Travel News January 2022 ... continued from page 16


Day 2: Arriving in Naples After floating to sleep as the ship sailed towards


Naples, I woke early to a beautiful sunset and tiredly strolled to the balcony to catch a glimpse of the city I would be exploring that day. On board any of the Royal Caribbean fleet, a multitude of shore excursions can be purchased which depend on where the ship is sailing to and from. On board this route for Harmony of the Seas, Royal Caribbean had organised an all day shore excursion around Naples which would include the picturesque sea-line of Sorrento and the historical preserved Pompeii. I excitedly gathered my travel trusty bumbag and


headed towards the central park area once again to catch a quick breakfast. The Central Park cafe called my name with a buffet style spread ranging from hot food to fruit cups and cereal to hot coffee which is inclusive with the cruise, much like many other places including a pizza bar named appropriately as Sorrento’s and the Windjammer to name but a few. I settled into one of the bright green chairs to indulge into the portioned bowl of coco pops and milky coffee and took in the sound of silence as the ship slowly came to life. The meeting point for all excursions on board is back at the entrance within the grand promenade where I made my way to meet up once again with the group from the previous day. We exited the cruise ship to a misty morning rolling over Naples where we were greeted by, not only the mountains surrounding the area ,but Nancy, our impressive tour guide for the day. Due to the covid pandemic, current excursions from the ship are led by a hired tour guide to minimise the chances of catching covid which I thought helped to keep everyone safe and comfortable with getting back onto the boat and into the ship “bubble”. A large air conditioned bus awaited our group


as we scurried on board and exited the port whilst listening to Nancy’s introduction. Our first port of call was Sorrento where we were told we would spend a few hours exploring and then it would be onto lunch. Trying to take in sights at 8am in a country 1 hour ahead of your regular schedule can be hard but thankfully Naples provided such breath-taking views that sleep was long forgotten. We travelled west of the port and through the downtown area of Naples, safe-guarded by the towering Mount Vesuvius to the right of the bus, and shortly we were travelling through the centre of the misty mountains seen from the balcony that morning. The long, whining underground tunnels opened out into the spectacular blues of the Mediterranean Sea which hugged the coast line as the bus continued along, with all roads now pointing towards Sorrento. The group took a short hop-off to take in the first moments of seeing the Sorrento coast which provided amble opportunity for photographs as the sun began to break through the clouds. The sights, sounds and smells of Sorrento were mimicked in this area with fruit carts and limoncello stands perched next to the road side, making the view feel that bit more authentic with so many locals near-by. After a short while it was back onto the bus and straight into the town of Sorrento, where Nancy explained the group would be treated to a walk around, another view point and a brief history of famous artwork within the town.


Stunning Sorrento town


The narrow streets dipped and dived the bus as we negotiated our way around the town were we finally came to a stop just on the outskirts of the central area. The bright yellow buildings of the town narrowed the streets further and with short bursts of sunshine through the cracks in-between buildings, the town was nothing short of a fairytale setting. Nancy talked and walked us through the parks, roads and alleys; A vivid memory is of Sorrento authorities placing Christmas decorations before the end of October- A tradition I could very much get behind! We then reached a spectacular view point of the never-ending coastline which disappeared the further left you looked; To the right you could faintly see in the distance the impressive Harmony of the Seas in port, giving a good indication of just how large this vessel is and having Naples as the back drop to such a sight just made it all the more impressive. Once more the media group flashed as many pictures as possible and back off on foot we went. Venturing through the streets again, we passed impressive government buildings, dainty souvenir shops (our favourite being the limoncello shop, of course) and busy restaurants and cafes filled with locals. A quick walk across Sorrento’s main square and we


were at the entrance of the Gargiulo and Jannuzzi store; Once down the short steps and into the store, we were met with beautiful displays of inlaid wood, famous in the town of Sorrento for the beautiful artwork. At the end of the long passage of clocks, tables and ornaments, a woman stood with different stages of the art work and shortly began to explain the process and history of the beautiful displays and their significance to Sorrento- the authentic tale provided a view of what Sorrento was once like and contradicted the now touristy town perfectly. A few hand-luggage sized jewellery boxes and small clocks were purchased and it was time to head back out into the now busier Sorrento town centre. Our time was done in the central town of Sorrento,


but our adventure had only just begun as it was now almost time for lunch ,which Nancy promised would be a taste of Italian and to everyones liking. Back onto the


HARMONY OF THE SEAS - PART 1 17


and tucked into our appetisers as we discuss our sights both on and off the ship from yesterday and today. As we tucked into the tasty offerings, the chef began


to set up his station overlooking the vineyards behind the area; we gathered around the table as he laid out bowls and utensils with warm water and began to create mozzarella, hinting at what our lunch could then be. We were talked through the process as the chef kneaded the mozzarella into balls within the warm water and told just like everything else, the milk produced from the cows on sight was used to create this cheese. It was at this point we were then informed that we would be creating our lunch today which was to be Italian pizza! The farm provided each of us with a chef hat and


