The island of Capri

So again we make an early start to get to Capri but honestly the public transport system on the Amalfi Coast is not doing us any favours. We decided to drive the car to Sorrento to avoid any issues like we had yesterday. We get to the port and go to dock 4 as advised by the lady at the ticket office. We hang around a little bit and then get told we need to go to dock 5. Okay, no worries. A few more minutes pass before we get told we need to go to dock 7. Oh dear, there's a bit of a theme occurring here. We wait around by dock 7 and then a guy comes over and says "9.20 to Capri, follow me". So like obedient little kids off we all toddle until we reach dock 9, which was on the other side of where we were originally sent 😂. After about 5 minutes we were allowed to embark the ferry. Great, we'll be on our way soon ... maybe, just maybe 🤞. We were scheduled to depart at 9.20 but for reasons unknown to us we sat on the boat for another 40 minutes until everyone on the 9.55am sailing was on board. The boat was packed and a lot of people were having to stand so not sure about the safety factor coming into play and number of lifejackets on board, etc. Anyway, we eventually got away around 10.05am and made it safely to Capri, albeit much later than we had planned. It really did feel like a case of de jevu but you've got to see the humourous side.
By the time we got there Capri was already heaving with people but we managed to get on a 1 1/2-hour cruise around the island. It was only a small open wooden boat (the back area was shaded) with approximately 20 or so people on board but so very worth every cent we paid. The scenery and rock formations were spectacular and the water ... oh my gosh, I really have no words to describe the crystal clear, azure blue water, it was extraordinary.
One of the main reasons we went to Capri was to visit the Blue Grotto, a sea cave where the water has a blue glow that illuminates the cavern. You enter the cave on a small four-person rowboat that is navigated by an oarsman. You have to lie flat to enter the cave but the cave can only be accessed when the sea is calm. This was a bucket list item and we were pretty excited: however, we had heard that you can sometimes wait up to 2 hours to gain access. Our boat trip around the island included a trip into the Blue Grotto but when we got there, there were already numerous boats queuing up waiting for their turn. Our boat driver told us there would be a wait of about 2-3 hours before our turn but pretty much everyone on the boat agreed that it was too long to wait so we headed back to the dock. Pretty disappointing but it will remain a bucket list item. In the meantime, I'll leave you with a picture of what could have been (not my photo).
We took the funiculare (cable car) from the port to Capri town and stopped for lunch. As has been a common theme on the Amalfi Coast, the views from the top were jaw-dropping. We caught the bus back down and settled in at a bar for a drink and to do some people-watching (you should try it, it's a pretty fun pastime 😂).
There is a road in Capri called the Mamma Mia Road, known for its hairpin bends and cliffside location. I thought it was named because it was a location where some of the Mamma Mia movie was shot but no, it is the exclamation made by many tourists as they're driving this challenging road - Mamma Mia!!
The thing about going to Capri is there are no ticketing offices on the island to book your return journey so you have to decide your departure time before you leave Sorrento and we probably didn't give ourselves enough time on the island to explore further afield (such as Anacapri). It really is a beautiful location. Czytaj więcej