Amalfi Coast In style. 10min travels: Sorrento - Italy

Sorrento is on the Amalfi Coast and the traffic getting here is nearly identical to Los Angeles in its time to distance ratio. But honestly, who cares? You have to have a little patience when you're heading to the Amalfi Coast and you really have to go to the Amalfi Coast at least once. The old city is guarded by a gate and wall built by the Greeks, as is so many of the old cities in Italy. And there are plenty of wonderfully historic old places to see. But seriously, you come to a place like Sorrento for the food and the shopping. And oh my god, there is a ton of shopping. Not the big mall get trapped by a crowd of people buying needless things in a 1980s environment type of shopping. But the old street, small shops, family-owned, though highly overpriced shopping. This is the reason you only pack two changes of clothes in your luggage. Or you're buying a second piece of luggage just to bring back all the fun things. Fine Italian leather? It's here. Sundresses and purses? Here. Hand-painted glassware, pasta, packaged herbs, shoes, handmade wooden sunglasses. I don't usually like shopping, but I spent many hours here browsing one shop after the other, only to be stopped briefly by a gelato shop with a wonderful assortment of flavors. There's a beach here, but if you've been to Miami Beach, Florida, or Veradero, Cuba, or Huntington Beach, California, or, well, any other beach with sand, then you won't think much of this one. However, the water is wonderfully blue and seemed to draw quite a few people, even in the off-season. The restaurants here have waiters who stand in the street, strongly encouraging you to visit their restaurant rather than the next one. Perfume shop owners who will forcibly give you samples, and shop owners who will meet you outside their shop with a hearty buongiorno or buonasera, urging you to stop by their shop just for a moment. There are numerous art galleries here with amazing art. If I only had enough wall space to put up a few of these, or a, well, a house to put them in. I had to tell myself several times to calm down. The shopping here is addictive, even for a non-shopper like me. I stopped at a shop looking for gifts, and it turned out it was a family-owned limoncello operation of the highest quality. They offered me a taste of their special family recipe, and wow, it was so good. Limoncello is sweet and tangy, but often the corporate versions are too sugary tasting. Well, not this one. This one was amazing, and lively, and full of lemony goodness. This would make a good gift to bring home. This was when I had to tell myself to stop. The more I went into shops, the more I thought looked like a fun idea to bring home. What was it about this place that made it so addictive? Maybe they put something into the gelato that made you spend more money. Maybe it was the sierre or the shots of limoncello for the nice lady who told me the first one is free. Well, with the shopping over, I was tired and heading back out of town when I suddenly remembered that the traffic is going to resemble a trip to the Los Angeles airport. Only, it's not. It's worse. This is where we have limoncello. We bought a bunch of it. We just got to drink it all on the way back. Forget it. None of you are getting limoncello as gifts, so we're getting it. Suddenly, I remember that my friend told me that it would be better to take a boat from Naples to Sorrento, and now I see why. They were right. Next time, and yes, there probably will be a next time, I'll listen and take the boat. So, should you visit Sorrento? Absolutely. Take some patience for traffic, another good pair of shoes, extra cash, and room in your luggage. You'll find a lot of overpriced items, but down a few back alleys, you'll find some family-run stores where the prices are reasonable, the food is good, and the limoncello is to die for. Thanks for joining me. We'll see you on the next episode of 10-Minute Travels.