Mount Vesuvius

The trail up Mount Vesuvius was REALLY steep.

We climbed this volcano. It was really steep and it pretty much kicked my ass. Since we visited in the off season we were able to park near to the top, but there was still a 30 minute hike up into the sky. The mountain is 4200 feet above sea level. When we hiked it, we were above the clouds. If there are no clouds, there are views of Naples and the Bay of Naples, but the day we went it was overcast, so we could only see the crater. To my husband's dismay, the rocks were not hot; in fact, due to the altitude, it was pretty cold.

The crater of Mount Vesuvius. It's still smoking.

There used to be a funicular that climbed up the side of the mountain. It was closed in 1944 after the most recent eruption of Mount Vesuvius. The ruins of the funicular station are still at the top of the crater. Along the path there are tourist shops selling beverages. Also, on the windy road up to the mountain we drove by numerous hotels, homes, and restaurants. Why are people still living not only in the shadow of, but also on the slopes of this deadly volcano? Right now is the longest period of non-eruptions, so it could happen at any time. I guess one reason could be the fertile soil. There are several unique varieties of wines grown in the region.


Useful Links!
Pictures from Our Trip!
Official Website for Mount Vesuvius Park
1944 Newsreel about the Eruption
Local Wines of Mount Vesuvius
Live Webcam of Mount Vesuvius

Our Day in Portugal

Walking to the Beach

We didn’t spend much time in Portugal, so I’m not officially crossing it off our travel list. I really wanted to see the Alhambra palace and the cheapest way of getting there off season was to fly to Lisbon and then to drive. As such, we only spent 1 day in Portugal.

After touring the Donana National Park we drove to our hotel in Portugal. We were staying near Albufeira which is a thriving resort town – in summer. In the winter about 80% of the stores and hotels were boarded up. It made finding meals a little complicated and I’m glad we had the car. Our hotel was on the beach, well sort of. The beach is at the bottom of some cliffs and our hotel was at the top, so if we were on the same elevation the hotel would have been right on the beach. Still there was an easy walking path down to the shore and it was very convenient.

Portuguese Beach in Olhos de Agua

Portugal has some truly gorgeous beaches; the water is turquoise, the sand is white, and the cliffs provide seclusion. I can see why the place would be hopping in the summer time, and why most of the people we encountered were retirees. They were also British. Not sure what that’s about, but it seems the Algarve is the place to have a tropical beach house if you are a well to do Brit.

Cove we found hiking near Benagil Beach, Portugal

While the weather was lovely, it wasn’t quite warm enough to swim or even to sun bathe, so we only walked on the beach. We also had plans to visit this cool cave. If you want to see the cave you must drive to the closest fishing village and convince a fisherman to take you out there. Recently it’s become very popular to see the caves and there are now 2 guys who only take tourists out – no fishing. Regardless, when we showed up, those 2 guys weren’t there, and the gents in the snack shop weren’t sure anyone would be going out. The sea was a bit rough, and the waves were too large for the boats we would be taking – think 12 seater row boat. Slightly disappointed we left, but decided to stay in the area and check out some other beaches. After an hour or so we returned, but our would-be guides were still nowhere to be found. We realized we wouldn’t be seeing the cave this trip. Instead, we followed a hiking trail along the top of the cliffs. We got to spend time in the sunshine and staring out into the turquoise waters – not a bad day

Useful Links!

Pictures from Our Trip!