2018-07-18

【Aiden in English】

        Welcome to the first of two stops I've already been to. Today's hot spot was Naples, a beautiful city with a lot of history, but one I happened to be to. So, we decided to go to Sorrento... another place we've also stopped by. That's alright since the main attraction would be the Amalfi coastal drive in the afternoon. 

        Sorrento and Naples, two iconic Italian places I've been three years ago. However, they also two iconic sites I'll gladly return to. In addition, my memory only gives a blurry recollection of Sorrento, so why not go back? While strolling through the town center, I ran over some areas that triggered brief flashbacks to when I didn't worry about grades. A cute balcony here, a giant lemon there, and each one were taking me back three years.

        But that's not why we chose this trip. The afternoon drive across the famous Amalfi Coast over the Tyrrhenian Sea was the real pot of gold on this trip. I saw multiple photos on a preview earlier and was excited to get on the road. Just one problem... I was sleepy after a retreat at sea yesterday. Really sleepy. I think it was a food coma, but I crashed right before getting to the coastal area. So essentially, I watched the greatest coastline I've ever seen fly by through eye slits. Luckily, the bus was forced to take a ten minute stop in order to let traffic pass on a one-way road and we caught a glimpse of such dazzling panorama. Yes, the road was so narrow that only one car could pass at a time like the Road to Hena in Maui of Hawaii. Adding to that, the singular road twisted and winded around cliffs hanging over emerald waters. It's a thing of fairy tales. It also appears in almost every racing movie due to the breath-taking drop-dead scenery. 

        To the right, the Caribbean waters of the Bahamas. To the left, the Andes of Chile.  A singular strip of concrete separating two worlds. Small, terra-cotta roofed buildings, colorful, pulled straight from a children's book. I don't think there's a more beautiful coastline I've ever seen. Yeah, although Easter Island was nice, it was pure nature and cliffs plunging into the cold Pacific. Be honest, they have nothing on the magical waters. 

        We did eventually stop at Amalfi, one of the capital Maritime republics of Duchy of Amalfi on the coastal drive. It consisted of touristic shops, gelato parlors, Cathedral of Sant'Andrea, and a few residential buildings with their erstwhile splendor. Most of the area is designated purely for tourists, as demonstrated by the local food, souvenirs, and most of all, prices. Walking down the single main street of Via Pietro Capuano, we discovered that we can never have too many gelato stands. Also, I satisfied my Hazelnut gelato cravings. Afterward, it was back on the bus, and finishing up the Amalfi Coast.

        Tomorrow, it will be stop number two of the places I've been to. While Rome is a city I would love to return to, the world is large, and there is much to see. So I guess I'll have to 'rome' along.

【紅霞譯文】

        歡迎重返兩處景點中我曾經參觀的第一個，今天熱點城市為那不勒斯，歷史悠久風景如畫，但恰巧早已來過，所以只好改往蘇蓮托……另一所故地，沒啥關係，反正重頭戲放在下午乘車遊覽阿馬爾菲海岸線上。

        蘇蓮托和那不勒斯是我三年前出遊意大利時兩大地標，即使再度造訪仍是一件極其愉快的事情，何況本人對蘇蓮托印象模糊，故地重遊又何樂而不為呢？漫步於城中鬧市區，我觸景生情，思緒一下子飛回到無需惦記學業的年代，這邊可愛的陽台，那裡高大的檸檬樹，每樣東西都讓我重拾三年前美好記憶。

        不過所有這些並非成為我們遠道而來的理由，下午前往第勒尼安海上阿瑪菲海岸線兜風欣賞景致才是此行真正原因。事先我瀏覽過很多照片，上路的時候滿心歡喜，問題在於……昨個兒航海日休閒過後我困得要死，抵達景區之前坐在車上一直昏昏欲睡，海岸線絕美瞬間猶如浮光掠影般從眼皮底下一閃而過。“有福之人不用愁”，因單行道交通擁堵，我們被卡在要道上長達十分鐘之久，結果將千嬌百媚盡收眼底。說得沒錯，阿瑪菲海岸線路面狹窄，宛若夏威夷茂宜島的哈納公路，更有甚者，山路背部懸崖高聳壁立千仞，山路正面九曲十八彎徑直垂掛在翡翠藍綠色海灣之上，猶如童話故事描繪的人間仙境，美景美奐幾乎全部攝入電影賽車驚險鏡頭裡去。

        鋼筋混凝土鋪就的單道公路右側是巴哈馬加勒比海，左側為智利安第斯山脈，渾然將阿瑪菲海岸線分成兩個世界，依山面海小巧玲瓏的紅瓦房，把少兒圖書色彩斑斕的畫面原封不動地搬了出來，我從未見到如此壯觀的海岸線，復活節島倒是山清水秀，但鬼斧神工的峭壁海岸卻一頭栽進寒氣逼人的太平洋，坦率地說一點不比這裡奇妙。

        我們最終來到阿瑪菲海岸線被視為舊時海上共和國──“阿瑪菲公國”首府阿瑪菲，古鎮旅遊商店、手工冰淇淋店、聖安德烈大教堂和昔日輝煌的老居民樓一目了然，多數區域遊人如織，本土小吃紀念物品充斥着大街小巷，價格自然不菲。走在城裡僅有的一條主道──彼得·卡普阿諾街，我們發現手工冰激凌攤位有多少都不嫌多，而榛子風味的仍是我的最愛，吃飽喝足之後，我們才乘車離開阿瑪菲海岸線。

        明天目的地也是我先前來過的地方，儘管很想再去一趟羅馬，但世界之大，要玩的地方實在應接不暇，因此只好暫且放它一碼。

Today in History(歷史上的今天):

2016: Seine Estuary, France(法國塞納河口)

2016: Le Havre the Rebuilt City, France(法國勒阿弗爾—重建之城)

2016: The Seine in Paris, France(法國巴黎塞納河畔)

2016: Public Arts in Paris, France(法國巴黎公共藝術)

2016: Paris the City of Lights, France(法國巴黎—光明之城)

2016: Capital Paris, France(法國首都巴黎)

2014: GHCS Camp—Chinese Chess(光華營中國像棋)

Crosslinks(相關博文):

2015: Lemons in Capri, Italy(意大利卡普里島的檸檬)

Italy(出遊意大利)

Europe(歐洲掠影)