We later realized that Gioia had confided in us some of the most lovely, 'off the beaten path' locations in the area... places tourists rarely see.  The most sacred of them all though, was this very first one we trekked to... the Baia di Ieranto (also known as Baia di Jeranto).  

Baia di Ieranto is a place of legend... really famous legend, in fact!  It was here, according to Homer's epic poem "The Odyssey" that Odysseus (Ulysses) and his crew were tempted by the infamous Sirens who called out to them with a sultry song and lured them toward the treacherous rocks jutting from its crystal blue waters.

According to legend no sailor could resist the Siren's song... which led inevitably to shipwreck and death. Crafty Odysseus had himself tied to the mast of his boat and instructed his crew to fill their own ears with wax. When he begged them to release him, they simply tied him tighter.  Soon they were free of the Sirens and Odysseus was the first human ever to hear their song and survive!

​Now, so would we!

Sirens or not, the lure of the bay is obvious.  This famous, gorgeous Baia de Ieranto extends from the Sorrento coast all the way to the island of Capri and I Farglioni. Its shoreline is peppered with caves, beaches, coves and glorious cliffs.
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Until 1952 the bay was used as limestone quarry. Its stone was sent to Naples for use in the steel factories. At last, the operating company (ILVA) gave all of this territory to the FAI (Fondo Ambiente Italiano) which is a local environmental organization.
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Gioia explained to me that the Baia di Ieranto is now part of a marine protected area called Punta Campanella, run by the FAI.  Unfortunately last August there was a fire in this area started by arson that greatly affected the slopes of Mount San Costanzo... so the mountain path leading to the bay was officially closed off to visitors.  

It is just now re-opening to foot traffic though, so she encouraged us to try it.  

"I've been there myself, recently, and it is fine now," she explained.  "You will love it."

"Why not?" we agreed.  Really, what Humanities teacher in her right mind could pass by the opportunity to view the bay of the Sirens?  
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To get to the Baia di Ieranto from the town of Sant'Agata you must first drive to nearby Nerano where you can park and then walk for an hour along a trail from the top of Mount San Costanzo to the bottom of the shore.  

Nerano was once a village of fisherman and farmers... now it's mainly full of small hotels and takes most of its income from the tourist trade.  It still has the authenticity of older Italian men sitting at tables along the street drinking a coffee, though, and Italian women run the tiny markets and stores.  Its special dish... Pasta Alla Nerano combines zucchini, pasta and cheese (and was reportedly cooked first in 1951 for Prince Pupetto Sirignano at the local restaurant "Maria Grazia"!).  ​

We breathed easy though, far away from chaos and delighted by one breathtaking view after the next of the tip of the Sorrento peninsula and the bright blue Mediterranean waters surrounding us.  

Soon we arrived at an impressive entrance gate (seemingly a bit out of place on the remote dirt walking path).  It turned out to belong to a cliffside home once owned by the British author Norman Douglas who wrote about this region of Italy in his 1911 classic non-fiction travel book, "Siren Land".  ​

Despite the challenges though, the hiking experience was magnificent!  Magical vistas sprang up everywhere... from the tiny shrine on our right to jawdropping terraced cliffs.  ​
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Above all we were dazzled by the intense, blinding blue extending toward the horizon. With a hot sun overhead and sweat pouring down our backs, we longed to dive into that azure Mediterranean water.
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"You can do it, Mama!" she sang to me as we made our way slowly down the massive cliff face.  

​Little Angel and Señor Aventura coached me down the hill, and then down the hundreds of ancient ruined stone steps leading to the little pebble beach at its base.  I was definitely not wearing great hiking shoes.

When we finally made it to the bottom of the steps, The Scientist and Soccer Dude jumped up from where they'd been sitting.  
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The five of us wasted no time, jumping right into the warm Mediterranean water.  It felt so refreshing after the hot, dusty hike.  ​
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Laying on the pebble beach watching my children swim, I soon realized that all of the people around us were speaking in Italian.  We appeared to be the only foreigners on the small beach! It must have been obvious to everyone that we did not belong... as we called out to each other in Spanish and English... but they kindly left us alone to swim and splash.​

The boys embarked on a big swim adventure with their father and ended it by jumping off a huge ledge with him into the sea!  (I held my breath and took photos from afar when I realized what they were about to do.  Yikes!  Good thing I didn't know that was going to happen in advance. Proud of their courage though!)  They emerged from the sea beaming and thrilled by their own bravery.
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We spent a few blissed out hours at Campanella Beach, eating a picnic lunch of sandwiches and fruit we'd brought from home, playing frisbee in the water and collecting interesting stones and beach glass.  Food tastes better on a hot day at the beach somehow, especially after a long hike and swim.  ​
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Señor Aventura went out to explore the rock formations and neighboring cove, which he reported was completely isolated and extremely beautiful.  ​
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​"Poor puppy," Little Angel said mournfully.  "I hope someone will feed her."

