After croissants and cappuccinos, we left for the Amalfi Coast for a daytime excursion. We'd heard a lot about this famous drive, both positive and negative (traffic!!!), so we decided we needed to experience it for ourselves. We looked forward to the adventure, and adventure is what we got! First adventure:Getting out of Pompei. We'd discovered that the further south we headed into Italy, the more speed limits, stop signs and lane lines were simply a suggestion ...

After a great sleep, we got up and went for breakfast while the Brits quickly packed and escaped out of the window because none of us thought it was worth trying to explain the situation to the hostel reception. We met up with them at the beach and spent the morning body-surfing the waves and just enjoying the brilliant beach! After that, we set out for Pompei. We were thrilled when the drive from Sperlonga to Pompei went great and we found the hostel first try...

This morning involved a little housekeeping - we packed up and Barry got on the internet to play some bills. We tried to book our next stay, but none of our potential destination hostels took web bookings except Pompei. We decided to take our chances anyway, and headed to a beautiful spot called Sperlonga along the coast. We, of course, took the wrong roads, meaning we headed in the right direction, but took secondary roads instead of the Autostrada and ended up...

We managed to get up early and headed for Vatican City. We were excited about seeing this place and it certainly didn't leave us disappointed. When we arrived, we were a little anxious about the very long line-up (we thought it was for tickets, but it was for security). Luckily it went fast (only 20 minutes). The layout of the Vatican Museum was very efficient and we flowed along, enjoying the art of Raphael, Bernini and, of course, Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel....

We tried to get started early this morning, but last night went late after we ended up visiting with three 19 year olds from Vancouver named Jordan, Stephen and Thomas. The boys reminded Margaret of school and its upcoming start up. Also joining us were two teachers from Gloucester. The Canadians had been mugged on the train while heading to Naples for a day trip earlier that day, so we were drawn into that story! Just crazy. Conversation ranged from everyone's ...