Shouting from the Hop

FRIDAY
A busy day planned - Sorrento by train, then back to Pompeii, before returning to Naples, and it all went horribly wrong but we didn't mind. Why? Because we really like Sorrento - it is a lovely seaside town!
We walked down to the main train station in Naples, which was quite a way from our hotel, walking mainly down the Spaccanapoli, a narrow road that runs almost the whole length of the city. You can almost guarantee that the area around the main station in any major city is going to be pretty horrible, and Naples is no different. The atmosphere was the most threatening of anywhere in the city. Street traders are mainly immigrants, dossers and beggars lay in the street and ask for money, that sort of thing. The guide book warned that we should be careful of petty crime, but we saw no evidence elsewhere in the city; here though, you held on to everything very tightly.
We got our tickets and had about fifteen minutes to wait for the Sorrento train. It was busy, as more cruise ship tourists were catching a quick visit to Pompeii or following us to Sorrento, and a large number of schoolkids were making their own way to various "seaside" resorts that the train passed through. We arrived in Sorrento without hitch, and walked down into town. The main square was very busy with lunchtime crowds. Our guidebook had a short walk so we tried to follow that route. The views across the bay (toward Naples) were amazing, as were those downwards toward the seafront from the town high above on the cliff-face (see above). We followed the road downwards to the marina, and lunched in a restaurant recommended by our book - Da Emilia. The service in this family-owned business was immaculate, friendly, charming, all those words and more. Emilia is still the boss, and a lovely lady too! We were entertained by the local cat population (who are not afraid of dogs), and by a reversing cement truck edging it's way round the very narrow marina roadway backwards (obviously!). It was so relaxing by the marina/harbour that we decided not to bother with going on to Pompeii - we just had another beer as that seemed more pertinent at the time! When we'd finished, we asked for the bill; the waitress comes across and asks what we had, writes it down, adds it up, then tells us how much it was. Superb!
We then wandered upwards back toward town, stopping in the charming Foreigner's Club for a comfort break and ice-cream (yum-yum!), and I popped my head into an english-pub that had the cricket on live to check the score. By the way, a great big thank you kiss to Laura for texting me the end-of-play scores each day while we were away - that made me very happy and relaxed!
We got back to the station and caught the train back to Naples, then got the cab home. We decided to dine somewhere recommended by the book but our first two choices we found to be closed (due to August holidays). We walked a little until we found a street restaurant run by Bruno, who told us he was about to open a second London establishment in Notting Hill Gate! We didn't get a personal invite, unfortunately! The food was OK, but the portions huge! We stopped for a few beers on the way home, people watching the locals taking their evening strolls mostly, before jumping in a cab back to the hotel ourselves.