dln

My husband handed me the phone a few minutes ago, saying that one of my girlfriends was on the line. It was Marcy! Remember that great trip report she wrote about her trip to Paris and Provence and seeing the fireworks on Bastille Day? Well, never one to let the moss grow under her feet, she and her husband John have gone to Italy.

Marcy said, "Quick log on the Sorrento webcam and I'll wave to you!" And there she was, talking to me and waving. Very circumspectfully, though I was at the other end jumping up and down like I had a million cups of expresso this morning instead of just one! I mean, talk about WAY COOL!

Marcy and John are having a great time. They visited Naples, liked it, and commented that it was a zoo. Yes, that's Naples alright. They like the hotel in Praino and send thanks to Ira for recommending it. Driving is crazy but fun and I got the impression that both Marcy and John felt supremely grateful for having arrived safely to the concert they attended last night. Marcy said if you ever thought the Amalfi Coast roads were challenging driving, it's a piece of cake compared to the hairpin turns on the interior mountain roads! (Marcy: "There aren't that many people at this concert." John (wryly): "They're all dead on the road trying to get here.&quot

For the fashion conscious, both Marcy and John were wearing khaki pants and short-sleeved tops. No shorts today for the dutiful Fodorites! The cell phone Marcy was talking on was perfectly clear--if I hadn't seen her on that webcam, I'd have thought she was calling from home. The weather is hot, and they're both going for a boat ride and a swim in the grottos tomorrow.

But right now, I can tell you that Marcy and John are perusing the shops of Sorrento looking for that perfect bottle of limoncello! She sends Labor Day greetings to all Fodorites!

Surfergirl

Call her back and tell her to give you a time when she will go back there so we can ALL see her wave!

Marilyn

dln, I suppose the next generation, kids who are growing up now, will take it for granted that you might be talking on a cell phone to someone halfway round the world while watching them on your computer on a webcam.

But I still find it utterly amazing and yes, TOTALLY COOL!!

SeaUrchin

Yes, Marilyn, I remember just a few years ago in Italy I had to go to the front desk of an hotel and have them place a call to the US, then wait while they got the line, sometimes up to two hours or more and then it was usually crackily. Then we had the hotel phones in booths where the front desk would have you wait for your call to go through. Then later on, the public phones where I would gleefully dial my ATT codes and start calling directly.

Now we have cells and computers and web cams!

dln

Now I know why that Sorrento webcam addiction post is so popular! The picture comes across so clearly. I have to admit I was so surprised by Marcy's phone call--and seeing her right in front of me even though she's a continent away--that I completely forgot to ask what the cell phone number was. Next time, next time!

Marilyn, you're right about this brave new world of technology. I'm still in the "gee golly whiz" stage and my two teens laugh about what a dinosaur-age mother they have.