There were my last couple of weeks in Malta. It felt like I lived there for years, but it was just for a few months. Every day on my way to school, I saw the sun’s reflection on this deep blue sea and wondered if someday I would get tired of the beauty.
One of those days, I was falling asleep when my friend Ale’s message snuck into my phone: “Guys, I found cheap tickets to Naples.” That was the beginning of this short adventure. Those are the people I like to be surrounded by. Thanks, Ale. You are truly the best.
The next day, we planned our destinations and targets to visit. Ale took the lead and showed me where she wanted to go: the Amalfi Coast. I had to Google it; yeah, I’m so ignorant. In my mind, all of Italy is beautiful and worth a visit. But this goes beyond common sense.
When we were looking for accommodation, just by looking at the map, we almost made a huge mistake because the map shows a zenithal view, so you don’t know if you will be at the top of the mountain or at sea level. So we almost rented a place “close” to the beach. Fortunately, we noticed it said 2 hours of walking, and we learned that you have to consider many more things rather than just picking places and booking a flight and a room.
Read: “Malta, a parenthesis in my life”
A few days later, Ale, Alexa, and I were on our way to Naples. The plan was to go to Naples, then to Salerno as a basecamp to reach Amalfi and nearby towns, Pompei on our way back to Naples, and then another night in Naples. Four days, three nights.
My first impression of Naples was that it was a dirty diamond, chaotic—but a beautiful chaos. At first sight, I didn’t know what to think or feel, but I enjoyed my time there.
We judge places based on previous experiences. Many parts of this city remind me of dangerous places in my hometown, so I didn’t know if we were safe or not, but nothing bad happened to us. At dawn, we walked through dark places that, honestly, if they were in South America, I would never go there, but I was in Italy, not South America. Obviously, there is some crime as well, but as a traveler, you don’t know in depth where you should avoid going.
We fear what we don’t know, what we don’t understand. This was my feeling about Naples, and I feel ashamed to say anything that could sound bad or judgmental because I’m not one to criticize this city. I would define this city as chaotically beautiful.
Eat. Pray. Love
When we arrived, priority number 1 was to try the original Neapolitan Pizza. We ended up at” L’antica Pizzeria da Michele,” one of the places that claim to be the original source of, in my opinion, one of the most remarkable inventions ever.
This place was also famous for the movie “Eat. Pray. Love”. I didn’t watch it, and probably I won’t, and we didn’t care about that. We were starving; that was enough for us to go and try it. We knew we were in the right place because there was a huge line. I hate lines; I would avoid them at all costs, but not this time. Further, we had all the time in the world, that’s one of the greatest feelings when you are traveling (It’s better when you get it on your daily routine)
We ordered 2 pizzas: Marinara and Cossaca. It may sound dramatic, but my soul speaks clearly through my body. Every time I taste something really special, some drops of joy may come out. This time was not an exception. The moment, the place, the taste, the company—that Cossaca was my favorite pizza so far.
As good Colombians, we always seek solutions to any problem (sometimes it works the other way around, but I said good Colombians, hehe); we found clean cardboard boxes next to the garbage and used them to sit on the floor. Of course, it was an excellent idea because people around us copied it.
Salerno – Basecamp
We chose Salerno as a base camp because finding affordable places in Amalfi, Positano, and the closest towns was difficult. You can get a train from Naples to Salerno, which has better options and is just a short distance from these places—40-50 minutes by bus. It took time to plan this, considering budget, time, weather for long walks, and geography. Ale was the mastermind behind this complex planning; cheers to her again.
Maiori – Minori
Renting a car was more expensive than taking a bus, and we like to drink sometimes… sometimes, drink. Anyway, we decided to follow the plan and after we reached the coast road, downhill, we realized that was the best decision we could make, or not? We will see.
A narrow road, a bus throttling as much as it could, stopping suddenly and honking to let other drivers know we were coming. I was glad I was not driving; I would love to drive these roads, but not with this traffic.
After 50 minutes of holding my breath and trying not to think about horrible accidents, we arrived at Maiori.
Travel Tip: Don’t rent a car to explore the coast. The road is too narrow and busy and will take precious time. It could be stressful for the driver, and if you are responsible, you can’t enjoy a drink, and this place’s views are worth it.
Small coast town at the bottom of this rocky area. It’s a gorgeous place. All these towns are postal pictures full of life, yellow, blue, and white. We walked all over the place like children, discovering the unexplored beauty of life.
After Maiori, we walked 40 to 50 minutes to Minori. It’s similar but slightly different. We stopped to refresh. It was a happy hour on Aperol Spritz (We knew Aperol Spritz, but it was never our first option until then.) I don’t know if it was the heat, the moment, the place, or what, but those Aperol Spritz hit differently, like an epiphany.
We checked the bus schedule and noticed we should go back to Maiori to take the bus back to Salerno. We continued walking, admiring the views of this beautiful coast. The contrast between the sea and the rocky mountain is fascinating.
Liquid joy, the secret of a long waiting
Just in time, there we were at the bus stop. At least ten people were waiting with us. After a few minutes, a packed bus stopped and dropped some people off but didn’t let anyone get on. The bus driver told us another bus was coming within the next hour. We could wait one hour; there was no rush as we had all the time in the world.
It was a hot summer, and we were thirsty. Lucky for us, there was a minimarket in front of us. Jackpot, we found a treasure: Mini Aperol Spritz bottles, a six-pack! We bought one.
There we were, waiting for a bus to go back to Salerno, drinking liquid joy. We noticed that more than one hour had passed so fast. ” Shall we get more Aperols? Yeah, why not?”
We didn’t want to miss the bus, so we assigned the task of going to the store to get the spirits while someone stayed at the bus stop, ready to call the others in case the bus had the nerve to arrive.
It was the best waiting ever. We were tipsy, cracking up about silly things, making jokes, and wondering if that bus driver just told us this before to avoid any rage.
Who would have imagined that a Sunset at a bus stop would be that funny? But, at the end of the day, literally at the end of the day, we needed to go back to Salerno; it was close enough to get by bus or car, but too far to walk (And dangerous both for drivers and walkers in the dark).
After 3 hours, and I don’t remember how many Aperols each, we realized that no bus was coming, and businesses were closing. We asked for help at a restaurant; the owner called a driver “friend.” 80 Euros to drive us to Salerno, ouch. We had no choice.
My friends in the back seat fell asleep when we started our way home. I wish I could fall asleep as well. Actually, I was the only one in that car who didn’t fall asleep on the whole trip. Yes, even the driver fell asleep; this was the scariest second I have had in a while; my reaction woke the driver, who didn’t bother to say sorry or even worry at all. Now it is funny to remember it, but I’m glad I went to the toilet before we left Maiori. Otherwise, I would have to pay extra for the carwash.
slema.co 