To Ravello

A steep climb to a pretty little town

This morning we breakfasted in the hotel, once again the eggs were stone cold ...... not sure why the Italians think this is how they should be served.....so it was back to hard boiled eggs and fruit, followed by a sweet pastry or cake..... there were pancakes with honey which made a nice change and the coffee was good. Luckily we managed to eat before the Americans arrived and hoovered everything up..... they clearly weren’t weight watching on this holiday!!!! , and although we were right on the side of the road the traffic wasn’t overly intrusive.

A young Japanese couple..... sorry but they were , and honestly, if there is an opportunity for something daft to be done , chances are it’s them that are doing it, so back to our young couple..... they decided to make use of the tables set out on the other side of the road..... yes, they had a view but no protection against the exhaust fumes ..... fine and dandy unless you happen to be the waiter, who had to dice with death and cross the road every time he had to attend to them.... not only that, if there was a long line of traffic their food was almost certainly cold by the time it reached them. Anyway, breakfast done we stuffed our cases once again..... I’ve given up all pretence of proper packing or trying to keep things from getting creased.... now it’s just a question of cramming everything in.....loaded up the Corsa.... I know that it would be totally impractical but for a moment I really wished that we were touring in one of the little red Fiat 500s..... yes, yes just a romantic notion.... there wouldn’t be enough room for my makeup bag let alone all our cases, but as we didn’t have a sports car for me to do my Audrey Hepburn impression in, one of those would have come a close second. Sally programmed.... we are learning to do this before we get underway as it avoids the need to try and find somewhere to stop on a road which has zero lay-bys or areas to pull over, we were underway......our next destination was Ravello, a short drive away according to the map, but the road looked a little challenging..... as if it hadn’t been all the way from Pompeii!!!!!!....... and so it proved to be. Ravello is set in the hills behind the Amalfi coast so the road climbs up and up, lots of hairpin bends and in one section traffic lights controlling a one way system as the road becomes single track. Quite how I don’t know, but coaches travel this road ....... mostly very slowly......hats off to the drivers, as it was challenging enough for my amazing driver..... who I continue to tell not to look at the view for fear that we will end up over the cliff edge!!!!

On and up we drove, until I began to think that oxygen would be required and altitude sickness was a real possibility..... we missed our turn and were now climbing another flipping hill with opportunities for u turns non existent..... Dear Richard, normally placid and calm, was slowly turning into “Mr Grumpy” ..... I did my best with knee squeezing and words of encouragement, but I could see that if we didn’t turn around soon there was a possibility that he would lose it completely and as previously noted, the drop was long and he needed to concentrate. Finally..... just before we got back toRome..... we found a place to turn and were once more on our way to the hotel..... happily, down the hill this time!!!!!

We were really looking forward to this Hotel, on “paper”, it looked fab, but we refused to get too excited ..... having been in that place before..... but..... oh thank you Lord..... it was lovely. The drive led down to a pretty reception area with another funky vehicle parked outside, our room was large and well appointed , and then......the balcony!!!!!

Dear Richard was grinning from ear to ear as it was ...... in a word...... ENORMOUS!!!!!

We settled in, well dumped our bags and got changed into our swimmers and made our way straight to the pool.

And then ..... of course, we had a flipping big drink!!!!

The pool area was large and well

supplied with loungers, there was even a bar which was tended by a very bored looking bloke wearing a fleece!!!!!!! It was very hot ..... we have been so lucky... it is after all October!!! and I get a bit bored sitting in the sun if it is too warm , so, I thought I’d give the pool a go. The pool

attendant looked at me as though I was bonkers, and when I put my foot in I realised why..... it was bloody freezing..... however, I had started so in order to save face, I was determined to finish....I managed to get right in and stayed just long enough for my whole body to begin to go numb....and then made as dignified an exit as possible with legs that had completely lost all feeling.... Dear Richard had attempted to get in and managed one foot before making his way rapidly back to his lounger and the warm

caress of the sun.....

