Our last night in Turkey was a true gem, the kind of night that keeps the travel bug biting. As I was finishing my blog post on the rooftop porch of our cave hotel, I overheard a British girl talking to her Italian friend at one of the other little breakfast tables up there about her day visiting Cappadocia on horseback. When I went downstairs to find Ryan in the common area, really, it was a living room just off the main entrance area (which was an open air garden) because there was no wifi in the rooms, we ran in to Mahmet, the owner of the cave. He told us he'd named the hotel after his 9 year old daughter who lives in New Zealand with her mom, but some day, he would leave it all to her. It made staying at Emily's Cave Hotel kinda special. :) It was one of my favorites to date! I hope to return someday.
It was getting a little late, and we knew we had to get up early to catch our flight back to Istanbul and on to Rome the next day, but, we were hungry, so we decided to get ready to go our for a quick dinner. There were other plans in store for us though, because just then, Mahmet returned to tell us that he was invited to his friend's place down the road for some BBQ. The other guests, including the British girl(who was half Turkish as well), her boyfriend Magnus, a guy named Huan from Korea/Canada, the Italian lady, and Essen, the lady we'd woken up(who it turns out was Mahmet's girlfriend) were all going to go out and have dinner. I asked where they were going, not realizing it was at someone's house, but was immediately invited. Turkish culture dictates that you deny an invitation at least twice before accepting, which we did, but Mahmet insisted that we join them! Ryan was unsure at first, because he knew we still needed to pack, but I knew an unforgettable night was about to take place!
We walked only about 4 blocks down the streets of the small town of Goreme, when we arrived at a brightly lit storefront of a Turkish Rug shop. I thought, "oh, we've already done this," but we wound up walking through the shop to the back stairs and up to an open air living room area in some guys house! There were rugs and lights hung around, but the night air felt just right around us as we settled down on the cushioned seats around a low, long chest used for a makeshift table(also covered with a turkish rug!). It was a small group of us, so we learned names quickly and began chatting away, getting to know each other's back stories. Ryan and Magnus hit it off, discussing pharmaceuticals in the US and Britain, while I got to know Effis(the British girl) and Huan and I chatted about Korean food.
Wine, and Turkish Racki was served. Ryan elected the the Racki, and I went for the wine, however the Racki was MUCH stronger, and even the Turkish guys were surprised at how easy it went down for Ryan. We've heard many a rhyme about what happens wen people drink Turkish Racki! Maybe I'll share some later, but it made for easy conversations, and went well with delicious food. We were served lamb chops and chicken wings, salad and cacik (a sour cream type yogurt), and bulgur wheat, which I've only had here in Turkey, but it tasted like a heartier wheaty rice. And of course loads of freshly cut bread. Tasty and delightful!
After dinner, Magnus was actually thinking of buying a carpet, so we went downstairs with them for the "show" where they get out a bunch I rugs and throw them around in the light to see the colors change and feel them and hear the spiel about how they can cut you a good deal without bargaining because they are all handmade over a year, or 100 years, and that you know you are getting a good deal because you wouldn't be able to get the same rug for more than double what they want you to pay! I saw it as good fun, and I know Turkey has made me a much better bargainer than I have been, even with all the practice I had while living in Korea! Turkey employs the art of charm in their deals, so you have to have a strong will and a top price you are willing to pay, along with the ability to walk away, which we did several times in the bazaars, and it worked- always got at or near my asking price!
Anyway, I don't think Magnus bought in the end, but because the purpose of the night was dinner and friends, that as ok. Speaking to them made me feel like we may have actually gotten a good deal on our rugs in Istanbul. We headed back upstairs for one more libation, and then said our goodbyes to Ali, the owner, his super adorable golden retriever puppy, and walked back to the cave hotel together, chatting under the stars. Ryan and I shared one last apple tea with Mahmet and Essen, and packed our bags quickly before collapsing in our bed! What a long, awesome day!
It was another 5:00 wake up on Thursday, but we had a lot of traveling ahead of us. My stomach was still bothering me a bit, but the only other noteworthy thing from our day of travel besides waiting around in the Istanbul airport for several hours, was that our No Name Blue Panorama flight was an hour late, and then couldn't get permission from the airport to disembark after we all got on the plane, so we sat at the gate for another hour and a half before taking off. Man, the mix of Turkish and Italian people on that plane were NOT having that! So much noise and complaining went on, that had that happened in America, I'm pretty sure someone would have been kicked off the flight. Crazy! But, it eventually took off to our relief, because we had about 12 hours to enjoy Rome!
We took a shuttle bus downtown, on which I fell asleep, which was about par for the course that day- I fell asleep on every form of transportation I took! Turkey wiped me out! We checked into our decent Rome hotel and asked for a dinner suggestion. We dined just across the street at a place with sidewalk tables and had one of the BEST pizzas I've ever had in my life. Ryan had a delicious lasagna as well, and ended with gelato. How could i resist!? With that taken careof, we thanked the Lord in Heaven for Italian food in our prayers before bed.
