Our destination for the day was the famous island of Capri (not to be confused with the riverboat casino in Lake Charles). We had to walk all the way down our little mountain to the docks to catch a public ferry to Capri. I was a little worried about my seasickness issues, but I ended up doing fine all day--and this was just the first of four different boats. So, we had a pleasant ferry ride over to the island by way of Sorrento, and of course had beautiful views of the blue water and majestic cliffs the whole way.
On arrival in Capri, we immediately got on ANOTHER boat (slightly smaller) and had a boat tour all the way around the island. We saw several famous grottoes, including the Blue Grotto where Emperor Tiberius used to hang out. To enter the grotto, we had to take turns getting on little rowboats where we basically had to lie down just to enter through the tiny hole entrance. Our guide said a few facts, sang a few songs--typical Italian boat rower guy--and we got some fabulous pictures of the naturally illuminated blue water.
There were a ton of yachts in the water as well, and apparently Derek Jeter was hanging out somewhere on the island. Every other boat we passed I waved at, hoping I was actually exchanging waves with some celebrity or wealthy person.
Back on the island, we took a long, uphill hike up to Capri Town, where we had some granitas (basically spiked orange/lemon juice--I called it "adult Capri Sun") and shopped around a bit. I thought the views were beautiful from this height, but it just kept getting better.
Little buses took us up the frightening mountain road to Anacapri, where I, of course, got Caprese pizza for lunch. This one girl on the trip kept telling everyone to try to eat what was "really fresh," which in Capri is lemons, tomatoes, and something else. Katie and I were less than impressed with this, since we know that pretty much all tomatoes and cheeses and veggies and things are fresh in Italy, but we went with local options anyway (Katie got calamari).
The Bus2Alps tour guides kept telling us about this chair lift you could take all the way up the mountain from Anacapri, so we headed over to that after lunch. I think I was expecting somewhat of a sturdy bench seat, not unlike a ski lift, but that was definitely not the case. It was basically these little tiny chairs with a little tiny safety bar over your lap that you had to jump in an out of upon entering and exiting the lift. I'm not going to lie; I was pretty scared on the way up. However, once at the top of the mountain, I was just blown away by the views. The clouds surrounding the peak made me feel like I was in the Misty Mountains! The pictures don't really do it justice, but I honestly recommend it to any and everyone. Also, the way down the mountain was actually pretty fun, and much easier to take in all the beauty of the island. I even saw a cute little farm/vineyard where the grapes and other fruits were so close I could almost touch them!
We then shopped around some in Anacapri, where I actually bought a beach towel. It's very weird. It's says both "SAIL U.S.A." and "Capri" on it, and is red, white, and blue. It was the cheapest one. There are also a couple shops in the town that make their own limoncello, chocolates, and custom sandals. I was able to sample the first two, but wouldn't let myself look too long at the beautiful sandals--especially not the Swarovski crystal ones. I'm still sad because I would REALLY love to have some of those, but I REALLY don't have room for any more stuff. THE STRUGGLE.
After meeting up with and shopping/walking around some with Gina and our other friend Tiffany (who is in our program and actually does attend St. John's), we chose to hike down the mountain all the way to the dock with a couple of the Bus2Alps guides and some other people in the tour group. It was probably a mistake. It was probably close to an hour of just going down stairs. My knees and legs are STILL feeling it. Yes, it was very scenic, but honestly we were just looking down the whole time anyway to make sure we didn't fall and die, so the views were somewhat lost on us. I don't regret it, per se, but I certainly won't do it ever again. (And I do plan on returning to Capri someday. Gotta get those sandals).
The ferry ride back to the hostel was, in one word, terrifying. We rode through cold, howling winds and needle-like rain. I felt like Lieutenant Dan, though, for sticking it out on the upper deck.
Everyone relaxed some at the hostel for a while, and later we went to the happy hour they had going on there in the lobby. Then, we were all bused to downtown Sorrento for dinner and to check out the nightlife. Pretty much everyone went to the same restaurant that the guides pointed out, Il Leone Rosso. I sat at a table with Katie, Tiffany, Gina, and two of our other friends from our program/Niagara, Sam and Ethan. I ate a magnificent eggplant parmesan, which was much-needed after a long day of hiking and boating adventures.
The guides also encouraged us all to go to the English Inn beer garden, which ended up being a lot of fun. It was more or less all people from our trip there on the dance floor. The DJ almost exclusively played songs from 2000-2009, which was highly appreciated by me.
The six of us took the fastest cab EVER back to the hostel to end our crazy fun day. (Seriously. Took the bus 15 minutes to get to Sorrento, took the cab 1 minute to get to the hostel. Insane).
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