Pompeii & Mt. Vesuvius

Guest Blogger: Michael Mammele 

In Southern Italy there are countless things to do and experiences to be had. I’ve been lucky enough to live along the Amalfi Coast for the past month and a half but recently, I was able to travel farther inland to two sights that are rich in history: the ruins of Pompeii and Mt. Vesuvius. I embarked on a bus with a group of about 50 people from Amalfi and began the journey to Pompeii.

Pompeii is now ruins of an ancient Roman city that experienced the devastating eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in the year 79AD. The eruption killed over 3,000 people, while over 20,000 fled the city entirely. Upon arriving I was immediately blown away by the vast architecture. It made me think about how incredible it is that nearly 2000 years ago, a structured civilization was able to create such a breathtaking city. The ruins themselves are much like an outdoor museum. Our tour group walked through old palaces, thermal spas, and looked at ancient paintings frozen in time. We walked through the famous amphitheater, completed in 80BC. This site was home to numerous spectacles and gladiator battles. I grew up watching the movie “Gladiator” with Russell Crowe and here I was literally standing on the very grounds that partly inspired the film.

We looked into small cement rooms where the gladiators, who were prisoners, slept. The rooms were no bigger than the average home bathroom; most of them had no roof to protect from rain. Not only was I in amazement at the historical sights I was seeing but I was humbled in the process.

While I loved Pompeii and the ruins, I couldn't wait to start the second half of the day: the climb of Mt. Vesuvius. The bus ride took about 45 minutes from Pompeii and pulled nearly to the top of the mountain, where the group disembarked and climbed the rest of the way. Standing at the top of a volcano was always something I considered to be a “bucket-list” activity, and not a very realistic one at that. Yet, here I stood well over 3000 feet in the air, staring into this massive crater. In fact, massive doesn't even do the size of this beauty justice.

I was surrounded with a jaw-dropping panoramic view over the city of Naples, the Bay of Salerno, and the islands of Capri and Ischia. I could see smoke slowly protruding from the bottom of the crater. I had to pinch myself to realize that I wasn’t dreaming. It was a day that I’m certain I will never forget.

While I met some great people from all over the world, I was truly happy to spend a day by myself and experience a real adventure. While traveling with companions is always pleasant, I think everyone should travel to at least one destination by themselves; it clears your head and gives you a great sense of independence. I couldn't have been happier with how the day turned out, and can't wait for my next adventure.

Earth Day on the Amalfi Coast

With Earth Day approaching, all of us here at Exclusive Cruises are taking the time to reflect on what the environment means to us and what we can each do to maintain it.

The Amalfi Coast is famous for it’s spectacular views, the beautiful Mediterranean Sea, the fresh food produced here and the warm sunshine. These are all natural things- part of the earth, and it is our job to maintain them to the highest degree possible.

Everyone who lives on the Amalfi Coast, Capri, Ischia and the surrounding areas is dependent on the land for survival. The lemons that are grown to make our delicious granitas, the olives used for our fresh olive oil, the grapes grown to produce our local wines…the tomatoes, the fish in the sea…I could go on and on.

Not only is it important to maintain the natural beauty for the tourists who keep the local economy strong, but for the people who live here, who wake up every morning to the beautiful Mediterranean sunshine…the people who help make this beautiful region so special.

This year, Exclusive Cruises is asking for everyone on April 22, 2014 (EARTH DAY!) to give back to the community.  

Below are some ideas:

11.  Pick up trash that you see discarded on the ground or in the sea, even if it is not your trash!

22. Shut off the lights when you leave a room

33. Carpool or take a bike or the bus

44. Create a group of friends to donate a few hours to cleaning up the towns and villages together

55. TEACH and EDUCATE your children the importance of keeping the environment clean!!!

L6. Let’s make every day Earth Day!

