background, the education of the writing ability to convey just how impressive it is to see this many world class pieces of artwork presented together.
The visit was worth it for just this but I was hoping to see the School of Athens and Matthew and the Angel, as well. I did eventually enter the Sistine Chapel for the frescos but I have to admit that it was a bit over the top and not in a good way, and no pun intended. As I exited I did enter the room with Raphael’s The School of Athens, and it was every bit as good as I had hoped, though the crowding was a bit extreme.
I attended elementary school at St. Raphaels in my home town which may be why this painting somehow seemed to resonate with the 10 year old me, even though the saint was not the artist.
I somehow missed Matthew and the Angel by Reni, so I will include a photo of the postcard I bought to substitute for my failure.
When I finally exited the museum by the spiral cattle chute, I was starving so I immediately hit a casual pasta place I had heard of from a few travelers, EGG Pasta Fresca just a few blocks from the Vatican. And was underwhelmed by the rigatoni. Cool historic neighborhood with priest and nuns to give it gravitas but the pasta sauce was only fairly good.
So I just walked for an hour, soaking in Rome. Sometimes you see a building and you can just feel it trying to talk to you, to tell its story. But you cannot quite hear it. I got back to the Palazzo at 5 and hit dinner shortly after. Way too early for Rome but Amodei, just around the corner, was open. I ordered a Jack and Coke, gnocchi and polpette di pollo. I failed to drink enough water early in the day and somehow that Jack and Coke just disappeared so when I asked for another one the bartender sent me a Bulleit and Coke that burned my eyelids. The gnocchi was only fair, but the meatballs were light and rich and just right with bread. Liked my meal here a great deal. And the drinks helped me sleep like a babe, which was useful because I had to get up at 4:30 am the next day.
I got the 5:50am express to FCO and it was smooth sailing with Lufthansa to Munich then Denver. I had a very forgettable lunch of Hofbrau vom foss, scrambled eggs and Nurmberg sausage. So bland I failed to photograph it. It is a pity airport food is generally so bad. Then it was a 5 hour wait in Denver and a final, much welcomed, boarding of my flight to Kalispell. Aboard the oldest 737 I have flown on for a couple years at least. It had the old user interface on the flight map. Odd how technology changes so fast that you do not notice the disappearance of something that seemed cutting edge just a few years before.
And I was home to my cabin by 10:30pm. It was chilly but very much home. I turned up the heat, stepped out on my balcony to look at the lights on the far side of the lake. I did not take a photo of it, so this photo from this morning will have to do.
As much as I love travel and food, sleeping in my own bed in my own home is sometimes the best treat I can imagine. I think the great traveler Bilbo Baggins (Frodo?) had something to say about this but I cannot bring it to mind. One that does come to mind I will cut and paste here:
“It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
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The views from the cliff face were pretty spectacular, Gretchen, but it is such a sheer face and it is so close to Amalfi that that view was only fair. It is almost most worth it for the exercise and the boasting rights. LOL! One thing that really intrigued me about that walk was a folly that had built near the top of the cliff, it was simply an odd spot that seemed to serve no purpose.
And then there were these odd little orchid like flowers that grew near the face and nowhere else on the trail.
Erica, I have to admit that I think Cetara may be a bit more of what I like in an Italian town, i.e. quiet charm, with a little less of what I regret, crowds of tourists. I will be back and I will include Cetara in my trip next time.
Digga, I have to admit that my deleting AllTrails was a bit of hyperbole, but I was a touch frustrated with my own cartographic shortcomings when I posted that. Another case of “It is funny now, but…”
Jen, I just started looking at the Sunflower Guides and the “pocket size” part of the description really struck a chord with me. I may see if there is one for Tokyo. I have been going to the same places in Tokyo for years and a guide would be a good way for me to branch out a bit on my next trip.
One more.
“The Road goes ever on and on down from the door where it began. Now far ahead the Road has gone, and I must follow, if I can”
That one almost seems to echo Robert Frost in a way.
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Wow that’s your home town? Amazing!!
Great travel adventures - we like it when you travel and report back… 
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The gloomy view of the lake and mountains is my current view off my porch.
The beautiful day at the lake with the cloudy mountains in the distance is a few minutes north of my house.
It is all good.
Let me see if I can find a sunnier view from my porch…
Nope, all the recent ones are cloudy.
Oh well.
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I can sure see why your legs hurt for days from that perspective. Yikes!!
The little flowers are small cyclamens I do believe. Very pretty!
I am so happy that you travel a lot and are such an excellent and faithful reporter!!! Enjoy your own bed.
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I have freaking loved your posts - thank you so much for the amusement, hunger pangs, and travel lust that you have inspired.
Also - tarallini!!! I had those in Palermo earlier this year and had no idea what they were but loved them.
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