We slept in a bit, but because we wanted to walk around Rome a little before catching a train and bus combination to Positano, we headed out to see the Colosseum, which is always breathtaking! Saturday mornings might not be the best time to go, so we decided not to elbow between throngs of people and opted for the walk around the outside, which is still impressive. We walked around a few of the other landmarks of the Roman empire, then headed back to pick up our bags from the hotel and trotted off to the train station.
Let's talk about how the EuroStar trains can't even begin to be compared with our previous travels through south east Asia. Insane. We ate baguettes and drank tea from the cart they brought around. I am glad we have more train adventures to Vienna and then Prague in the next few days so we can bask in the luxury that is Eurostar again (and secretly be glad in the fact that we don't have to ride 3rd class in the 3rd world anymore!)
I got more and more excited and then anxious as we approached Positano, passing through Naples and Sorrento, taking a bus along death defying coastal roads, then realizing we were on the wrong bus, getting off the bus, taking a cab the remaining 12 kilometers, for what we thought was 6 Euro, but ended up being 60(no bueno!) but we ended up at our magnificent hotel on the cliffs of Positano!
I have received one of those 1000 Places to See Before You Die photo a day calendars for at least the last 4 years at Christmas, and each year, I find that one photo of Positano and make sure I put it up at eye level at any desk that I will be working at that year. I've been in love since I visited here 12 years ago, on a whim, with several other classmates from my Dublin study abroad group, when we showed up at the train station in Rome, told the lady at the ticket counter that we wanted to go to a beach, and she told us how to get to Positano. We took the 4 hour journey, using 3 different trains/buses, and wound our way down 100s of steps to visit the tiny little pebble beach for only 3 hours before we had to turn around and head right back to Rome. That day I knew I wanted to return to Positano for my honeymoon. I didn't know who, I didn't know when, but I knew I wanted to be here, because it is one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen!
Thankfully, I met Ryan, and it didn't take long for us to discuss my Positano honeymoon dream. I actually think it was one of the reasons we started thinking about, then planning this whole trip! I count myself a lucky woman!
Our first night here we enjoyed a blazingly magnificent sunset over the little bay, silhouetted by the mountain side homes sloping down to the sea. As the natural light dimmed, the lights of the town sprang up one by one. We had another round of amazing Italian food at a little garden restaurant down the hill.
The next day was a very lazy, relaxed start. We have been so tired from the lat few weeks that we needed to really have a day of rest and relaxation. We at some amazing pastries and hard boiled eggs for breakfast at the hotel- the pastry spread is really quite remarkable, I feel like I've been given a free ticket each morning inside a delightful bakery, but it does take some restraint! Ryan and I are attempting the 'get fit abroad' diet, and it's been working so far, so I've allowed myself samples of these treats! Ryan's allowed himself less, and is practically wasting away! :)
We had a swim at The rooftop pool, and then wandered down to the beach, I searched for sea glass, and without the correct consistency of sand, Ryan resorted to burying my arm in the beach pebbles. He is good for a laugh, isn't he?! We swam for a little while in some big wave activity, until a quick downpour came and sent everyone, including us running from the beach.
That night Ryan fell asleep before we headed out for dinner, so I did the most American thing I could think of, walked down to the closest little restaurant, sauntered in and ordered homemade pasta to go, tromped back up to the hotel, asked for utensils, and sat outside on the balcony ate said pasta, and caught up with Glee on my iPad. Ha!
Ryan was able to stay awake for dinner last night, but barely, since we'd decided to have another adventure day. I guess we had a bit of a lazy morning, but after talking to the concierge, we decided to make a day of it and take a ferry to the seaside town of Amalfi, where we had another amazing lunch (I'm certain I'm going to get yelled at for making those of you reading this hungry...sorry, but...not really!) right on a dock restaurant next to the clearest pebble beach in all the world! I observed some young Italian guy lounge around on the service dock for the little marina surrounding us, leaning his head on a boat bumper and texting his friends. He was shirtless, had an amazing tan, and since I was with my amazing husband, I simply envied his profession of...dock boy? I have no idea. The rest of it was picturesque as well, mountains, town, sea, yada, yada.
We worked off our lunch when we arrived at the mountaintop town of Rovello. So picturesque I needed to pinch myself. We took the bus up the switchback road through vineyards and lemon tree farms until we reached the top, where we walked through the streets clearly not made for cars, marveled even more at the cliff side vineyards, found the town square with the church, several gelaterias, and views that made me swoon. For the rest of the afternoon we toured through two villas of Ravello that were astoundingly beautiful. I'll just show pictures because I've come to realize that the English language doesn't supply me with enough adjectives and adverbs to appropriately describe most things on this trip! Either that, or I should have studied the SAT vocabulary section better. I suppose their is always time for that!
At Villa Cimbone, we encountered a wedding, and just as we passed beneath the overhanging arches of flowers, the bride passed over a tiny bridge in front of us, on her way to head up the aisle. Ryan and I sat just up the path, amidst the manicured gardens and listened to Cannon in D, being played to a string quartet. The bride was walking down the aisle to the same song I had for our wedding! Can you die of romance?! I think I did.
Views and flowers galore were the rest of the day, and we wandered back down to Amalfi and then bussed back to our hotel before we had dinner down by the beach. Perfect day! La dolce vita indeed!
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