1980 - ZIMBABWE Exploratory Visit - Salisbury#2

Sunday December 7, 1980 - Salisbury

We slept well and only woke up when the coffee and the Sunday paper arrived at 06.30. it was overcast and we thought it might rain, but the weather cleared up and it was quite hot later.

 

Cecil Square from our room in Meikles

We went for a stroll in Cecil Square after breakfast and Deirdre Padbury picked us up at about 10.30. she took us out to Ruwa Country Club where Eric was playing golf. It was a pleasant drive and the countryside was very green although Rab said she missed her Cape mountains. There are massive boulders alongside the road, but no mountains. The boulders in the picture featured on the Zimbabean $100 trillion note. The highest point around here is the Salisbury Kopje which is only a couple of hundred feet. The city itself is at an altitude of about 5,000 feet.

 

There are many formation like this

After a couple of drinks at the bar, where I met a lot of old codgers who knew Dad from when we lived here before and then went hurtling back to Salisbury. The speed limit here is 100 kph on the open road but no one seems to pay any attention to that. Our destination was the office children’s Christmas braai (barbecue) across town in a suburb – Belvedere – where we had lived when we first came to Rhodesia in the 50s. it had started at 11.30 and we only got there at about 13.00. the food was appalling – the salads looked ghastly (the rice salad was bright green for example) and the meat was either burned or raw. I don’t mind raw steak, but raw chicken is something else. Rab wasn’t too impressed with the people at the party, referring to them as a real mixed grill. Everyone was friendly though. Father Xmas arrived on a clapped out old motor bike to distribute the presents.

We left at about 15.30 and went back to the Padbury’s for tea where we got a very warm welcome from Major. Eric showed us some pictures of the boat which the company has on Lake Kariba which looks very nice indeed. Apparently all the islands in the Lake have accommodation on them and you merely decide what kind you want. Some are proper hotels, others are guesthouses and others merely have camping sites. (Eric wasn’t strictly correct in his information. The hotel accommodation was in and around the town of Kariba: the accommodation on the islands and up the river, whilst comfortable was fashioned after the huts that the ‘locals ’lived in.)

The fishing is said to be very good and everyone swims in the Lake – Rab felt she wouldn’t be too keen since there are a few flat dogs (crocodiles) about. Apparently there is still an enormous amount of game in the reserve on the southern side of the Lake. Unfortunately we couldn’t use the boat this week because the Government had recently sanctioned the use of locally produced ethanol (from the sugar cane) to supplement the diminishing supply of petrol. The ethanol dissolved the joins in the fibre glass fuel tanks which now have to be replaced with stainless steel ones.

After tea we went to a Greek restaurant – Acropolis Taverna – where Rab and I each had a huge plate of spare ribs. The tables were on the pavement and we had a jolly good time. There were some quite fancy cars there, including a Lotus and a fairly new Volvo sports model.

We got back to the hotel fairly early and with nothing to watch on television, had an early night.

1980 - ZIMBABWE Exploratory Visit - Salisbury#1

Saturday December 6, 1980 - Salisbury

We both woke up at about 05.30 but managed to get back to sleep until 06.30 when the coffee was delivered to our room. We put a call through to Matt, who was staying with our friends the Crones. It took about twenty five minutes to get through and we were pleased to hear that he sounded bright and chirpy.

Meikle's Hotel

While Rab was showering and getting ready for breakfast, I went down to the hotel lobby to get some postcards to send to our friends. There were none of the cartoon cards I had seen on previous visits. The assistant finally found one, but it was the only one available.

After breakfast we set of for town to get some idea of what was available in the shops – and what the prices were. Electrical goods were very expensive – a stove costing about R400 in South Africa selling for about Z$700 here. Men’s clothes seemed to be about the same price.

We went right through all departments in the main store – Barbour’s. Virtually no toys – poor Matt! There were board games – including a Muppet game – and some locally manufactured toys made out of cloth and wood. Very few imported toys and most of them cheap plastic ones. The only cars, for example, were small Playart ones. Rab mocked what fabrics were available. There was some lovely oak furniture and in a special section of the basement some fancy goods including locally made pottery but very little else. Rab said it all reminded her of the shops in East London. (That isn’t the East End of London, but my home town, in South Africa. A small town on the border of some of the artificially created ‘homelands’ it was a bit of a hick town.)

