Italy - The Isle of Capri and the Blue Grotto

 

Spent a few days in Capri, off the Sorrento coast in southern Italy in a lovely vacation home just above the large port, the Marina Grande, which provided relaxing views of all the port activity.  Watched the fishermen leaving port in the early morning and late afternoon, the ferry boats filled with day-trippers and cars loading and unloading, and the ships bringing supplies to the inhabitants.

The first day we arranged for a tour around the island in a small motorized, refurbished fishing boat, with a cooler of beer and bottles of water, and towels for the bathers.  Of course the high point of the boat tour was a visit into the world-famous Blue Grotto, the Grotto Azzurra. Many small boats filled with people crowded the water near the entrance to the Grotto, where men on a larger boat collected entrance fees. We were then transferred to an even smaller boat, with a guide. The Blue Grotto entrance is so small and low (inaccessible at high tide) that the guide told us all to lie down in the bottom of the boat, and he pulled the boat into the cave entrance using a metal chain.  Once inside the dark cave, the glow of the aquamarine-blue water was just breathtaking -- my photographs hardly do justice to the colors!

Continuing on the circuit of the Island of Capri, we passed underneath a “Pharos” – a lighthouse whose light could be seen for 25 km., numerous caves, and the small harbor called the Marina Piccola.

 

Rounding a promontory, we came upon the equally famous rock formation called the “Faraglioni” a grouping of three huge limestone crags poking out of the sea, one of which had an arched portal that our boatman guided us through, while we were snapping many photos. 

 

The next day we took the Funicular up to Capri Town and walked the trail to visit the ancient ruins of the palace of the Roman Emperor Tiberius, called the Villa Jovis, which dates from the first century AD. Originally built by Emperor Augustus as a vacation home, Tiberius reportedly was so worried about assassination that he retreated to Capri, leaving Sejanus, his general of the Pretorian Guards, to rule in Rome.

 

Today the remains of the palatial complex with numerous rooms, apartments, staircases, and stables gives only a faint idea of how this structure may have looked in 30 AD, but the vistas over the sea were spectacular. 

While wandering around, I came upon three goats, who apparently belonged to one of the caretakers, and the aroma they gave off reminded me of Chèvre cheese (which comes from goats). The chance to touch a bit of Imperial Roman history was well worth the hour hike up to the Villa Jovis.

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Exploring the Amalfi Coast – Mt Vesuvius and Pompeii

 A 4x4 truck for Mt Vesuvius excursions

Any lover of Italy must experience the Amalfi coast once in a lifetime, and for me, September was the time. 

Setting out with my intrepid fellow-travelers, we arrived in Naples and caught a taxi for the ferry to Sorrento. Our short time was well-planned so that we could see the major sites with the minimum of hotel changes.  First full day was devoted to a tour up to Mt Vesuvius and to Pompeii.

We were fortunate to have clear sunny weather for Mt Vesuvius. The 4x4 truck, required because the roadbed was so rough and bumpy, dropped us off at a stop about a 30 min hike below the rim of the volcano, and we trudged up a well-worn path to experience the breath-taking views over the Bay of Naples.  A guide at the top pointed out the items of geologic interest, such as the vents in the crater that belched gases and steam. 

Steam vents in the crater of Mt Vesuvius

 From that height, Naples looked dangerously close, and it was easy to see how the massive volcanic eruption of 79AD could have buried it.  In fact, if f I were a resident of Naples today, I would not feel at ease.

Naples from Mt Vesuvius

 

The afternoon was filled with a tour of Pompeii, and I remembered enough on the tour of Herculaneum three years ago (described in this blog) to mentally compare. 

Pompeii, first views

For example, Pompeii was a working town of commerce, with shops, small factories, tradesmen, and merchants.  The streets still show the grooves of the wagons passing through with loads of goods to transport.

