Nancy's Travel Adventures!

September 6 (I think): Bella Italy

It has been difficult for me to get to a computer, so I am a bit behind on my updates. I made it to Italy after a rather difficult time in Spain. I got a really bad cold, suffered jet lag, was always getting lost and could never find anything decent to eat (a lot of meat). But looking back, Spain was great! The people were very nice, I brushed up on my Espanol and saw some very cool stuff. While in Granada, Linds and I went to the Alhambra.... where we kept getting turned around. If you go there, I would suggest a guided tour to understand the signifigance. We then went to a Flamenco show in the Sacromente area at Vemnta El Gallo Restaurante (www.ventaelgallo.com). It was awesome! The Sacromonte area is an area that has all white houses built into the mountains, so they are essentially caves and the history is that this is where the gypsies live and still do to this day. We went to a place recommended by Lauren (who went to school in Granada) but they were sold out so we went to its sister property instead. We met the GM there, Juan Martin and he was so nice to us. He felt bad that our reservations were made at the wrong place, so he escorted us to the sister property and made sure we came by later so he could buy us a drink. He used to live in the states (sales at the Marriott) and said he knows how hard it is being in a foreign country without speaking the language. He offered to take us around Granada the next day but sadly, we were leaving.

The Flamenco dancers are Gypsies that pass their dances down to each generation and that is how they make thier living for the most part (dancing and selling wares). So each Flamenco show is unique. I would highly recommend seeing one while in Southern Spain. We also cruised around the Albayzin, which is another very unique area of Granada.

After a long day of traveling, we managed to make it to Capri (pronounced Caapri & they do correct you if you say Capri) and what a slice of heaven that is! We both really LOVED it. You pull up in a boat to the most picturesque little island with homes built into the mountains. We checked into our AMAZING hotel (Grand Hotel Qvisisana) and thought we died and gone to Italian heaven. It is set right in the center of the main area of Capri and was very luxurious, I feel so fortunate to be able to stay in these places. Most of the people here speak English which is a huge bonus and the food here is amazing!

We went to dinner that evening in La Campannina and met a young couple from New York. They were very fun to talk to and they recommended some great things for us to do. I was very happy to enjoy a good Italian meal with great service! We then went to the main square and had some drinks at a cafè and that is where we met Salvatore. He was so nice to us and kept bringing up Lemoncello.... which was very hard to drink since it is so strong (we still do not know what alcohol is in it but we do know that lemon peel and sugar is in it, making it very sweet).

The next day, I cruised around the many cobblestone alleyways that make up the main area of Capri. There are very high end shops and great people watching. It is still high season there and was VERY crowded but it was fun to cruise around and just listen to the Italians while they wave their hands around and smoke their cigarettes. I am really bafffled by how the Italians live so well yet all they do is eat cheese, bread, drink wine, smoke cigarettes, and stay up late. Whatever it is, I love it!

At any rate, we decided to take the bus to Anacapri, which was an adventure in itself. The locals seem to think they can just go right in front of you while in line and they also like to be right in your face (no personal space here). One guy, who got behind us, kept getting right in our face and when I turned around to let him know that he was a bit close, he revealed to me a toothless grin. Once on the bus, they crammed everyone in like Italian Sardines. Again, no personal space and then you are standing up and they are taking you through these twisted streets. Crazy. But we got Anacapri and that was a whole other slice of heaven (The Pope does live in Italy afterall). We cruised around there and met a very old cobbler who was making shoes. So, I felt like I had to support the local community and I bought a few pairs of shoes. Antonio was so charming. He made sure to help me pick out just the right shoes and he kept telling me that "he knows women's feet but that was all he knew about women." After my shoe purchase, we went to the chair lift, which is just like a ski lift but they are individual seats that take you to the top of the mountain. There you can see gorgeous views of Capri.

That evening we went to a few different places. We started at the hotel restaurant, a very romantic place (which is quite common for Lindsey and I....we keep having to tell people that we are friends or we even tell them we are sisters -- I definitely know of places to go back to when I find Mr. Right). The GM invited Lindsey there to thank her for coming out to meet him. So, we had a Bellini and an appetizer there. We then went to a very cool restaurant called Da Paolino that was close to the pier. We met another very nice couple from Chicago and enjoyed some more great Italian wine and food.

After dinner we went back to the main area and bumped into some Italian men, Massimo and Rocco, who were all too happy to show us where to go. We went to a Qausi-Karaoke bar called Taverna 'O Guarracinoand played tamborines and got up and danced with the owner. It was very interesting. Lindsey really wanted to get away from these guys who were trying really hard to marry us, so I told them that we had to go back to our dad who was waiting for us at the hotel. We then went to a wine bar and met some really nice locals. One of them was working there for the summer in the Dolce and Gabbana store and another one was a lawyer who was working as a bartender during the summer. He was so adorable.

Today we rented a boat through Capri Island Tours and went around the island of Capri, I felt like such a jetsetter in this wooden boat with a Captain who spoke little English but took us to caves, and very cool inlets. We swam, sunned and enjoyed our last day in Capri. Highly recommend doing that when in Capri. We then took a boat to Positano and met some more Italian friends. I think we are going to try to meet up with them at some point. We are staying at the Covo Dei Serracini, which is very nice and right next to the pier. Tomorrow we hope to cruise around Amalfi and the surrounding area. Ciao for now!!

posted by Nancy Chapman @ 9:13 AM