The tambala nuts we wanted to buy were very expensive at Barbour’s so we went to OK Bazaars to look for them there. (Tambala nuts are very large peanuts grown in Malawi, in currency terms there are 100 tambala to a Malawi Kwacha – you really can be paid peanuts in Malawi!) Of course, being a Saturday the shop was jam packed full of people – referred to by the white Rhodesians as ‘locals’ unless they were using more derogatory terms. Despite the crowds everyone was very good natured. (This was in contrast to the black people in South Africa who tended to be surly en masse – fpr understandable reasons.) We could not find any tambalas there but we had a very interesting talk to a (white) lady about living conditions. She was promoting local Cold Duck (which was awful as all local wines were.).

It was becoming quite warm, so on our way to the next shop I bought an iced lolly – greengage flavour – which was very refreshing. Next stop was a shop called Phillips which sells wine, coffee and tobacco where we bought our lottery tickets for the draw next Friday. (At this time all gambling, other than horse racing, was banned in South Africa, so no lottery there.) we drifted in and out of a couple more shops before finding our tambalas at another supermarket chain – Macey’s. we also bought a selection of biscuits, sweets and cereals for Matt to sample. Someone had told Rab that there was no choice of breakfast cereals, but in fact there were four or five to choose from.

The office had arranged for me to have a car while we were in Zimbabwe – a white Peugeot 404, the workhorse of Africa. I picked that up from the basement of our building after we had done with the shopping and went on a drive around town. First call was the old school – St George’s College – then the house where I lived and the suburbs like Highlands and Gun Hill. Everything is so  beautifully green and lush and the gardens looked lovely. Bougainvillea is everywhere. College looked a bit seedy and unkempt, I thought with the grass long and uncut and full of weeds.

St Georges College -  boarders' and staff quarters. The tower is a water tank

Back at the hotel we didn’t bother to have lunch – just tambalas and a couple of beers and thought we might watch a bit of television before going out. On Saturday TV begins at 14.15 with cartoons followed by Magic Circle starring Ali Cat, much to Rab’s disgust – not much to watch then.

We went out to see Eric and Deirdre Padbury (Eric was General Manager and the plan was that I was to take over from him when he retired.) before going on to my cousins the McBeans for afternoon tea. The Padburys have a lovely golden Labrador pup called Major, another ugly little black sort of skipperje called Scamp who has ugly protruding lower teeth, four cats and an aviary. The McBeans gave us a warm welcome and after tea with them we took Margie for a drive. She led us to St John’s School which is one that everyone has recommended. It certainly looks very nice indeed and I will try to see the Headmaster next week. It is a small school which goes up to Standard 6 and seems to be run on similar lines to Wet Pups. (Matt’s school – Western Province Preparatory School.)

We picked up Duncan on the way back and all went into town for a meal. The McBean girls had gone to the Ice Show with their Granny and spent the night with her. The restaurant was called the Clovagarlix and the décor was in line with the theme of Asterix. The inside of the restaurant was made to look like a log cabin in parts, while on the plastered areas were murals of characters from Asterix. The menu followed the theme and the prices were in “sestersii”. There was a good folk singer and a very noisy crowd of farmers from Lomagundi were mocking him. They were really very funny and we had a great time with everyone joining in the singing.

It was raining gently when we left which had cooled the air down a bit. We had intended having an early night, but finally got to bed at about 23.30. we saw several odd cars and vehicles on our drive – mainly peculiarly shaped military vehicles – but the one thing that really astonished us was seeing a Chevrolet Rekord Station Wagon for sale for Z$18,500. what a price!

1980 - ZIMBABWE Exploratory Visit

We were living happily in Cape Town in 1980, although we were very worried about the political situation and the escalation of violence in the community. I was offered a position in the Zimbabwe subsidiary of the international insurance group I was working for at the time. I had finished my schooling in the 50s in Rhodesia as Zimbabwe was called then and had two business trips there during the early part of 1980. I thought it would be a good move but Rab was less convinced, so the company offered us a trip to Zimbabwe to see what it would be like to live there.

This is a brief summary of our first impressions from that trip. The Rhodesian War or Chimurenga had finally been concluded, a peace negotiated and the country was Independent. Most of the whites still resident were looking for a way to get out of the country, but it was difficult. Financial controls limited the value of assets that could be transferred or removed. The universal view of our friends in South Africa and all the folk we met in Zimbabwe was that we were nuts. For us it was a chance to get out of South Africa and avoid what seemed to be the inevitability of a civil war developing.