 

View of Positano 

View of Atrani from Amalfi

From Skyscrapers to Lemon Groves – Part 1

Daily Life on the Amalfi Coast

I took this picture in early morning on my daily walk - when the Amalfi coast was just waking up

Daily life on the Amalfi Coast is full of sunshine, garlic and lemons. Riding a Vespa along the famous Amalfi Drive, curving between the cliffs and the sea, I look at the view and wonder what I did to deserve living in such a breathtaking place.

You can tune in to my short video series documenting my daily life here, but in the meantime I will tell you a little about my latest adventures.

The Amalfi Coast is composed of a variety of small towns just south of Naples on the Mediterranean coast. Houses are built into the rocks and cliffs overlooking the sea. Lemon groves and grape vines are scattered through the winding roads. Life is simple here and revolves mostly around family. Every day for lunch, families join and sit for a meal of pasta and wine, followed by seasonal fruit and an espresso. Then a swim is usually in line before getting back to work. Everyone has a tanned glow and is smiling, offering some sort of food or beverage, using loud voice inflections in both Italian and Neapolitan dialect accompanied animated hand gestures. 

My main source of transportation here is hitching a ride, or “prendere un passagio”. Since the coast is so small, I more than often know someone passing. I usually jump on the back of a vespa and ride from one town to the next, visiting family, friends, or discovering new beach.

Andrea with his Granita Cart on the beach in Amalfi

The economy here thrives on tourism. The economic crisis hit the coast like a ton of bricks, but it is slowly recovering. This year my cousin Andrea (Andrew in English) started a new business making lemon slushies (or granitas), from a small cart. The lemons are of course grown locally and organically and his granitas are the best on the coast (I’m not biased). It makes me laugh to see him rolling by along the beach or the port with his cart, and he has an equally fun personality to accompany it.

The beaches offer sunbed and umbrella rentals, restaurants cook recipes with fresh fish caught daily, handmade pasta, and locally grown vegetables and fruit. Hotels include terraces overlooking the sea and the shops sell handmade ceramics, unique to the coast.

Me! Boating on the Mediterranean Sea

Sometimes I feel like I stepped back in time and imagine my great grandmother Rose and great grandfather Fabiano walking the same cobblestone streets that I walk every day. I go to visit my aunts, and as we sit in the kitchen I listen to their stories about my great grandmother, who died when I was a child. She left Amalfi to find a better life, and my great grandfather followed her onto the ship all the way across the Atlantic to Ellis Island, pressing for her hand in marriage. She finally agreed and they married in New Haven, CT, which is the sister city of Amalfi because during the depression many Amalfitans went to New Haven.  Rose and Fabiano stayed together to raise 3 children, 7 grandchildren, and 6 great grandchildren.

Now here I am, with fire in my heart, tracing my roots back to where it all began.

Amalfi Coast Lemons - they grow to be the size of grapefruits!

The famous Duomo of San Andrea on the Piazza of Amalfi

View of Amalfi from a town above called Tovere

Sunset over Mount Vesuvius. I snapped this picture on a drive back to Amalfi from Naples. Mount Vesuvius is a volcano that destroyed the ancient city of Pompeii in 79 AD.

Views of Amalfi and the Joys of La Festa Della Patata

From Skyscrapers to Lemon Groves: Part 2 -

Enjoying priceless surroundings and the delight of potatoes!

I dive head first into the sea and open my eyes, swimming toward the silence and nothingness, through the contrasting hues of dark and light blue, as the sun’s rays transpire down, down, down. I keep swimming underwater until I can’t hold my breath any longer. When I finally pop to the surface, I spin around to see the panorama of Amalfi behind me, brightly colored orange and blue umbrellas scattering the beach, the forefront of this ancient town. It is well known that the view of Amalfi from the sea is the most magnificent view there is.  I float for a minute and take it all in before swimming back to shore. I climb out of the water and back into the thick heat, to my sunbed, letting the salt cover my skin. I like the feeling of the salt on my skin and don’t want to wash it off just yet. I also let it dry in my hair, forming almost perfect curls. This is summer. This is Amalfi.

