Sorrento - Italy

With our last few excursions devoid of sunshine it was time to top up the tan, head for sunnier climates and bring out the shorts and t shirts instead of woolly jumpers.

Our original intentions were to head over to the North of Italy as it is a place that Clare is vastly eager to get to and having visited to South of Italy for family commitments, a definite desired destination for myself.  The Lakes would have to wait a little longer though, because I would be treading on dodgy ground if I took Baby I to Italy for her first visit without going to see family.

We know Sorrento like the back of our hand and the transport (local trains) are so easy to navigate you can get pretty much anywhere in the Campania region.  After 2 previous visits to The Majestic Palace we could not stay at any other hotel and be given the same quality of food or service, so going against all our plans of seeing new places, we booked in.

A lot has changed since our last holiday in the world of Baby I, she has now found her feet, voice and understanding.  Restraints are the worst thing in the world, prams, high chairs and cuddles stop her from exploration (and mischief) but with her new love of her back pack and reigns and the freedom around the hotel we tried to accommodate this passion.

Arriving at the Majestic Palace was like coming back home, we were greeted at the check in desk like old friends and walking into the restaurant to see Vicenzo still in charge, who recognised us instantly, showed us how valued we were as guests.  Bringing along my Mum, Dad, Aunties and Uncles for the holiday meant that our party was just a little more special.


Our first day was planned to be relaxed and to get our bearings.  Walking the familiar streets back to Piazzo Tasso (the main square), ambling down the gulleys and taking in local delicacies (gelato at Davide's).  We ate in the park whilst chasing pigeons, dipped our feet in the hotel pool (the water was freezing) and started our love of Italian food at the evening meal.

As part of a birthday treat/holiday treat, we had booked in for an Italian Cooking course at a genuine Italian Restaurant.  Preparing 5 courses from scratch to finally enjoy our handy work with local wine and limoncello.  We started with making egg pasta which needed at least 2 hours to settle.  With the dough divided between all the students we pressed, pushed and kneaded the gluton to the right consistency.  Next on the list was the Bolognese sauce; this was cooked by the head chef himself whilst we wrote down the ingredients and method.  Hearing the garlic and onions should never be in the same pan surprised me no end. Whilst the sauce was then left to stew for another couple of hours, we proceeded onto another course, the desert.  Not being a fan of Tiramasu, I was a little sparing with the amount of coffee I put in, Clare on the other hand....I must admit, when we had completed our masterpieces, they did look rather tempting.  But, they needed refrigerating for later, so onto the next course.  Chicken Scalopina are thin slices of chicken cooked in flour with mozerella, sauce and tomato.  Once cooked, they could be put to one side and then reheated when necessary, for our meal.  Before bringing out the egg pasta for the grand reveal, we had bruschetta with tomato, olives, oil, garlic, and cheese.  With a tot of wine, the taste was divine.  This only wet my taste buds for the meal ahead of us.

When the egg pasta dough was brought out of the cooling zone, it stood as a proud mess.  Far from the final result of Tagliatelle, there was a lot of work to do, and Clare was one of the delegates who were chosen to feed the dough through the pasta machine time and time again.  This was great entertainment watching the feeding team grow and grow with each pass.  What started with 1 soon progressed to 4 and continued until students were running out of room in the kitchen.  William (Head Chef) kept the frivolities going through the whole process but also made sure that rules were followed to make sure the pasta retained its consistency.

Once the pasta was at the right thickness it was down to slicing, hanging and then cooking.

The spare parts of egg pasta remaining were portioned into ravioli with 3 cheese fillings.

The whole meal came together with little hiccups, we sat outside and enjoyed every course knowing that it was all freshly prepared, full of flavour and perfectly finalised with limonchello.
I would recommend this course to anyone who is in the Sorrento Area.

The next few days were busy times

Firstly we headed to Pompeii, to which Baby I decided to flash a group of passing tourists and nuns outside the Basilica! We lit a candle for her brother and our son, Spud who will be with us on ever journey we make.

Our main reason to head to the South of Italy again was to let baby I meet the family.  Our journey to the famiglia, altough only 30km away is never easy.  First from Sorrento to Pompeii, across pompeii to another train station, from Pompeii to Salerno and then the metro over to family.  A 3 and a half hour journey, in Italian heat, with a little baby....not the easiest.

 Thankfully, there were grandparents, uncles and aunties on hand for support. Firstly we visited Zia Angelina and Zio Matteo, joined by cousin Tonino and Rosaria.  Baby I was on form, but must have been confused with all the language change.  Next was on to Zio Mario, my cousin Sabrina had decided to top up her tan, so unfortunately we missed her on this visit.  We then nipped down to pay our respects to Zio Vincenzo who had sadly passed away to the vineyard in the sky.  His botch area, to which I hold great and fond memories had grown over.  This was heartbreaking to see, but as I said, we still had the memories of playing botch whilst being bitten numerous times by mosquito's.

Finally, we knew the only way to mark our visit back home was to nip into Giardino Degli Dei. The family restaurant with the greatest Pizza and Mozzerella on the planet (in my opinion).  This place will always have great memories for myself and I hope that in years to come Isabella will venture back there for further pizza (and maybe take her dear old Dad).

The journey back to Sorrento was again, long and arduous, but we had done what we intended, taken Isabella back to her roots.  It was just unfortunate that some family members had other plans.  As we decide to see the rest of the world, it may be a few more years until we venture back.

After our long day of trapsing across the coastline, we all needed a little rest so hired a boat and captain to take us on a coastal tour of Sorrento.  With Capri on one side and the stunning Sorrentine peninsula on the other, doused in glorious sunshine, we were truly blessed. We had the chance to have a little splash in the sea in a little alcove, taste some more Limoncello and relax to take in the views.




I am happy to tick Sorrento of the visiting list now and see what the rest of Italy has to offer.  The Lemons of Sorrento will always hold a special place in our hearts, but it is time to venture further North.