My commentary reflects the fact that we had not done much travelling – at least by air. Rab and I had both been overseas, travelling by mail ship as most people did, and we had been on a cruise to South America after we were married, but we had done very little international  flying!

The South African Rand and the Zimbabwe dollar were on a par. The rates against  US dollar and sterling were about R1.00:US$1.25 and about R1.00:£0.60p.

Friday December 5, 1980 – Cape Town/Salisbury

We left Cape Town late because of some problem on the aircraft. We couldn’t hear what the problem was when it was announced, but it held us up about thirty minutes. We didn’t have a window seat but at least we had plenty of leg room because we were on the emergency aisle. There were a lot of noisy schoolchildren on the plane, heading home for the holidays. They were a bit of a nuisance wandering around the cabin.

The pilot was quite chatty and told us there were thunderstorms over Johannesburg which worried Rab a bit, but apart from two or three bumps on approach we had a very smooth flight. We made up for lost time and landed at Jan Smuts in Johannesburg on time. We only had coffee and biscuits on the flight, with a very poor choice of biscuits too.

There was no-one to meet us at the airport – not that we really expected anyone to trek out to the airport – so we went straight across to International Departures. I showed Rab where she would book in if she goes on the Lufthansa flight next year and then we went to the Duty Free to pick up some cigarettes for the people in Salisbury (re-named Harare in 1982) plus a bottle of de Kuypers Peach Brandy for me – very reasonable at R7.50. (Although some of the finest tobacco in the world was grown in Zimbabwe, shortage of foreign currency meant that no international brands were manufactured or sold locally, so for smokers it was always a pleasure to get South African cigarettes. I collected liqueurs so was always on the lookout for something different.)

There was an interval of about forty five minutes before we boarded and we had a beer while we waited. There were so many curious looking people about and we were fascinated. We spotted Shelagh Holliday (a well known South African actress) who was on her way to London and just as our flight was called Rab spotted some old friends of hers – Beryl and Owen Leibbrandt – who she hadn’t seen for about twenty years. As a result we were almost the last people to get on the bus which was taking us across to the aircraft. It turned out that we needn’t have worried because on our plane was a team of Nomad golfers who found it difficult to leave the bar so they held things up of about fifteen minutes. (Getting recalcitrant drinkers aboard turned out to be a common problem with Air Zimbabwe flights, which often left late as a result.)

There was a further delay when a storm swept across the airport. It started to rain heavily and there was lightning all over the place. We taxied down to the end of the runway and waited there for the storm to move on, finally taking off about twenty minutes late. I thought it might be bumpy due to the storm but it was not. Just a couple of little bounces. One of the golfers sat next to me – Rab had the window seat (as she did for most of our joint flights for the next thirty plus years) but as we were over the wing, she didn’t have much of a view.

My companion, John, had been one of the last arrivals on the bus and was quite talkative. He was also teasing the hostess (who looked like Cilla Black I thought) and he undid her apron. She apparently didn’t notice, but when he did it up again, she really snapped at him to leave her alone. She was very cheeky. When I asked her if she could get us a drink, she said she would try, but she wasn’t an octopus! When I finally got a drink, I had a cane spirit and kept the miniature bottle for Matt, as it was a Zimbabwe one and rather unusual. Rab also found an interesting map which she kept, plus two Air Zimbabwe spoons.

Rab had chosen the window seat because she wanted to see the lights of Salisbury as we came in to land but she didn’t see many, mainly because she was on the wrong side of the aircraft. We landed about twenty minutes late and were surprised to find that it was quite cool. There was quite a wait getting through Immigration and we laughed at the golfers and their antics. They were all a bit under the weather but were being quite amusing, especially about one of their number wearing a big black Stetson a la Dallas. They kept making cracks about JR.

By the time we got through Immigration, our luggage was on the conveyor belt and we went through Customs easily. Rab was most impressed by the politeness of the officials but couldn’t get over how small the airport was. We were met by Terry Burt and his wife Sherry who took us to Meikles Hotel in their old Renault station wagon.(The lack of foreign currency and the ability to import motor cars resulted in the Zimbabwean national vehicle fleet being mainly very old units.)  We had to walk a long way to his car at the airport because most of the parking area had been cordoned off for the crowd expected for President Nyerere’s (President of Tanzania) departure – he was here for a State Visit.

