Wishes do Come True: Italy Part 1: Vietri sul Mare

Ciao!

Eleven years ago, I tossed a coin into the Trevi Fountain.  
Legend has it that if you toss a coin in, you will return to Rome someday. 

Rome, 2011

The past few years have been trying.  

After a failed attempt to tour Sicily in 2020, a plan was hatched for an end of school year celebration.  

All hotels and activities were researched and booked by yours truly.  

If you have additional questions, please don't hesitate to reach out.  

Y'all know I love talking travel!

Here is the itinerary:

June 1: Delta Airlines: CLE -> JFK -> Roma

June 2: Arrive in Roma -> Train to Salerno -> Taxi to Palazzo Suriano Heritage Hotel in Vietri sul Mare

June 3: Vietri Sul Mare

June 4: Vietri Sul Mare

June 5: Ferry: Vietri sul Mare -> Amalfi for lunch -> Isle of Capri -> pick up from Capri Wine Hotel

June 6: Capri 

June 7: Ferry: Capri to Positano -> walk up stairs for eternity to Celestina, AirBnb 

June 8: Positano

June 9: Bus to Sorrento, taxi to Napoli (with a nice tour through Castellemare di Stabia) -> train to Firenze -> walk to B&B Drom Florence 

June 10: Bus to and from San Gimignano for La Marronia cooking class and wine tasting

June 11: Firenze

June 12: train to Roma -> taxi from Termini to Hotel Anahi

June 13: Roma - Vatican Tour with Walks of Italy 

June 14: taxi to FCO, Delta Airlines: FCO -> JFK -> CLE 

The strategy: start out mellow, relax, get acclimated by the sea.  A good plan but it did take 23 hours to reach Vietri sul Mare...flying into Naples would be more efficient.  

Check the calendars, turns out arriving on an Italian holiday increases traffic and decreases the chances of a taxi wanting to drive you 15 minutes to your hotel.  

Vietri sul Mare 

First stop, Vietri sul Mare 

An AirBnb misunderstanding turned into a win with a glowing recommendaiton for 

 Palazzo Suriano Heritage Hotel.  

The first moment I laid eyes on the entrance I was in love.  

Wooden door, pink bougainvillea, absolutely gorgeous.

Palazzo Suriano Heritage Hotel, Vietri sul Mare 

Never have I stayed at a place where the host insisted on settling in first and then checking in.  

I don't remember giving my name.  

Lobby of Palazzo Suriano

The room was beautiful.  Simple hand-painted pink tile with a small terrace overlooking the sea.  

Trying to take it all in and be still after adventuring on planes, trains, and an automobile. 

Beautiful balcony 

Library 

Carlo and his wife, Deborah were welcoming and after a brief exchange, a welcome drink was prepared with snacks.  The first aperitivo. Sitting on the terrace just off the kitchen, I attempted to take in the sights, sounds, tastes (let the olive sampling begin!).  A sigh of relief, a warm smile, that first sip of white Italian wine, the travel haze, the exhaustion, the newness of it all made me feel at peace.

Tiled Bench in the Garden 


Vietri sul Mare is known as the ceramics capital of Campania.  

A friend had told me fragments wash up on the beaches and I was anxious to explore.  Using the time change to my advantage, I bounded down to the water at sunrise.  The garbage men were a little curious about what I was doing!  It took no time at all to find a beautiful collection of Italian seaglass and pottery.  For those of us that love beachcombing, it was dreamy.  

Favorite find of the trip

First Finds

Vietri was a great entry point to the Amalfi Coast and to the Italian adventure.  June is the beginning of the tourist season but due to the heatwave, many Italians were heading to the coast to cool off.  

Morning view from the beach 

Despite being busy, Vietri wasn't overwhelming, just pleasant and beautiful.  The daily schedule of a morning walk on the beach, wandering the ceramics shops in town, lunch, nap, aperitivo, sunset walk on the beach, dinner was a schedule I could embrace wholeheartedly.  
No tours, no trying to cram a million things in, just being.

One of the many amazing ceramics shops

Loved wandering and randomly sampling the local delicacies.

Lemon Delight - lives up to the hype 

Ceramic Street Art 

Symbol of Vietri 

One of the best dinners (and award for new favorite pizza) was at Divina Vietri.  Always order the margherita but I highly recommend the zucchini pizza - with fior di latte, mint, & basil - brava!

Divina Vietri 


View from town

Back to Palazzo Suriano - did I mention the wonderful breakfasts prepared by Virginia?  

Homemade jams made with love 

Best Buffalo Mozzarella and American Coffee 

The spread was unbelievable, homemade tarts and jams with fruits from the garden, pastries, tomatoes, and the freshest buffalo mozzarella.  Heaven.  Oh, and you can get cappuccino or enjoy a pot of delicious American coffee.  I'll admit, after traveling for so long, the American coffee was a welcome touch.

Gardens 

Looking back on this trip, Vietri sul Mare and Palazzo Suriano were the favorites on this trip.  
Dreaming of returning, enjoying a cooking class from the wonderful Virginia and just being.

It's aperitivo time somewhere


Cheers! Thank you for reading.  Stay tuned for  Capri and Positano.  

-Natalie 






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