Madison County Democrat. (London, Ohio) 19??-1958, 1955-04-29
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ience of Capri is the boat trip
from Sorrento several miles to
the island. The Italianos are
still celebrating Easter and
hundreds of country people
pack the boat, carrying straw
wrapped bottles of wine,
loaves of bread, cheeses, and
kids literally thousands of
kids. and all dressed in their
best. We arrive in time for
lunch at the Villa Eden-Para-
disc on top of this mountain
top island. The taxis are pack
ed to over capacity and one
gets all the thrills of the roll
er coaster as the car winds up
and up the tortuous road
which has been hewn from
sheer rock. This whole process
is at high speed and with
much horn-blowing. AS each
car approaches, you think that
sudden death is inevitable but
somehow you escape injury.
Horse drawn carriages and
swarms of people also jam the
roads. In the near misses, the
pedestrians sometimes leap to
the walls which protect the
sheer cliffs. This ride alone is
worth the trip but Capri has
much more to offer.
The Paradise-Eden is abso-
lutely gorgeous with acres of
beautiful gardens jammed with
exotic flowers in a regular
riot of color. Oranges, lemons
and other fruits grow in pro-
fusion. But the view of the
blue sea through the arch of
the garden is breathtaking.
Old Vesuvius, quiescent now,
looms in the distance and
serves to remind you that ma
ture is both beautiful and ter
rible. Vesuvius has been quiet
since the great eruption of
1914 but the natives treat her
with both fondness and dis
trust.
The Paradise Eden Is high
grade with all of the things
you would expect TO find in a
top notch American Hotel
except it has much more! The
cost of, staying here is ridicu-
lous. The best room in the ho-
tel costs $500 lire per day and
includes your meals. regal
splendor for the equivalent OF
about $500 American!
Capri is everything the book
says and its dizzy heights, its
beauty and its history are in
describable. If you do nothing
else come to Capri. We're
sold on it and we made our
selves a promise to return at
the soonest possible moment.
Capri is also the site of the
village San Michele. Built by
the Swedish doctor, Axel Mum
the. San Michele is a dream
villa, full of relics OF the
Roman era which will capture
your eye and your heart. San
Michele inspired the book
Muenthe wrote and which has
been published in IL different
languages.
Our visit to the Blue Grotto
at Capri was unforgettable in
that no insurance company in
the world would issue a policy
on the risk. However, the
Italians. bless them, are a har-
dy, affable people who do not
sue each other at the drop OF
hat. AS you transfer from
one to the other in the choppy
surf, with no guarantee OF sur
vival whatever, the American
pioneer spirit comes to the
fore and the boatman whisks
the boat and you into the
grotto and your senses come
to a standstill when you see
the bluest, most beautiful
blue-blue in the world. "a
blue that even the greatest
artists have never been able
to duplicate.
Capri has much history. The
Roman Emperor, Tiberius, had
a villa here and its ruins
are still in evidence. Several
of the Caesars built castles on
the island and the Roman baths
are still in use today. Even
Benito Mussolini built house
here but it is ugly and in poor
taste and is looked upon with
some disdain. Of the moderns,
King Farouk took the entire
Villa of Caesare Augustus for
his honeymoon. The town of
Anacapri is cute, commercial
and lots of fun. We SO enjoy
the sidewalk cafes. The wine
is delicious. doctors orders!
Honestly, though, it's the tops
in kindness, courtesy and laZi-
ness and we will never forget
IL.
Sam and I escape our party
and the two of us inspect
Ponpeii with Alfredo, our
guide, who has been a guide
here for SO years. Alfredo
likes to laugh although he
seems to favor lewd jokes.