On the ascent we said our final goodbye to the Torre di Montalto, one of many ancient coastal towers along the Bay of Naples first built to help protect and defend the area.
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Before we knew it we'd made it back to the trail head.  The first raindrop hit our car as we were driving home.

"Amazing timing!" we cheered.  We drove home in sleep late-afternoon silence, reflecting on the big day we'd had.

Later that evening we celebrated our hike to the Baia di Ieranto over dinner at a new favorite restaurant in Sant'Agata Sui Due Golfi, "Lo Stuzzichino".  We highly recommend it! 
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"Salute!" Señor Aventura toasted us.  "To a great first adventure in Campania!"

We could have stayed in Borgo Sant'Agata much longer... surely we will return.  Donata and her grandmother were warm and welcoming, speaking to us in their best English as we approximated any/all Italian we could remember. With hosts like this, it will be easy to find a reason to visit again.  Surely there are many treasures to discover along the Ligurian coast.

In the morning though, we quickly repacked our car and drove onward to the outskirts of Florence... Firenze.  (I have never understood why outsiders call Italian cities by different names than they call themselves.  Here in Italia the names are Firenze, Roma, Milano... How strange it would be if outsiders called our native city, San Diego, by a different name!)  The drive took a little over four hours, and along the way we stopped for lunch in a charming seaside town called Sestri Levante.  ​

Rising majestically yet with joy and good humor from the center of the city, the Duomo remains a center of Florentine activity... although now, rather than attended by statesmen, it's flocked to by visitors clutching their guide books in one hand and gelato in the other.

"Who is that man, Mommy?" Little Angel asked me, pointing to a sculpture on the side of a nearby church wall.
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"He must be an important biblical figure," I responded, "but they have carved his face in the likeness of a Florentine citizen from a long time ago.  How incredible that we can see what he looked like even today, even though there were no photographs back then!"

"How old is this place?" Soccer Dude gazed back again toward the Duomo.

"Over seven hundred years," I mused, pulling out my phone and looking for an exact date.  "It says here that the Duomo was begun in the year 1296 and construction continued until 1887 when the final touches were added to its exterior."

"Wow!" the kids exclaimed.  "That's almost 600 years of building!  Almost twice as long as the United States has been a country!" 

"The scale of time here is different," I nodded. "This is why Europeans look at the United States through a particular lens... we are still such a young country, they sometimes say... still an experiment.  We are still forging our path in the world."

"I guess we've done a lot in a short time!" the Scientist added. 

We decided to celebrate both Italy and the United States with a universally beloved treat... gelato!

Twice we returned to Palazzo Tempi, our favorite pasta restaurant in the city. Located along the Arno River, it has large portions and very reasonable prices... not to mention, gluten free pasta!  
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On Soccer Dude's birthday after lunching there we sat on the stone steps just around the corner from the restaurant, enjoying double scoops of cool and refreshing gelato.  ​

"Mom," my son said quietly.  "Why is that man wearing so many backpacks?" 

I looked over to see a young man staring at the stone steps and taking photos of them. Indeed, he was wearing bags front and back and looked to me like a backpacker. 

As if on cue the young man turned to Señor Aventura (who was taking our photo as we ate and enjoyed cones of chocolate, straciatella, mango, crema) and said, "Would you like me to take your picture with them?" indicating our family.

"Oh, that's okay," my husband smiled.

The young man nodded and began to take selfies of himself in front of the steps.

"Honey, ask him if he'd like his photo taken!" I whispered to my husband, who gladly obliged.

"Would you like me to take a photo of you here?" Señor Aventura asked the young traveler.

"That would be great!" he replied, and proceeded to strike up a warm and friendly conversation with us.  He turned out to be a former US government economist traveling the world alone this summer for two months until starting an MBA program in Washington, D.C. this Fall.  

"Wow Mom!" The Scientist's eyes were big and bright.  "A real live economist!"  (The Scientist at age eleven adores economics, especially the economics of flight.)

"Let me know if you are ever in Washington, D.C." smiled our new friend graciously.  "I'd be happy to give you a tour at the White House, I still have connections there."

Our kids sat in stunned, grateful silence.  Wow!  Amazing who you may meet while enjoying ice cream on ancient stone steps!  

​We said thank you and wished him the best of luck on his trip around the planet..

"This is awesome!" he glowed, as he surveyed the scene from high in the air before my husband set him back down upon the straw covered earth.

We stood together in the warm, humid Florentine night.  There was a touch of moisture in the air and the feeling that the sky might open at any moment to pour upon us.  We were exhilarated... adventurers on a new journey, listening to our favorite band in one of our favorite countries... surrounded on all sides by people laughing, swaying back and forth, and chatting quietly in Italian.  Alone in a new world, we felt at home.

"I'm really glad we came." My husband wrapped his arm around my shoulder.  

"Me too!" 

​Leaning into him, I exhaled.  Under the night sky we listened to Radiohead's heartrendingly beautiful melodies and watched our children dance.
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