The gorgeous seaside towns along the Amalfi coast, capture your imagination. Picture yourself sitting on the balconies of the 17th century palaces built snugly into the rugged cliffs.
Yes, the views are spectacular, more than you could have imagined, but did you ever stop to think how people get to these palaces. Let me tell you in simple terms. STEPS. Unending steps! If you weren’t in a paradise, you would think you had gone to Hades.
The stairway that leads from the street to the palace is so narrow and dark that it is very easy to pass by it. This stairway is about 4 feet wide and goes almost straight down. Yes, it is that steep. Hang on to the railing!
How many steps, you ask? 70! Yes, I said seventy steps, but those only take you to the first landing. You get a bit of a respite as you walk through a gorgeous, arched, grape, arbor. Oh, no, you are not done. Then you walk down 18 more steps until you get into the front door.
Ok, to be fair and, and so I won’t sound like a wuss, all those steps were downhill.
To discover the center of the city, there are another 300 or so steps down. Down is bearable.
The problem is when you go home, you have to walk UP those 300 plus steps!
Grandchildren scurry of the steps, children jog up the steps, grandparents play the wolf in the story of The Three Little Pigs. We huff and puff all the way up.
Number One figured out that as long as both feet were on one step at a time, he could get a second or two of rest before he had to lift his legs one more time.
I focused on the steps under my feet. If I looked up, my heart started pounding harder. I had already walked up so many steps and it seemed like I still had a thousand more to go. Also, I found myself stumbling if I didn’t keep track of where my feet were.
The first day we scouted the city and then the second day we headed to the beach. Believe it or not, there are another 200 steps down to the beach—and unfortunately, 200 more steps UP!
Now, while in Italy, you eat, pasta, pizza, pasta, pizza, pasta, pizza and gelato all week long. You would think one would gain weight.
NOPE. The advantage of these steps is that you burn more than you take in. I lost four pounds on this vacation!
Oh, remind me to send a thank you letter to the sports medicine doctor who shot up my knee with cortisone. That was a vacation saving drug. My knee didn’t hurt at all!
This may be a great way to lose weight, but I think for my future vacations, I will choose a spot where it is easy to gain a pound or two.