So our time in Positano is already coming to an end as today we transfer to Sorrento! Probably just as well as we are both suffering bigly from the excursions of yesterday – my knees are buggered and Matt’s calf muscles are shot! He can barely move for the first five minutes after getting up! We had our breakfast on our private balcony again – and had a nicely leisurely morning as our car pick-up was booked for 11am, so lots of time to enjoy breakfast and the valley and sea views. We also discovered yesterday that our hotel has a charming rooftop pool and lounge area, so we also hung out there for about half an hour, waiting for our driver.
He arrived bang on time and fortunately we had some help to take our bags down to the road. Taking the same coastal road as before, our transfer to Sorrento was again smooth – and this time I really did notice the absence of all the tour buses. The locals all seem very happy about it too – I guess if you are a taxi driver (which you definitely SHOULD consider as a career in Positano – based on the cost of our short ride yesterday (30euros for 10mins), I worked out that’s the equivalent of an annual salary of well over $300k!), then that means a lot more people in need of transfers! Anyway, the drive into Sorrento only took about an hour – although I’ve been to Sorrento twice, I didn’t really remember all that much of it. However, that was at least 25yrs ago, so I don’t feel too bad for my lapse in memory! (although I did remember we stayed in the Hotel Conca Park last time – which still seems to be going strong!). We were staying at the Grand Hotel La Favorita which is a very nice hotel situated just a short walk from the main action on Corso Italia. https://www.hotellafavorita.com/ The hotel is decorated in a traditional Italianate style – think ornate swirly furniture, lots of fancy ceramics and trompe l’oeil. I wouldn’t want to give any of the furnishings house room but here they all just worked. The hotel had a rooftop pool and bar (yey!) plus some lovely gardens, so it really was a little oasis right in the center of town. Check-in was smooth – but we were a little early for our room, so we stored our luggage, availed ourselves of the free welcome glass of prosecco on the roof top terrace and then headed out into town to explore and get some lunch.
Again, it was incredibly hot and humid (whose idea was it to come to Italy in August? oh… wait….*ahem*), so after a few minutes wandering around we just picked a place right next to the hotel that was in the shade and had a simple lunch there. Besides the transfer, today’s activity was an afternoon olive-oil tasting trip visiting a local producer to go sample their wares. Pick-up was at 3pm and after a short drive, we were deposited at the Gargulio factory. We were met by our guide (again – can’t remember her name!) who took us on a brief tour of the vineyard and assorted ancient outhouses. There wasn’t that much to see but its always fascinating to have a look at old dilapidated buildings which apparently have been empty for over 100yrs. Perhaps a slightly dubious claim as ManpanionTM was fairly sure he saw some 50’s era tools in the “blacksmith’s” shed – but we’ll give them the benefit of the doubt. They did show us the giant old stone wheel that used to grind the olives into a paste ( twizzled round by donkeys) so that was cool – before taking us into the factory where we could admire all the gleaming new machines and gizmos that modern olive oil production requires!
After the short tour of the factory (its not the right time of year for them to be pressing olives, so there wasn’t all that much going on), we were lead into the tasting room where we then proceeded to taste well over two dozen oils, infusions and reductions! It was a lot of fun and they (mostly) tasted great – my personal favorite was the one with lemon and the one with rosemary. In my head, I was already roasting potatoes and dressing salads! Delicious! Of course, I ordered a ton of stuff to be shipped home (including some honey and jams too) so we’re going to be in for a treat when we get home! So it was a fun outing and, after an hour of olive oil soaked bread cubes, we were ready to head back to our hotel for – yes – a little afternoon nap before dinner!
Tonight’s restaurant was absolutely spectacular. Another Michelin star establishment, the Lorelei is perched high up on the cliff with an amazing view of Sorrento harbor. Our reservation was a bit earlier this time, so we were able to catch the full majesty of the sunset from our table on the patio. It was breathtaking and a great way to enjoy our first night in Sorrento. The food was amazing (including an olive oil menu!) – but we managed to not overfill ourselves this time, so we had enough room to go an enjoy a nightcap on the rooftop terrace of our hotel after we got back in. A lovely end to a lovely evening.
