The Culinary Adventures of Alexis (Italy and beyond)

This day began as the rest have, very uneventful. That is until Sal, our Italian God, arrived (more on who exactly Sal is in another post and why he was given this moniker). Sal was looking for something to do today, something outside his usual excursions. He asked Haley, Cami and myself if we'd like to rent a "cigarette" boat, a.k.a. a speed boat, to tour the Amalfi coast - from Sorrento up to Amalfi and back. Naturally everyone said yes, including myself. Now, for many of you, I'm not sure if you are aware of my deep-seated fear of water, but for me to say yes was a big deal. Oh, I should mention, that trip was like my 4th boat ride this summer, so I was extremely proud of myself for breaking out of my comfort zone. I was still nervous as hell, but when in Rome..... Back to the story. Haley asked if Javier and Allen, two recent college grads who were staying at Mami Camilla and we'd befriended, would want to tag along. So Cami, being Cami (more or her in another post, tentatively titled Watermelon & Fried Chicken), runs along to see if the guys are awake. Should have mentioned that it's approx. 9 AM on a Saturday morning. Cami returns to say the guys are up for the adventure and will be along shortly. Now, we (Cami, Haley, Sal & myself) have an ulterior motive for inviting along the guys. In short, the more people, the less it will cost to rent the boat. Simple math really. *smile* Now, Sal, the girls and myself are waiting on the guys. We waited about 15 minutes, which in my mind was too damn long for two guys to get dressed. It's hot as hell outside, we're going on a boat all day, how long does it take for t-shirts and shorts!?! So, Haley asks that I go "retrieve" them, light a fire under them so to speak. I walk over to the other side where the dorm is, and Allen is just walking out, while Javier is on the computer checking his email! I think they could tell by the look on my face that Alexis was not a happy camper. The next thing I hear is "Morning Alexis, we're on our way". I asked if they were almost ready since we've been waiting about 20 minutes at this point. Lordy, they actually told me they weren't aware we were waiting. {shaking head} Once everyone is assembled, off we went. I should point out that we were still unaware as to whether we would have success renting a boat. Specifically due to 1) it was an absolutely beautiful day and everyone was trying to get out on the water; 2) the boat rental price was still an approximation - it could have been more or less. Turns out our Italian god knows everyone and was able to get a very nice hook-up - only cost us 30 euro (approx 50 USD) each, which included gas for the boat.

The ride out was, as usual, the most amazing time I've had in my life.

This butt-ugly photo is only posted so allow you guys to see how fast the boat was going. The water spray in the background is real. I held my camera up and pointed, hoping I'd catch both the spray and cliff side as background. And, I want to point out that I look a mess, ONLY because the boat was going so damn fast and all semblance of style goes out the window when wind and salt water are beating the hell out of you.