This may very well be my last entry while on this trip. We've seen so much, met so many wonderful people and experienced wonderful new situations - I am sure that we will be processing this adventure for a long time to come.
We arrived yesterday to Positano on the Amalfi coast. My better half had been talking this place up so much; he had visited it as a child and then again as a young adult and couldn't wait to show the place off to me. Truly, Positano is one of the most exquisitely beautiful places I can ever imagine. God was truly generous when designing this place.
To get here, we took the long way round so I could better appreciate the Costa Amalfinata. That means that for 2 hours or so dear husband drove our little Fiat on a two-way road with precipices, hairpin curves and all the time sharing the road with tour buses, mopeds and cyclists. Let's just say that my former nasty habit of biting my nails returned.
But the views are spectacular! We finally arrived at our hotel and climbed up 5 flights of stairs to get to our room (this was just the beginning of climbing) and entered our room. We have a balcony that overlooks the town of Positano including the beach. You couldn't ask for a better view!
To get from the hotel to the beach and/or town center, you have to walk down the mountain, either using stairs and stairs and stairs or down a one-way road. It's exhausting, but the place is so utterly breathtaking, you forgive the screaming pain from your bunions and thunder thighs.
This afternoon we walked down to visit the little church in the center plaza and walked in on a wedding. An American couple was tying the knot with a handful of people in attendance. We joined in congratulating them; I then went and spoke with the priest. I was intrigued. He was definitely not Italian. Turns out he's Nigerian and has been assistant priest in this town for many years and began a mission project with a Nigerian village. I loved that. Positano is a wealthy place; tourists flock here. Tourists with multo euros. I'm glad some of it is making it back to a place with simples needs like clean water.
It's been very interesting to me to see my better half in this environment, particularly on this Italian leg of our journey. We've been married so long and lived so long in the states that I forget he is more European than anything else. He feels at home here. Confident. At ease. He figures his way around, he picks up the language quickly. I admire him.
The church bells are ringing for mass. Gonna try to convince dear husband to join me in attendance. Afterwards, we'll have dinner and watch the sun go down.
Tomorrow we return to Rome and prepare for the long trip home.
As we sat on the beach this afternoon, we vowed to one another that this month-long trip needs to have taught us, or at least planted significant seeds in our lives. This experience cannot just have been for the month of May 2010 and then lay forgotten unless we pull on the bazillion photos we've taken. We vow to slow our lives down - even if just a bit. We promise to be calmer, not be so anxious, take each day as it presents itself. We promise to continue enjoying each other's company and learn from one another. We vow to not wait another 28 years for an adventure such as this.
Until I see you again...
