South to Pompeii





Hotel Olimpo
Outside of Pompeii

We have breakfast with John & Joan, pack up and start driving south towards Pompeii.  I’m not sure if I want another adventure along the coastal towns, but Steve insists.  We didn’t see Pompeii on our last trip.  Driving the autostrada was a piece of cake; however, once we got onto the city streets, Steve is dodging trucks, 18 wheelers, mopeds, CRAZY Italians and discussing with me my lack of knowledge of our two GPS’s.  The first hotel I see, I say "stop!" and decide to call it a day.  Turns out to be a family-owned estate on 2 hectres in the middle of a city.  We didn’t get dinner because we didn’t want to drive again and we didn’t want to walk on the narrow street, without sidewalks, and crazy Italian drivers.  So, we ate what we had left in our picnic bag.  



We walked around the estate and the owner took me for a tour of his gardens.   So sweet and very proud of his estate of olive, walnut & apricot trees.  Lots of kiwi plants and beautiful palm trees that he said had been attacked by an African bug.  Steve takes to their dog, Neve.  She’s just a white mut, but very cute and shy.  They had fun chasing each other.  Back in our room, we try to sleep but are awaken several times by fireworks—and lots of them.  Some, off in the distance, others right in front of us.  Big cakes and booms!  I put on the A/C and closed the shutters.  Hopefully, the fireworks will stop soon.  (The next day I find out it was a celebration of Saint Francis, or something like that.)