 

Manica Road, Salisbury - one of the main thoroughfares

The Burts were going on to a party, so they just dropped us off at the airport. Rab and I were feeling quite weary, so we just unpacked and watched some local television. The programmes were all running late because of Nyerere’s visit so I didn’t see the one programme I wanted to see – Kremen. It was odd to see TV being broadcast in black and white – and not very clear. (In fact the broadcast was in colour but it was not possible to buy a TV set in Zimbabwe that received colour signals.) As an indicator of the quality of the programming, The Muppet Show was broadcast in what was prime time in Zimbabwe – 19.15.

2008 ITALIAN ODYSSEY - Heading Home

Friday October 10, 2008 – Cassino

All went well this morning. We were away soon after 08.30 saying a sad farewell to Praiano. The traffic was light at that time of the day, although we encountered at least seven coaches before we got to Sorrento. One encounter was in a very narrow part of the road in Positano but we managed that well enough despite being somewhat baulked by two large ladies chatting on the side of the road – and actually overlapping into our space. But all in all it was an easier drive than when we came in – perhaps I was now fresher and more experienced – and we were soon on the highway heading North.

The monastery perched above Cassino

We came off the autostrada here in Cassino because it looked like a nice little town and it is only 90 minutes from the airport. We found a nice four star hotel for only Є88 bed and breakfast and then went into town for a final bit of mastodon shopping. I had thought of winding my way uphill to see the famous monastery which had it’s origins back in the sixth century. But it was a hot day – the car said it was 29°C and as the entire complex had been bombed flat by the Allies in 1944 (not for the first time either!) I felt it was not worth the effort to see what was essentially a modern building.

Unfortunately my throat which was ‘scratchy’ last night has  got worse today and it seems I may be in for a recurrence of the cough and cold business. What a pity that will be to spoil a good flight.

 

Last view of the Italian countryside from our hotel in Cassino

Monday October 13, 2008 – Melbourne

My throat quietened down and we got to the airport with little difficulty – there was a moment when the signage changed which caused a small worry. But we found our way there, handed over the car and off we went.

The Malaysian Airlines flights were, as usual very good but we didn’t get much sleep. We got home at 22.00 last evening but were wide awake at 04.00 this morning – a common problem with long West to East flights we have found.

What a wonderful holiday that was.

I'm not sure if the term 'one-eyed' is used in other countries as often as it is used in Australia, but it might well be applied to our view of Italy.  Readers of this blog who have been to Italy are in the best position to judge whether that is fair or not.

2008 ITALIAN ODYSSEY - Praiano/Amalfi

Wednesday October 8, 2008 – Praiano/Amalfi

Today I finally got the rest day I have been pursuing. I actually applied for two days but Alas! we are off to Amalfi tomorrow. In our original planning I had thought to drive through to Pompeii today – and possibly even drive up to the summit of Mount Vesuvius. Although it was less than 50 km to Pompeii and another 20 km or so to Vesuvius, it meant driving to and fro along the dread road again. The forecast was also for a warm day – in the high 20sC and so I gave it a miss. (My good friend Lars could not believe that I had been so close to these two iconic destinations and not visit them, but I was more philosophical – you simply can’t do everything you want.)

Looking along the coast from Priano towards Amalfi

The church at Praiano

So we had a very pleasant day. We slept in late after our ‘big night out’, had a late breakfast and strolled down the road to see the bits of the village that we hadn’t seen until now. I was hoping to go down to the beach – only 300 steps down the cliffside – but blew my chances last evening after we had woken from our snooze and before we went out to dinner. We had gone down to the newsagent to pick up a Daily Mail which Rab loves (good Right Wing paper that it is!) and I had persuaded her to walk a little further up the upper road to get a better view from higher up. I had glanced at a map of the village and thought that there was a path that would lead us back to the main road. Sure enough the path and steps were there. Unfortunately they led to an empty plot after about 200 steps so we had to make our way back up all those steps and return to the hotel the way we had come.

Today we stayed on the main road and became two of the pedestrians causing potential problems for the traffic. We were very careful to keep a lookout for vehicles, coaches in particular because in most places there was no pavement or sidewalk, just a white line painted along the road. Theoretically, pedestrians walk inside this line, although at times it is only a few centimetres/inches from the roadside wall. Scary stuff. We enjoyed the walk because it gave us the chance to peer into gardens, to admire the houses and to generally get better views of the scenery we had passed by at speed on the bus and in the car. 

