Dear Diary,
Today I climbed 7,000 steps. Let me tell you more…

I’ll admit, this was our least planned day of the entire trip. The only thing on my itinerary was: Positano and Amalfi.

In an attempt to still be somewhat proactive, I went on the Ferryhopper app the night before to get tickets. The fact that I didn’t book them weeks in advance is honestly miraculous.

Our ferry to Positano was supposed to leave at 9:30 a.m., but there was some kind of mix-up—some boat switcharoo—and they sent our original ship to Capri, putting all the Positano/Amalfi passengers onto a different, delayed vessel. Like clockwork, as the line grew longer and longer, opportunists started weaving through the crowd selling water.

At one point I thought, there’s no way all of these people are getting on this boat.

But we did.

And somehow almost everyone fit… on the bottom level.

We arrived in Positano only about ten minutes behind schedule and immediately made our way to the beach. The sand was dark gray, mixed with small to medium-sized rocks. We were both in sneakers, and I assumed we’d just admire the view for a minute and leave.

But Matt insisted he needed to set foot in the Tyrrhenian Sea—because it’s so blue and beautiful.

Which, to be fair… it is. It looks like it received preferential treatment when the oceans were being created. I was tempted.

Within seconds, Matt had already lost his balance more than once, so we wrapped that activity up pretty quickly.

Then we started walking.

The goal: views and coffee.

Not long after, we found ourselves at Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta, so we popped inside. It was charming—simple, not over the top. Honestly, it would be a very cute wedding venue… assuming your guests don’t mind stairs.

After that, I spotted a café up the hill that didn’t look that far and confidently pointed: “That one.”

I plugged it into GPS, and of course it routed us the shortest path—which meant stairs. Lots of stairs.

The problem is you can only see one or two flights at a time. Every time we reached the top, we’d take a few steps forward… and find more stairs waiting.

Early on, we passed a girl coming down on the phone saying, “Ugh, it’s like 7,000 steps. It’s terrible.”

Matt and I looked at her like she was the problem.

We were so young back then. So naive.

She had seen the end.

We had not.

About 84 years later, we finally reached the top and saw the café right in front of us. What was supposed to be a quick coffee stop turned into a full meal—but honestly, it worked out. The view was worth every step.

Before we left, I asked one of the older servers where the bathroom was, and with the straightest face imaginable, he slowly pointed out toward the ocean.

I laughed way too hard, which made him break character. Clearly, he’s done that bit before, but it never hit so hard.

On the way down, we decided to go a different route—and of course it was the scenic one. A gently sloping path lined with shops on both sides.

In hindsight, if we had taken that route up, I never would have made it to the café. I would have stopped in every single shop along the way.

Just like Sorrento, there were tons of leather and linen stores, plus these beautiful “glass” shops—more like painted ceramics, I think, but don’t quote me. Gorgeous to look at… not practical to take home.

Confession: I’ve already bought two leather bags, and I still can’t stop looking at more.

Someone please tell me I don’t need another one.

Anyway—I behaved. No leather purchases in Positano.

But we did get lemon sorbet served in an actual lemon, and it was incredible. I can’t believe it took me this long to try it. I had every intention of getting it earlier in the trip, but every time I saw dark chocolate gelato, I completely forgot lemons existed. Mmmm… dark chocolate.

After Positano, we caught our ferry to Amalfi—no mix-ups this time, and it even left on schedule. Somehow, despite always thinking we’re early, we still end up near the back of the line every time.

How early are these people arriving? And why aren’t they shopping?

We ended up sitting next to a Welsh family and chatted with them for a bit, swapping travel stories. First time ever meeting Welsh people outside of Wales!

Amalfi felt longer, probably because we didn’t start it by climbing a million stairs. Once again, we stumbled upon a church near the port—Amalfi Cathedral—which was noticeably more ornate than the one in Positano.

Then it was more views, more shopping, and more food. We had Naples-style pizza for lunch, but it didn’t quite compare to what we had in Naples—which, to be fair, was expected.

A sleepy ferry ride back to Sorrento and one elevator ride later, we were back in Piazza Tasso.

Tomorrow we head back to Rome for our final day in Italy.

Sorrento has been such a great home base. Amalfi and Positano are beautiful, but getting around them is no joke. I can’t even imagine dragging suitcases up and down those stairs.

Positano had the views, no question—but Sorrento’s view of Vesuvius?

Extraordinary.

All in all, a great day. Exhausting, slightly chaotic, but exactly the kind you remember.

And if my legs don’t fall off tomorrow… we’ll call it a win.