Pompeii streets with stepping stones and wagon wheel grooves

However, I remembered that Herculaneum was described as the resort town for the wealthy citizens from Rome, which the lack of grooved streets indicated and the abundance of villas attested to, such as Julius Caesar’s father-in-law’s villa, a replica of which was built as part of the J Paul Getty Museum in Malibu California.

Another thing I learned about Pompeii was that it had been a port city, and now because of soil erosion and silt buildup, is about 7 km distant from the sea.

Remnants of the port of Pompeii

 Wandering through the many streets, many with stepping stones for pedestrians to cross, yet wide enough for wagon wheels, I realized that this had been an enormous city. Taking photos of beautiful theater and forum, the double-peaked profile of Vesuvius loomed in the distance.

Theatres, baths, bakeries, workshops, townhouses, the forum, all stark evidence of the vibrant life here almost 2000 years ago.  The guides loved showing us the ‘fast-food’ shops where huge terracotta amphorae were filled with stews kept warm for the working people eating on the run.  One of the warehouses on display was filled with amphorae jars for transporting wine, olive oil, garum (fish sauce) and cereals all over the Roman Empire. 

 

Poor dog! Tied up and left to die...

One display case held some of the famous plaster casts of the victims of Vesuvius, including a dog tied to a post, caught and unable to escape the disaster. Stark reminders of how tenuous is life in the shadow of a volcano.

Family "Coat of Arms"

In response to a recent comment from a reader of this blog as to whether I knew what the Köferli  "Wappen" or coat of arms was, I have a photo from a book on Lengnau, Switzerland, where my Köferli family originated.

 

This page contains the Wappen for the founding families of Lengnau: Angst, Bucher, Jeggli, Köfer, Köferli, Müller, Suter, and Widmer.  Note that there is both a Köfer and a Köferli. I was told that there was originally one family name of Köfer, and the family split, with the new branch taking the same name but with a diminutive “li” ending to make Köferli.  I was also told that the name means one who works with copper, as a barrel maker, which in English is called “Cooper” These names date back hundreds of years, and in searching the Swiss national archives for my family names I found the Köferli name intermarried with Suter, Bucher and Angst over the centuries. Still more genealogy research needs to be done!

 

 

 

 

Switzerland on $15 a day...

How did I do it?  Simple, stay with family. Seriously, the only way I have been able to explore Switzerland in any depth has been because I am fortunate enough to have family there.  Otherwise, travels in CH would not be possible within my budget.

After a six month hiatus, I was back in Switzerland enjoying a gorgeous August in Zürich, with weekend day-trips within easy reach.  Near Interlaken in the Bernese Oberland, stopped at Meiringen at lunchtime for a chance to see the Reichenbachfälle, the famous Reichenbach Falls of Sherlock Holmes.

 

As any long-time fan of Sherlock Holmes can tell you, the Reichenbachfälle is the scene of the final, deadly encounter between Holmes and his arch-enemy Prof. Moriarty, as recounted by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the story “The Final Problem.” Conan Doyle was pressed by his publishers to permit Sherlock Holmes to survive the fight, but looking over the precipice at the falls, seems survival would have been doubtful.

Driving through the town of Meiringen, signs pointed to the Sherlock Holmes Museum, in the basement of what was formerly an English church, with a sculpture of Sherlock Holmes in front of the building.  From the town, the Reichenbachfälle is accessible using the Reichenbachfälle-Bahn, the funicular that climbs a dizzyingly steep gradient to the falls. Or one can hike up.  We opted to drive up to the restaurant at Schattenalb for lunch, from where it was a much easier hike down to view the falls, which consisted of three or four separate cascades roaring through the large granite boulders shaded by thickly wooded slopes. 

 

 

Hiking the extent of the falls was made much easier with the many stairs interspersed with viewing platforms with perfect vantage points to take pictures.

 

There was a small hydo-electric station near the upper falls, and below were signs warning hikers of sudden bursts of water from water released through the dam.  The Reichenbach roared straight down the chasm to the valley below, flowing into the Aare, which flows into the Rhine about 120 Km north.

