We caught the 9:50 a.m. ferry to Capri. I wish we'd checked the schedule and gotten there for the one an hour earlier because the weather worsened as the day went on. We soon realized that the pattern in the Amalfi area was thunderstorms in the afternoon, and when you wake up to sunshine it's best to get your major sightseeing done as early in the day as possible. Anyway, the day started bright, and we enjoyed the boat ride. When we got to the marina at Capri, we found that the funicular was out of service. So we decided not to wait for the crowded bus, and instead used the directions in our Sunflower book of walks to make our way on foot up to the town.

(Note for anyone arriving at the marina -- be sure to stop at the tourist office on the right side of the road as you leave the boat and pick up the two maps of the island that they sell for 60 cents. )

The book claimed that the grade (a climb of 460 feet) was easy, but I think those authors had a bit of mountain goat blood. We made it okay, enjoyed the scenery (and couldn't help feeling a bit smug that we were the only tourists on the walking route), but we were breathing pretty hard by the time we got to the top.

From the piazzetta in the center of Capri Town (below), we walked along the Via Tragara, past all the ultra-elegant shops and hotels (mostly closed) to the Belvedere overlooking the Faraglioni rocks. Then on to the Certosa di San Giacomo, a former medieval monastery, now housing a public high school. Both were peaceful and scenic respites from the tourist-packed streets of the center. (Yes, even in November, those tour groups pack them in to Capri.)

We took the local bus up to Anacapri in search of lunch -- a rather hair-raising hairpin ride. Many places had closed for the season, and we finally settled on a little place called La Rondinella (via G. Orlandi 295). The menu choices were limited, but actually quite good. I had cheese ravioli, and M. had gnocchi. By then it was raining lightly, so we decided to cut the day short and head back to Sorrento. Capri had some nice scenery, but it wasn't really our kind of place -- seemed mostly geared to upscale shoppers. We never had considered going to the Blue Grotto, which we'd read was the biggest of all tourist traps. I guess the only way to get a really good experience there is to stay on the island in warm weather and swim in before or after the tour boats descend. Anyway, the light wasn't good enough that day to make it an attractive option even if we'd wanted to go.

That evening we ate at a restaurant practically next door to our B&B -- La Favorita O'Parruchiano. We shared a good mixed vegetable antipasto and a yummy arugula salad with those great Italian cherry tomatoes -- nothing like the ones in the States. My main course was excellent -- grilled sliced tuna in balsamic vinegar. M., on the other hand, was not happy with his spaghetti carbonara, whose pancetta was full of unchewable bone and gristle.