Italy 2012: Sirens off the Isle of Capri

For some reason my second day of jet lag is always the worst. I woke up at 1am, sure that I had slept 8 hours, but sadly only 2. Thanks to a MTV-type TV channel and a few chapters of Rutherfurd’s  “The Princes of Ireland” (I know, I should be reading something more Italian, but Ireland is one of my weaknesses) I fell back to sleep around 3am. By 7am, I was awake and acutely aware that my head cold was back in full force and I was out of medicine. Good thing there are many flashing neon green Pharmacy lights in town.

I found a café nearby with wi-fi, so I bought my token thick ‘n rich hot chocolate, sent emails and updated my blog. It was a good 2.50 euro well spent. I visited a few Sorrento sights that I missed my first day – namely, the Old Mill in the grotto and the Hotel Victoria Gardens.


The old mill - in a grotto right in the middle of the city.

In the afternoon I took the hydrofoil to the famed Isle of Capri (with the accent on the “a” not the “i”as I was reminded - getting strange looks from the locals when asking for directions to the marina.) While waiting for the boat, eating my bread with cheese and green olives, I met a couple from Indiana. This morning over breakfast it was a retiree from Las Vegas who was spending 6 weeks in Sorrento and another solo lady from Alberta, Canada who was heading to Indonesia next. They make me look like quite the travel novice.

Marina Piccolo - I set sail to Capri from here.

As the boat pulled away from the hazy mainland, I was reminded of the sirens, famed to be roaming the waters off the coast of Sorrento and Capri. This tale is attributed to Ulysses and his trip to the area during his great Odyssey. I found this excerpt earlier this week:

" 'So far so good,' said she, when I had ended my story, 'and now pay attention to what I am about to tell you- heaven itself, indeed, will recall it to your recollection. First you will come to the Sirens who enchant all who come near them. If anyone unwarily draws in too close and hears the singing of the Sirens, his wife and children will never welcome him home again, for they sit in a green field and warble him to death with the sweetness of their song. There is a great heap of dead men's bones lying all around, with the flesh still rotting off them. Therefore pass these Sirens by, and stop your men's ears with wax that none of them may hear; but if you like you can listen yourself, for you may get the men to bind you as you stand upright on a cross-piece half way up the mast, and they must lash the rope's ends to the mast itself, that you may have the pleasure of listening. If you beg and pray the men to unloose you, then they must bind you faster. – The Odyssey, Book XII



The marina of Capri.

Lucky for me, no siren’s in site. However, compared to my trips yesterday, Capri was a bit disappointing. Maybe it was the fact that I was stuffed up and my throat hurt miserably. I forgot to stop by the pharmacy before leaving for the island, and really just wanted to get back to Sorrento.  But, I was on Capri, after all. I needed to try and experience as much as I could in a few hours. The sun was the hottest it has been since I arrived and tourists invaded the tiny port town like so many pirates in ancient times.

I opted for the funicular (vertical cable car) and wandered around a bit in the winding hilltop streets and alley ways. Some were back doors to dentist and hair dressers, but the larger ones were full of posh retail shops – one of the reasons Capri has a jet set reputation.



I kept running into Russians -  strolling by the fancy shops and swimming in the sea.

As gravity would have it, the walk back down to the marina was downhill, extremely downhill. I ended the 30 minute trek with wobbly knees and burning calves. I decided to join the group of Russians and Japanese tourists wading in the Capri waters. The tartly refreshing lemon granita was just what I needed to regain my strength.

With plenty of Russians around, asking someone to take my photo was pretty easy.

One more day full of walking will make the Cinque Terre trails that much easier next week. Back to Sorrento on the hydrofoil and a quick stop at the pharmacy for head drugs, the market for more water and Aranciatella soda, and the neighborhood pizza joint for Italian fast food.  Now, just waiting for the medicine to take effect. I opted to go to bed early and hopefully, have more energy for tomorrow’s adventures in the urban sprawl of Napoli.