First full day on the Penisola Sorrentina

11/6 - Seiano to Annunziata, and back to Sorrento for the evening - 11.68 miles

On my last train ride from Napoli, I was actually a bit sad to leave, having grown accustomed to the gritty moxie of this metropolis. Not too sad, though, since I was on my way to one of my favorite parts of Italy, that peninsula which is most commonly referred to as the Amalfi Coast. As I discovered, the Amalfi coast technically refers only to the stretch facing the Golf of Salerno; the one facing the Golf of Napoli does not have a name, at least that as far as I could tell. The peninsula itself is called the Penisola Sorrentina, after the biggest city on the Northern coast, Sorrento. Whatever you want to call it, this is a shockingly beautiful stretch of land, with lush, almost tropical greenery adorning imposing mountains and rock formations, and with winding coasts, hidden grottoes, and delicious little beaches.
I had come here on my last trip to Italy, and the images of bright blue-green water, expanses of trees, and bright yellow bottles of Limoncello, the local liqueur distilled from lemons grown on the peninsula, remained impressed on my mind. To me this little piece of paradise was much like the Cinque Terre in its natural beauty, but not as fragile, with much more to explore.

Since I had come by bus and then boat on my last trip, walking promised a whole new perspective, and it delivered from the first moments. This first full day took me along the Sorrento coast and into Sorrento, which was a bustling little city. Luckily enough, there was a hostel here, so I walked directly there, dropped off the bag, quickly visited the tourist information office for a map of walking paths and a bus schedule, and I was off.

Leaving Sorrento as quickly as I had come, I was soon climbing large hills and winding my way through tiny villages. This walk took me through an inhabited part of the peninsula, full of little plots of land with citrus and olive trees, and the leafy vegetables now in season.

The first thing I realized was that despite being a tourist haven, the peninsula was by no means a luxury community. Most of the people I saw were of modest means, living the same way their ancestors had. Second, I was shocked by the sheer size of the peninsula, confirmed by the fact that I did not manage to complete the Sorrento coast in two full days of walking. Since it was so much bigger than I had expected, there were many small villages that remained largely untouched by the tourists nearer the coast. So, in this way, one of my favorite places grew even higher in my esteem, as it had not yet fully succumbed to the torrent of visitors storming its coasts. Give it a few more years...
At dusk, with the sun setting behind the isle of Capri, pictured left, I managed to meet a local who walked me to the bus stop and even sold me a ticket, and in a few minutes I was back in Sorrento and my hostel. A few words about my hostel: apparently, the builders found out after completing a luxury hotel/spa that there were no more permits for hotels, so they had to open a portion of the compound as a hostel. For 20€ a night, I was able to sleep in a two-bed dormitory, with a 4-star lobby and breakfast room at my disposal. It felt great to be in this kind of place, even if my room was not as well appointed as the others!

Once in Sorrento, I took a walk around, appreciated the inlaid wood work (apparently Sorrento's schtick) and decorative limoncello bottles, and sat in a park until darkness had fallen. Then, after searching in vain for affordable dining, I settled on a hot panino and some roasted chestnuts. I would have preferred a full banquet style meal, but figured it could wait until I was out of the last major tourist outpost on my walk.