Well… on Ischia buses are a mess. Google and the local bus app told us to take the 197. One slight, almost imperceptible, problem: there’s no bus with that number on the entire island. We know, we waited half an hour for it. After looking at the posted time table next to the nonfunctional ticket machines (because of course automated machines don’t work in the south of Italy), we learned that what they meant by 197 was take the Linea Circolare Destra (circular line, clockwise), or the CD for short. I do not know where the 197 comes from. It’s not the ASCII code for anything resembling CD (it’s Å if you’re wondering). Oh and it’s not the only nonexistant bus. None of the line or bus numbers Google or the UNICO Campania app (local bus app) tell you to take exist!
After a frustrating 45 minutes and surviving a stampede of other humans trying to board a bus with its 11 seats, we made it on the CD. The humans are a bit feral, no doubt frustrated by the bus “number” not being a number and not resembling anything close to what they we told it should be. I feel for them.
Monte Epomeo via Forio, Campania, Italy - 14 Reviews, Map | AllTrails
Enjoy this 6.1-mile out-and-back trail near Serrara Fontana, Campania. Generally considered a challenging route. This is a popular trail for hiking, but you can still enjoy some solitude during quieter times of day. The trail is open year-round and is beautiful to visit anytime.
www.alltrails.com
Packed like sardines, we went on an hour bus ride to 📍Fontana. We happily took the trail in the wind and cold, hoping for the sun to warm us up. The plan was to go up to 📍Monte Epomeo, the highest peak of the island at 789 meters, and then walk all the way down to 📍Forio. What promised to be a short 8km hike with little in terms elevation gain (the benefit of starting in a town most of the way up the mountain) turned into a 4km hike to and back. The first 2km hike up the the mountain was clean, well marked and paved for a good portion of the way. But the connecting trail to Forio, while marked, was overgrown by thorny plants with no way for us to avoid getting our skin shredded over the 5-kilometre trail. We decided to thoroughly enjoy the 360° view of the island from the summit and get back to our bus stop instead. We caught the next CD bus to Forio while our skin thanked us for the decision.
We were visiting Forio for the 📍Giardini La Mortella. The garden has a variety of exotic and Mediterranean plants, a couple of water features, and a some themed areas. The plants are the star of the show, obviously. Karine was able to meet a bunch of flowers, including some she had never seen before. It’s something rare for the flower photograph of the family.
With both a summit and a garden in the same day we concluded our list of activities for the day. We piled up for a last trip on the CD bus, completing our day and the entire bus circuit. We went home, tried to chill on the terrace but it being too cold (thank you cold wind) we chilled inside and appreciated walking to our dinner at 📍La Terrazza di Mimi without a rain coat (but with a sweater). Our meal was good and came with a cat, a great addition to any meal or restaurant in our opinion.
Places
Giardini la Mortella · Via Francesco Calise Operaio Foriano, 45, 80075 Forio NA, Italy
★★★★★ · Botanical garden
maps.app.goo.gl
La Terrazza di Mimi · P.za Castello, 5, 04031 Ventotene LT, Italy
★★★★☆ · Seafood restaurant
maps.app.goo.gl