One of the model villages

There were two model villages on the side of the road, complete with mangers, stars and angels. Presumably they are all lit up during the Christmas season.

We had an excellent lunch at San Gerrano a small restaurant overlooking the bay – tuna salad with those sweet tomatoes and fresh rocket - and then a peaceful snooze before re-packing our cases for our return trip, (always a bit of a problem to fit the acquisitions into the available suitcase volumes, not to mention the weight allowances), watching the sunset and eating our dinner in the hotel across the road. Delicious as virtually all the food has been.

 

What could be a better spot for a bit of lunch?

Thursday October 9, 2008 – Praiano/Amalfi

Another glorious sunny day to greet us when we opened the screen doors. Such a lovely view to wake up to.

The beach at Amalfi - imagine it in summer, covered in browning bodies

We bought the tickets for our proposed trip to Amalfi last evening and after breakfast we were ready for the off, aiming to catch the 09.25 bus. This duly arrived almost on time – how they manage to keep anywhere near the timetable, given traffic conditions is beyond me – but the bus was full: standing room only. That always presents a bit of a dilemma for me because few public transport vehicles are designed to accommodate people my height. We decided to go ahead anyway because the next bus was only due in an hour and was likely to be full too, but I must say I regretted the move. The driver was not as good as some of the others we have experienced. He tended to brake sharply and sway all over the road. It was very hot and I had to keep my head bent to avoid cracking it on the hand rail that ran around the bus in these violent movements.

Rab at the Amalfi harbour

I was very glad when we got to our destination and felt quite shaky for a while – almost car sick. We sat in the shade for a while and I had a drink of water and felt much better.

Duomo Amalfi

There were hordes of visitors there as we wandered the shops and piazzas. Not for the first time on this trip we find it difficult to imagine what it must be like in the height of the season. Our strategy of travelling out of high season on almost all of our trips has suited us very well over the years. We liked the look of Amalfi but are very glad we booked into Praiano instead of here, Sorrento or Positano. Praiano is a small village but it has many amenities – and certainly less tourists.

Fishmonger's sign - it's all there

We headed for home and had our final lunch of Praiano Salad as we have named the San Gerrano Tonne Insalata which we’ll miss – you just can’t get tomatoes like those they grow locally. We’ve had that every day we’ve been here, with a local beer, apart from the day we were in Sorrento.

After our afternoon snooze, I finished the packing, we watched our last sunset here and had a fine dinner across the road at S’merelda, sitting on the terrace and watching the lights.

All the people we have met here have been so friendly and pleasant. It really has been a wonderful end to a truly marvellous holiday. We’re out of here tomorrow to get closer to Rome for Saturday’s flight.

One last sunset - could not resist them

2008 ITALIAN ODYSSEY - Praiano/Sorrento

Tuesday October 7, 2008 – Praiano/Sorrento

 

Early morning sun lights up some of the hotels in Praiano

It is our 41^st Wedding Anniversary today and we are both very happy to be celebrating it in such a beautiful place. We both like it very much and are very pleased that we made the somewhat fearful drive to get here. I think that only people who have experienced the drive can understand just what it is like – the tight  turns, narrow roads, parked cars, SITA busses, tourist coaches, buzzing bikes….a truly unique experience.

 

A house high on the cliff in the morning spotlight

We had an early and adequate breakfast – fresh fruit, toast, yoghurt and pastry (no cheese or meat) washed down with an excellent cappuccino – and caught the SITA bus, which stopped right outside the hotel, for Sorrento. It was market day there!! We thought the bus driver was more used to the traffic conditions than I was – and we’d have no parking problems.

We had  good seats, on the seaward side of the bus, so had a good view of just how far down the water was and how close to the edge and other traffic we came. At one corner we came face to face with a tourist coach coming the other way. Our driver beckoned it forward, but clearly the coach driver held the same view as I did – there wasn’t enough room to pass. He finally had to move as the hooting of delayed vehicles built to a crescendo. Our driver was right – there was about 5 cm or 2 inches to spare as the coach slipped past us.

 

Rab by the mural depicting our wooing!

