Finally ...

Truth in advertising!!!

A product I saw whilst visiting Marcus and Sarah in the Lakes District. Somehow though, I'm not entirely convinced that the manufacturers are really seeing the irony ...

Yes, I did it ... Venice

Carnival mask

I had been resisting - goodness knows why - the temptation to go to Venice just because it is such a well known tourist destination, but I'm so glad I decided to head north and over the mountains from Positano, because it was such a wonderful place to visit!


Venetian street life

I mean, stepping out your front door in the morning and hearing the ocean lapping at your feet in the canal - how can you help but be inspired by that? It makes the city a charming and oddly quiet place to find yourself in because the biggest sounds are those of people talking and laughing, and church bells ringing - different and delightful. And the gentle briney smell ...


Bridge of Sighs

Of course if you are going to have canals as your thoroughfares, bridges are a requirement - the Bridge of Sighs now leads hoards of tourists back and forth to the Doge's Palace and St Mark's Square, but in the past this bridge was the route to the prison of Venice. Poetic and tragic really.

And transport 'round these parts ...?


Gondola parking bay

By gondola of course!

The grand architecture of Venice is quite stunning and certainly impressively shows how wealthy and powerful this state was in it's prime.


Doge's Palace

But even the more modest accomodation is charming and special, and very much a local invention. The inverted conical chimneys make it all seem a bit like a fairytale town and the church-like arched windows add another level of whimsy to the residential buildings.


Modest palace

There's just no escaping the fact that this is now a town more largely populated by tourists than by Venetians or Italians. What a shame.


Special souvenirs

Some parts of the city however, feel a bit more local, and modern life has adapted, and probably not changed too much since the heady days of the Venetian state - and you can buy what you need for dinner along the canal on your way home.


Greengrocer


Carciofi viola

How beautiful are those artichokes!?!

Or if you're in the market for something a little more special for your home interior - for a mere 22,000€ and a 20-minute trip to the island of Murano you can pick up a seriously ...


Dramatic mirror!

(No even though I have a LARGE suitcase on wheels, I just couldn't fit this one in!)

Of course if it all gets too much and you are tired of taking your ...


Morning coffee - Venezia style

...you can always retire for a month or two to the villa Palladio designed for you in the country near Vicenza.


Country villa

Bello Positano

When I planned my trip to Italy, I had a really difficult time deciding where to go. I know that 4 weeks is a complete luxury and as the country has been on my list for so long - albeit waiting for me to have an appropriate shoe budget with me - when it came down to it, I had so much advice about where is beautiful (everywhere) and what not to miss (everything) I had too many options.

But after 9 weeks at Syama I just wanted to park myself for a while and not do too much. In the end I decided to stay in Positano, on the Amalfi Coast - it's such a beautiful part of the world and I needed to unwind.


My terrace

Luckily, my Dad's boss from when he was an apprentice pharmacist in New Zealand in the 1960s has a daughter who married an Italian and they run beautiful Hotel Villa Gabrisa in Positano and they gave me a room with this fantastic view. I spent the next few days having massages, sampling the local food, wine and limoncello, and going for walks down to the village ...


View down

... to capture the view of picture-postcard-perfect ...


Positano

... but the road home was a little more arduous.


View up

(I didn't photograph the worst scala, I still think you should visit.)

I spent an afternoon on the boat so I could see Almalfi, the next largish town to the southeast.


Leaving the town in our wake

Amalfi is also very beautiful but much flatter than Positano and the road actually comes down to meet the ocean in front of the cathedral.


Amalfi cathedral

What a lovely staircase up to the door!

Amalfi also proved to provide better shopping than Positano, which offered the traveller a delightful array of ...


Resort wear

Fortunately being close to amatriciana territory, the shopping in Amalfi was a little more my style!


The chili shop

So several days chilling out in Positano was exactly what I need to recover from the last busy stint at Syama.


Pan sings Positano's praises