There is no harbor in Positano, so no protection from the swell. The ferries can tie up to the quay only when the surf is not too high. It was all right the day we decided to go to Capri with Byron and Cecile. It is a pleasant cruise, about an hour long.
Leaving Positano we first pass near one of the many watch towers that the Genovese built all along the coast when they ruled the seas in the 13th century. Immediately after that we get a nice view of our house from below (center of the picture) as we sail past the smaller of the two beaches.
The boat hugs the coast most of the way. This coast has a long history. It is here, according to the local lore, that Ulysses encountered the sirens that enticed passing sailors with their beautiful songs. Capri itself, which soon appears in the distance, was colonized by Phoenicians and Greeks before being used as a vacation spot by the Roman emperors, especially Augustus and Tiberius.
As we pass the end of the Sorrento peninsula, we get a nice view of Vesuvius, looming in the haze at the back of the Bay of Napoli. As in Roman times, Capri is still an island for vacation and leisure, as exemplified by the large sailing cruise ship anchored off of the main harbor of the island.
Since we had only a few hours on the island, we hired a convertible taxi to guide us around. The first stop is Anacapri, the higher of the two towns, from which a small chairlift takes us to the very top of the island. Getting off the moving chair at the top is a bit tricky, but we all manage. From up there we have a nice view of the whole island, the island of Ischia to the North, the bay of Naples with the Vesuvius, the Sorrento peninsula, and all the way to the mountains South of Salerno. Unfortunately it is really too hazy to take any good picture.
We follow a pleasant path back down to Anacapri, saying hello on the way to a sleepy donkey, and admiring the colorful fruit of the arbutus.
Next stop: the town of Capri itself. We spend some time walking around the narrow streets, and the garden of Augustus. It is nearly Halloween and we keep meeting a bunch of goblins, witches and ghosts.
A last picture before returning to the taxi that takes us to the boat back to Sorrento (the boat to Positano has a technical problem), then by bus to Positano.