The sun is starting to set behind the mountains, casting a red tint over the town, and it’s time for me to head back home. I hitch a ride on the back of a vespa and careen around the curves, until I reach my front door. It is time to get ready for the “Festa Della Patata”, which is a festival in a small town called Tovere, located just above Amalfi.

Looking down on Amalfi from Tovere

A few hours later, with the salt washed out of my hair and off my skin, I am with a group of excited and laughing friends, some of us piled into a little Fiat, others on vespas, all of us heading to the festival.

Ten Euros will allow us to walk around the festival and eat anything and everything made out of potatoes from different stands; Potato salad, gnocchi, pasta and potatoes, potato croquets, French fries, and potato zeppole (like a donut). I have never eaten so many potatoes in my life…and they are AMAZING!

An overload of carbohydrates doesn’t seem to be a concern for anyone as the town swarms with hungry Italians. A small band of local boys plays classic Neapolitan songs and we greet other friends and family that we see along the stradone, or main road.  The road is lined with vendors coming from Naples to sell their wares…bancarelle they are called in Neapolitan dialect. They sell everything from toys to fresh sliced coconut, to small animals like bunnies and chicks.

Feeding my cousin gnocchi with tomato sauce at the festival

After we have had our fill of potatoes, we make our way back down to Amalfi and meet friends and familiar faces on the lungomare, the main street bordering the town and the sea. We sit and drink wine or espresso, listening to music and debating on what potato dish was the best and why. Tomorrow, we say, we will only eat fruit!

Capri, The Blue Grotto and the Myth of the Sirens

From Skyscrapers to Lemon Groves: Part 5 -

The beauty seen in darkness

Wandering through the caves of Capri and the Amalfi Coast, I can almost hear the Sirens that Homer mentioned when he wrote The Odyssey.  Ulysses knew that he couldn’t stop even his most stoic sailors from succumbing to the luring song of the sirens. As the ships sailed by, he ordered his sailors to fill their ears with wax as to not hear the seducing songs. Ulysses himself, however, wanted to hear the sirens’ beautiful voices so he tied himself to the ships mast so that he couldn’t escape.  Roman writers also suggest that the sirens are daughters of Phorcys, the God of the Sea. They sang sad and sweet songs to lure in sailors, but always with a deadly result. It is here on the Amalfi Coast where the myth seems to become reality.

Faraglioni, the famous rock formations of Capri and the mythical habitat of the Sirens

Riding along the shores of Capri, I explored the rocky coast, hidden caves, and deep blue crystal clear waters that these fabled sailors passed through. I sailed until I reached the blue grotto, or Grotta Azzurra.  The Blue Grotto is a small cave on the Island of Capri that reflects the most pristine and piercing blue light that I have ever seen. There is a very small hole that is the entryway, allowing light into the grotto. The large surrounding walls/rocks don’t reach the sea floor, which in turn allows sunlight to reflect underneath the water creating this mesmerizing blue effect in the cave.

The Blue Grotto is said to have been the private bath of Emperor Tiberius. It was later said by the island’s sailors to be haunted by evil spirits, therefore it remained largely untouched. By 1826 the Blue Grotto was rediscovered by German painter August Kopisch and since then has become a major attraction with people all over the world travelling to get a glimpse.

Right before entering the Blue Grotto

A dear friend from New York came to visit me last week and it was the perfect excuse to take a trip to this famed wonder.  My experience was one of comedy, terror, and awe. It began by the two of us sliding into a small rowboat with a Native Caprese sailor rowing us into the cave. 

“Lay flat and don’t move!” He ordered. “Keep your arms close to your chest!”

I was smushed like a sardine in a little rowboat next to my friend, lying on my back, looking up at the sailor as he tried to navigate this little rowboat over the rolling waves and into the cave’s tiny entrance. 