 

After enjoying a taste of Sherlock Holmes adventure, we continued on up to the Schwarzwaldalp, past Rosenlaui, and found a fully operational water-powered lumber mill, dating from 1896, complete with a woodman who explained the operations. 

 

Most educational, both the children and adults present were fascinated.

Stopped at the base of the Sustenpass at Gadmen to buy some alpenkäse in a roadside shop.

 

 Then climbed up the switchback road across the pass, and got a photo of the signpost at the summit (2224 meters above sea level). 

 

The snow was real, and saw a glacier feeding a mountain lake on the way up.

The return through canton Uri was some of the most beautiful mountain scenery and classic Alpine towns in Switzerland. 

Winter in Andermatt, Switzerland

A serene Alpine lake at Innerthal

Naturally I’m back in Switzerland, staying in Zürich for as long as the authorities (and my family!) allow. The weather before New Year’s Day had been mild, but in mid-January the snow and cold of a real winter arrived.

Andermatt, the perfect Alpine resort

We decided to take a day trip to the Swiss Alpine town of Andermatt, one of the lesser-known ski resorts, certainly not as famous as Zermatt, Gstaad, or Davos, but just as gorgeous.  Andermatt, in the heart of the St Gotthard Massif, lies at an altitude of over 4700 feet on a crossroads between the mountain passes of St Gotthard, the Oberalp, the Furka, and The Göschenertal. This Alpine valley in the Canton Uri is the source of both the Rhine River, which flows into the North Sea, and the Rhone River, which flows into the Mediterranean.

St Michael Chapel in Andermatt, with an ancient Gothic baptismal font inside

Driving through the 10.5 mile long St Gotthard Road Tunnel, which opened in 1980, is a radical switch from the German Swiss to the Italian Swiss. One enters the north portal of the tunnel at the town of Göschenen, in the Canton Uri, and exits the southern end at Airolo in the Italian speaking Canton Ticino. As with many tunnels through mountain passes (such as the Eisenhower Tunnel in Colorado) the weather at one portal can be entirely different from the other, that is, one can enter during a blizzard, and exit into the sunshine.

A bridge in Andermatt over the Interalpreuss

Andermatt had always been an important staging post on the ancient St Gotthard Pass, resulting in the development of several hotels and transport services. In the 19^th century a Swiss Federal Army barracks was located in Andermatt, further expanding the local economy. But with the opening of the St Gotthard Road Tunnel in 1980, which bypassed Andermatt, many hotel businesses closed or were converted to barracks for the remaining army training functions. However, Andermatt is well worth a detour if driving from Zurich to Lugano, or as its own destination, as it is an easy hour’s drive from Zurich.  And what breathtaking scenery!

Skiers and snowboarders at dusk

 

Of course, the two ski areas above Andermatt have ski lifts running up from the village, and the public transportation serves the lifts from the several hotels. This village is an authentic ski town, what the ski resorts of Vail and Aspen in Colorado were designed to emulate.



The Chedi Andermatt

Andermatt is undergoing significant upgrades with the recent addition of The Chedi Andermatt, a 5-Star hotel, conference center and spa. The Chedi opened in 2013 to some controversy, as introducing such a world-class attraction, even if a boost to the tourist industry, may cause excessive strain on a delicate alpine environment.  However, the developers made a great effort to create a facility with minimum environmental impact, and employ an architectural style that melds the traditional alpine ski chalet look with ultra-modern 5-star amenities.

Cozy time for aperitifs!

 

We had lunch in one of the many dining rooms, and after taking a walk around Andermatt, returned to The Chedi for aperitifs in front of one of the several roaring fireplaces. What luxury!  From the windows we could watch the sunset on the snowy peaks surrounding Andermatt, a joy to behold.

Breathtaking sunset

 

If planning to visit Andermatt, check out the village website:  www.andermatt.ch, and for a luxury lunch, try  The Chedi Andermatt at  www.ghmhotels.com