We spent the afternoon by the pool, relaxing and unwinding after our hectic drive, when the sun disappeared we decided to go into Ravello for a look around...... the little van parked in front of the hotel was in fact a shuttle which ran guests into the town once an hour........ Dear Richard was dubious, but I really wanted to give it a go so we squeezed in with another couple.... and off we went...... very, very slowly!!!!

If we thought the Corsa struggled with the hills, then this poor little vehicle appeared , at points in the journey.... to be going backwards ......and I had visions

of us having to abandon van and push vigorously......but bless it, our valiant little bus made it to the drop off point.... about 2 minutes away!!!!! and we walked into the tiny town.

The first place we found was a little square with restaurants around the edge. Walking further, we followed a narrow street with a few shops and then some hotels, all the time going up!!! We decided to stop for a little sundowner and found a hotel/restaurant with an open courtyard and a fantastic view to the coast below. The waiter persuaded us to try a passion fruit spritz... which was delicious, and for a change not ludicrously expensive!!

The journey home was downhill.... bonus!!.... I wanted to stop here....

But was told ....quite firmly I felt, that I had had enough of one and wasn’t going to start on the other,!!!!

as if!!! .......

And so we re-traced our steps.... no little van to help us home, and repaired to the hotel restaurant for dinner..... afterwards we both wondered why we hadn’t stayed in Ravello to eat , but by then it was too late.

So, as lovely as the hotel was, whoever designed the restaurant was clearly a graduate of the architectural college of canteen design..... we had passed it on the way in as it was just off the reception area and thought it was the breakfast room..... but no dear friends.... after dark it doubled as a fine dining venue.....or not as it proved later.....

We were the only clientele so chose a table and sat down..... finally..... when I was ready to eat the first person I saw, so hungry was I....a woman emerged from the back of the room...we smiled..... well we are both polite... and waited for a response.... nothing..... menus were handed over without so much as a twitch of her facial muscles, sensing that this could be a long night, I ordered wine...... “little miss misery” sloped off..... yes she really walked like that..... to get the wine. In the time it took for the wine to arrive we could have walked back up to Wine and Drugs and bought ourselves half a dozen bottles .... in the meantime we spent the time perusing the menu which seemed ok until we saw that everything on it was pre-frozen!!! Our next thoughts were to make a strategic exit, but the wine was on its way and so we made our choices and waited for our cheery waitress to come back.....which she finally did, bearing wine and a look on her face that would have reduced Atilla the Hun to tears!!!!

We ordered and were told that our choices would take at least 40 minutes..... presumably because they would have to be de-frosted first......and off she went to fire up the microwave.... there was nothing for it but to get stuck into the wine..... perhaps if we were drunk things couldn’t get any worse!!!!

A few other diners had come in now so she was rushed off her feet.... well she would have been if she had been capable of any speed faster than first gear....we came to the conclusion that she was doing everything on her own.....which would go some way to explaining the look on her face, which was going from bad to worse as the evening progressed.

Finally our dinner arrived..... I think Dear Richard had lasagne, but it would be better described as ”the cat threw up and I am serving it for dinner!!” It was truly the most disgusting meal I have ever seen in my life.....

We both tried , but could not manage to eat much of it at all..... so called her over.... but she really wasn’t bothered..... well she hadn’t been all

night so why would she be now!!!!

The receptionist however was much more apologetic, assuring us that we would not pay for it..... bloody right we wouldn’t.....and so we retired to our lovely room to see what scraps we had left over as we were both still

starving!! Two minutes later there was a knock on the door ...... there stood a charming young man, holding a tray on which stood two glasses of bubbly and some snacks.....he apologised once again for the restaurant debacle.... it wasn’t a meal but the alcohol helped.....we enjoyed it on our enormous balcony, looking down on the twinkling lights below.

Dear Richard was so traumatised that I ran him a hot bath and he relaxed in the jacuzzi bubbles...... there is a picture but I have been forbidden from including it here....I know .... such a spoilsport!!!!! And so, due to the extra wine and very little food I was a little tipsy.............I think trauma adds to the effects of alcohol

too.....I drifted off to sleep and dreamt that the grumpy waitress was driven away in the little van by a giant lasagne.....