Lost on the Mediterranean Coastline

View of Amalfi from the boat
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The 50 kilometer Mediterranean coastline between Sorrento and Almafi is “one of the 50 places must visit”, according to National Geographic Traveler.

Setting off from Rome at around noon, we should have been riding joyously on this beautiful coastline in the nice afternoon of golden sunshine and sparkling blue ocean – like pretty people in the movies. However, the GPS system on Marko’s BMW could not locate for us the position of Almafi. (Marko’s software is only the German version, the big cities such as Rome and Florence is already given for free). So for the first time on our trip, we need to use a map. And for the first time in my life, I need to read a map to give directions to the driver. So it was not a big surprise when we came to the congregation point of a dozen highways near Napoli, I was not loud or clear enough in a flying second about the correct highway and we took on A30 instead of A3.

I was intoxicated just to the right point: not able to produce a poem of my own, I started reciting a famous ancient Chinese poem from a thousand years ago

With Amalfi at back
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The further we went on, the less right we feel and we finally had to get off the highway and found ourselves in some nowhere place of southern Italy. After spending two hours in the puzzle of roads in and between a string of nameless colorless little towns, we were so upset about each other that we did not speak to each other anymore. Finally, a sign with the name of “Almafi” flashed into our eyes. After a brief moment of great joy, we were again in a great dismay to realize that instead of driving on the famous coastline where a big mountain on your left and the Mediterranean on your right, we were at the other side of the big mountain now.

The unyielding and perseverant German characters of Marko shone out now that it had a clear goal. And after more than a hundred turns of over 120^o and countless turns under that difficulty, we were climbing up the mountain and drawing closer and closer to the other side of the mountain, the side facing the Mediterranean. The views around were becoming faded in the gray purple twilight and I felt sometimes there was nothing outside of the window but the sky. Suddenly, at another turn, Marko murmured something and I turned again to the window – there came the Mediterranean. Under the purple sky, the purple Mediterranean was above us, below us, surrounding us. It was everywhere.

The characteristic view of Almafi is pretty little colorful houses built upon the coastline mountain, layers of them. Pull off on the narrow winding roads along the coastline, open one side of the door, one could step directly into the little guesthouse on the side of the road; open another side of the door, one could step directly into the Mediterranean.

Decided to get to the hotel at Salerno before mid-night, we passed by the inviting lights of Almafi without dwelling. Somewhere alone the dark and lonely road leading to Salerno, Marko finally could not help pulling off for a quick bite at glance of an un-inspiring looking small Pizza. Expecting to find a poorly visited place with hard Pizza, I was caught in such an amazement stepping into the doorway: there was practically “nothing” inside the door - it was just the bank of the Mediterranean, a dozen big stone leading down the bank into the dark sea as a stairway and at the head of it, there appeared an ancient light-house like stone house. Another movie-setting scene, I could not doubt any more that the Italians are the best when it comes to drama.

Still hesitating, walking down the stone stairway, I was surprised again to find this old light-house in the dark sea house two floors of well-lighted, warm-colored, luxuriously laid out restaurant and the contrast between its interior and exterior was adding another layer of drama to the stunning setting.

The seats besides the window were actually put into the window – because the wall is so thick we were sitting “in” the window. The dark waves of Mediterranean splashing and falling upon the even darker rocks, spraying white foams from just several yards below that I felt I could almost touch them.

Obviously this most romantic restaurant on our trip deserves a most self-indulging dinner: six barbecue prawn, a steamed fish, some Parma ham and cheese and a bottle of white wine cost about 80 Euro.

A glass of wine combined with the view from the balcony (yes this place has a balcony above the sea), the lights from the small town on the opposite mountain, and the breeze from the sea was more than enough to intoxicate even the one who never gets drunk – like me. And I was intoxicated just to the right point: not able to produce a poem of my own, I started reciting a famous ancient Chinese poem from a thousand years ago: something about the view and thoughts on the bank of a river in the spring, about the moon, the river/sea, the fog and trees and the people watching the moon at different places and different time.