Sorrento: The Land of Lemons

We arrived in Sorrento late afternoon Monday. This city is one of our favorite places. We had been here in 2019 with dear friends Rick and Sharon, and enjoyed every minute. But way back in January, 1973, Marg's family rented a little holiday house in Sorrento, Victoria, Australia, and invited Margaret's first (and best) Australian friend for the week. Just treat it as casual, Sarah. That week in Sorrento,  Australia, 1973, was much the same as this week in Sorrento, Italy. Overcast and rainy.

Everything here is over-the-top-lemons and blue linen....but prices have sky rocketed in the past five years, and the quality doesn't seem the same. Sorrento has become another over-touristed city with tours from cruise ships and local walking tours. It's actually a bit challenging to walk the old streets which are narrow and have limited sidewalks and get by the large tour groups. A great meal here is double the price that we paid in Lecce.  Limoncello used to be a standard end-of-meal digestive. Now it's a pricey extra. Breakfast cappucini for two is 10 euro....

Overlooking all of that, we do love Sorrento.  The sea views are amazing, and we are still mesmerized by Mount Vesuvias across the bay. We find the isolated alleyways, litte tratorrias and cafes and cozy bars off the beaten track. Even in the busy downtown area restaurants serve The Best food. We get our apartment supplies at local grocery stores....incredible Italian meats and cheeses, olives and anchovies, and good beer and wine at half the price. And we do it all in Italian! But, you have to look for it.