Bev had long planned to row the 40th Vogalonga in Venice to celebrate her passing into old age and Rita wanted to experience her heritage - born in Oz and never having been to Italy although she is fluent in the language. We others had been before, but the destinations of Amalfi and the Cinque Terre were new to us all and more than justified a return.
Head Office of the Roman Empire and justification for a visit by the Roamin' Ruins and for that terrible pun.
While not strictly accurate I've used Amalfi Coast to cover Amalfi, Positano, Ravello, Capri, Sorrento, Pompeii and Hurculaneum.
The Five Lands of Liguria in north-western Italy with their villages of Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore.
Chianti country. We jumped a train for an impulsive day-trip from Manarola. Despite the return journey being an equivalent distance to the width of the country it was easily undertaken. Italian trains are good and the country is narrow.
Simply stunning. On the Grand Canal on a sunny day with the water lapping against grand, fading old palaces, basilicas, pavilions and hotels and I could almost hear opera in my head.
La Vogalonga started as a race between friends in 1974 and grew to over 2,000 boats and 8,000 rowers in 2014 including our Bevvie as the lone Aussie in a Swiss coxed-four.
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