Bungada Bangada!

 The boat smashed into the sides of the rocks and water splashed onto our faces. 

“This is it”, I thought.  “I’m going to die on my way into the Blue Grotto”.

The sailor was holding on tight to a thick metal chain that was attached to the inside of the grotto, ready to force the boat through the hole. 

“C’e la facciamo justo justo”…. “We will just about fit”, he was saying to us.

Inside the Blue Grotto

All of a sudden I heard a bang, felt the boat surge forward, and then we were engulfed in darkness. I opened my eyes and saw the most intense blue light I had ever seen shining up through the water. “Hurry, jump! Hurry Hurry!”  The fisherman was saying in a “whisper-scream”, as swimming in the grotto is strictly forbidden. 

The next thing I knew, I was flying through the air and into the water. I popped up and looked around. I was the only one swimming in this dark cave with blue light shining all around me. Another splash and my friend was bobbing next to me. I was terrified of what sea creatures may have been swimming below, but excited about the fact that I was submerged in this electrifying grotto.

Suddenly, I was being pulled up by my arms and into the rocking rowboat. I had to lay flat again and we were pushed back into the real world and bright sunlight by a giant wave and a yank of the chain. 

Turquoise waters along the coast

Looking back, it was two minutes of sheer panic and laughter all rolled into one.  It’s not what one might think of when traveling to the luxurious and mythical island of Capri, but it was an experience that I will always remember fondly. 

America’s Cup World Series Naples, Italy

The World’s Best Sailors.  The World’s Fastest Boats.

The World’s Best Sailors.  The World’s Fastest Boats.This April the America’s Cup World Series 2012-2013 was held in Naples, Italy. Cheering fans poured into the streets and along the “lungo mare”, or sea wall, to celebrate the 9 teams racing their 45s catamarans.

I had the opportunity to represent Amalfi Coast yacht and speedboat charter companyExclusive Cruises and Italy’s premier international catering and event planning agency In Tavola S.p.A  while in Club45, the official lounge of the famous Oracle team USA. The lounge was situated directly on the Gulf of Naples with a clear view of Mergellina port, Mount Vesuvius, the Castle dell’Ovo and of course the immense sailboats racing to the finish line. The actual Cup is the oldest trophy in sport, dating all the way back to 1851.

America’s Cup is comprised of nine teams with five crew members and a guest racer. The race consists of 15-20 minutes of the sailboats racing to stay within boundaries, between their opponents and the turning marks, despite shifts in wind direction and speed. Throughout this, the guest racer sits silently on a netting behind the rear cross bar.

The idea of a guest racer is perhaps an idea to market the Cup more strongly, as rumors swirl that the Cup has an image problem…the majority of the fans and people involved are extremely wealthy and largely out of site, participating in a sport with a set of rules that is not always easy for the general public to grasp.

While in Club45, I was lucky enough to meet one of these guest racers, Dr. Ray Tesi, who recounted his experience to me while he was a guest on the Red Bull catamaran.

“We are literally flying. With this big sail flying, I am 15 feet off the water on the flying hull on the high side. The power of the sails is impalpable. I think I saw 26 knots. There is a moment of peace while we chase the fleet to the next mark. I am able to look around at the beauty of the bay, the city of Naples tumbling up the hillside. Mt. Vesuvius and the island of Capri are in the distance. What a day, what a setting, what a ride. I was getting comfortable moving across my 18 inches of real estate…”

City of Naples

Aside from the guest racer, some of the biggest names in the world capitalized on the race for marketing purposes. Nespresso was the official coffee of the event while Puma and Louis Vuitton were official partners.

In summary, America’s Cup World Series was a silky mix of big name luxury brands, the most talented international, an elite crowd of guests and the city of Naples-one of the most beautifully unique and romantic backdrops in the world.

Watching America’s Cup…overlooking the Bay of Naples