We got to Sorrento in one piece on a lovely sunny day and trudged up hill to where the market was. It was mainly clothing but amazingly enough Rab found something to buy – a pair of shoes to match her bag – and for only Є10 – less than the bus fare of Є12. But talk about Imelda Marcos! Thankfully we didn’t stay there long and went into town to wander the streets on our way down to the seafront. We had visited Sorrento briefly on our Mediterranean Cruise ten years earlier and recognised some of the buildings. We stopped off for a gelati which we ate in the lemon grove opposite the shop. It was very pleasant just sitting in the shade and watching the passing show while reflecting on what a good and happy life we have had  together – and how fortunate we have been.

Here's to us and another few decades

After sharing a toasted Panini with cheese for lunch, we bought a bottle or two of Limón cello from the charming young lady in the ice cream shop and spent about forty minutes more wandering around admiring the views and old buildings – and the contents of some shops, I dare say. It was getting quite hot and I was feeling a little weary so we headed for the bus station. We were in luck because the 13.25 bus was running late and there were two seats left – all the others being occupied by students returning home.

The return trip took about an hour and we were happy to get back to the hotel and flop down in our room for a siesta. How quickly we have adapted to the local customs! Although the afternoon sun beats into our room, it is amazing how cool the room is with shutters, doors and windows closed. As the sun  goes down, we open up the shutters and curtains and sit on our veranda, watching the sunset as the evening breeze whisks the heat of the day away.

 

The night view from the terrace of Tramonte d’Ora

We decided to push the boat out tonight and have dinner at the four star hotel  Tramonte d’Ora just up the road. It was a great evening. We sat on the open terrace with a beautiful view of the bay, the fishing boats and the lights of Positano. The food was excellent – we both had fish, freshly caught no doubt and shared a dolce of profiteroles. I had told the maitre d’ that it was a special occasion so he gave us a complimentary starter of shrimps and a couple of glasses of spumante to finish the evening as well as a small figurine of a pulcinella - clown. He also claimed that the firework display across the bay was in our honour, with a big grin on his face. Of course it wasn’t, but it added a special touch to the evening,

We have had many memorable anniversaries – and this is one of them.

2008 ITALIAN ODYSSEY - Praiano

Monday October 6, 2008 – Praiano

We left bright and early this morning and headed South – 365 km/225 miles – to Praiano. Most of the way we were on the A1 which was very good. There was light traffic and a good surface so we were able to travel at the speed limit of 130 kph/80 mph most of the way. There were no signs of the ‘lunatic’ drivers that are regarded as typical of the Italians. In fact very few vehicles passed us. Two memorable ones which did were a Maserati which came purring up behind me – what a sight – and smoothly disappeared into the distance. The other was less impressive a small Town Car straining every inch to get past at what must have been its maximum speed. Not a car I would drive at that speed. I must say that generally, I think the drivers are very good - they certainly know how long and wide their cars are to the millimetre.

The toll for the entire trip on the autostrada was about Є15 which seemed reasonable. We were less happy about paying the Є1.50 charge when we turned off the main road near Naples. The roads were appalling full of potholes and a scarcity of signs. The garbage dispute (allegedly involving the mafia) was at its height and there was rubbish everywhere, some burning not far from the road. Any thoughts of actually visiting Naples were finally dismissed.

 

Naples and Vesuvius

I had been dreading driving along the coastal road – Praiano is situated about half way between Sorrento and Amalfi – which has featured in many scary films and TV programs about the fear created by the mad Italian drivers on this narrow road with the steep plunge down to the sea. Although there were some tense moments and it was a tiring business, it was not as bad as I had imagined it would be.

First view of Praiano - on the point in the distance

The road was indeed very narrow and for much of the way there was not much to stop you going over the edge. Cars parked along both sides, pedestrians in the villages through which the road goes both presented problems as did the very large tourist coaches. But without doubt it was the two wheeled vehicles – scooters and buzz bikes mainly – that caused the most angst. They would appear from nowhere weaving in and out of the traffic on either side of the road hooting and revving their bikes. Quite unnerving.

Le Fioriere - our room on the upper floor has the palm

The hotel Rab chose here - Hotel Le Fioriere is excellent. It is a small family run place clean and tidy. Our room overlooks the main road, which can be a little noisy, but what a view!! 

 

The view from our room

It looks due West so the sunset is spectacular. I know I’ll take too many shots while we are here – never could resist a good sunset. We can see Capri in the distance. I love it down here already!

The hotel does not serve an evening meal but the owner was only too happy to suggest a number of places where we could eat in the village. We thought a light meal would be best so climbed a long flight of stairs to the pizzeria he had recommended and had some good pasta there.

Our first sunset - glorious