Fruit stands at a viewpoint along the coast


beginning of our day trip off the ship. Greeted at the door, the owner introduced us to the farm, which also runs a cookery school, has its own restaurant and allows guests to stay in its premises. Firstly, we were introduced to an old olive grinder


which sat in the corner of the dark wooden room to which we were then explained the process to making olive oil, which the farm produces on sight, just like everything else provided at the farm. Outside, a clouded afternoon had formed in the Piano di Sorrento hills overlooking the long rows of vines and orchards on display. The host walked us through the vineyard explaining the difference between green and black olives, what makes olive oil 100% virgin and how certain oils are certain colours. The conversations soon fell silent as we approached


Olive vines in rural Sorrento


the farm animal area beyond the vineyards. The cries of a lone donkey rang out as we made our way around the array of animals which ranged from rabbits to geese, to pigs to turkeys- A true farm which was then reflected in the produce used for the range of creations made here. Our host showcased the marinara sauce used in foods at the restaurant where is produced from cherry tomatoes which grows on sight and is stored within old glass beer bottles. A mixture of new methods with old creations made the experience unique and interesting with this innovative way of recycling without losing authenticity. Next ,it was back inside to taste some of the delicious


food on offer here at the farm. A spread of olives, salami, bruschetta with olive oil and red and white wine was laid out before us, all of which was produced on sight. All the walking had once again built up a susceptible appetite so we gathered around the dark wooden tables


apron to enhance the experience as we looked forward to producing our very own pizzas. The official restaurant area of the farm sat adjacent to the initial front area which we moved to after the mozzarella demonstration was done. Entering into the warm ,yellow seating area, a fire pizza oven lay in the corner of one area, with a serving window to the opposite side; other chefs were busy preparing dinner for the evening guests at the restaurant which, again, showcased how fresh and locally sourced the food available here was. Bombarded with cameras, the chef began showing the method they use to create authentic Italian pizza, right from kneading and forming the dough, to placing the toppings on top and cooking in the oven. We watched as he swirled the pizza dough in the air effortlessly and formed the almost perfect circle to bed his ingredients onto. A quick three minutes cooked the pizza to perfection and it from then ready to eat. After watching in amazement , it was now our time to give this masterful creation a go; some braved the air swirl whilst others pressed their edges outwards on the floured surface and in groups of fours, we each created our own version of lunch for that day. Topped with in-house made sauce, mozzarella, basil and oregano, we carried our pizzas back into the front area and once more gathered to eat, only this time , less talking was done surprisingly. As if the experience couldn’t have got any better ,the


host brought drinks to wash down the beautiful pizza and, of course, it had to be our own shot of limoncello. Limoncello is produced through a process of heating sugar, lemon and vodka together and it creates this very strong, sweet alcoholic drink. As i’m sure you’ve already guessed, this too was produced on site at the farm and was available to buy from the farm shop along with the rest of their products. Feeling very Italian after the pizza making and limoncello, it was time for dessert; we were all presented was two large profiteroles filled with cream and topped with cream to end the fantastic meal. Decadent and sweet, the cream on top was mixed with a hint of limoncello to tie the full meal together and made for the perfect sweet treat to end this part of the day trip and our time in Sorrento. With filled bellies and yet another day of the warm fuzzy feeling from alcohol, it was time to make it back onto the bus and head back towards Naples.


Visiting Pompeii By mid afternoon we were heading back into the area


of Naples , with the sun now glowing high in the sky. Descending down the mountainside provided further spectacular views of churches, town lands and boats as we made our way back in the direction of the ship. Our next area to visit was the historic sight of Pompeii which felt very surreal considering we had spent the day travelling past Mount Vesuvius which is still known to be active to this day.


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The result of our pizza-making course- A marinara pizza


cool bus it reverted back through the dips of the narrow streets of Sorrento and climbed upwards through the mountain range and out of view of central Sorrento.As we approached the rural areas in the mountain range, with background of the sea included , Nancy explained how we were to disembark the bus and jump into a smaller bus as the streets would now get ever more narrow. Within minutes we had arrived at a small lane and, as told, there was a smaller bus awaiting our group. The little bus departed downhill through the lane


alined with houses and trees which sheltered the route from the hot Italian sun, until we came to the a signed entrance- Agriturismo Fondo Galatea.


Rural Sorrento: farms, vinyards and pizza making


This sheltered traditional Italian farm opened vastly


as we drove to the steps leading down into the wooden building, set up with tables and chairs upon our arrival. The steps towards the doorway were arched with olive vines and orange trees, reintroducing that distinct smell from the fruit carts along the coast of Sorrento at the


The Yellow narrow streets: walking through central Sorrento


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