francesco_m

Ciao Loveitaly, I've even been checking on the 366 days of the calendar, but I haven't found Giuseppe Festinese, unless he's known under a nick name!...where is he from? do you know?
Deeedeee-I'm sorry you met 3 of those in a raw!!! Southern people are known to be warmer and try to flirt easily, but I can tell you, your experience goes out of standards! By the way, I only know of 1 M. driving a taxi from Sorrento, and doesn't speak good english. Another M. driving a taxi (not exactly from Sorrento), speaks a lot of english! My curiosity is growing...I'd ask you to let me know by e-mail...
And then...even that guide...that is kind of embarassing...But let me tell you: it is definitely not the norm!

deeedeee

I will not divulge their full names, but the taxi driver was young and robust, the hired driver was older. They were both married and talked to us about their wives!

I was attending a business group at the Hilton in Sorrento. I didn't take them up on their offers but a colleague of ours did accept one of their advances and enjoyed herself immensely.

I told her about this thread and she now would like to buy a calendar.

chepar

deeedeee-

I'm a bit confused. After posting about being propositioned and flashed - you say this:

>I was attending a business group at the Hilton in Sorrento. I didn't take them up on their offers but a colleague of ours did accept one of their advances and enjoyed herself immensely.

I told her about this thread and she now would like to buy a calendar.<

So was your experience a good thing or bad thing? Just wondering.

bellastar

to deedee -
I would take what is said here about this behavior "not being the norm" with a very large grain of salt. At least one of these drivers made the same advances and propositions to me (not just "flirting&quot One of these drivers also talked about his wife in a terrible and demeaning way.

I know of at least 2 other women who had this experience. I don't see anything wrong with having a little adventure, but if you are someone's paying customer, well then that's kind of creepy, isn't it?

And another one who had a guide at Emerald grotto do the same thing as your "R". I was propostioned inside the Emerald Grotto on the little boat by that guide, who also groped me as I was trying to get out of the boat.

I have also had Amaslfi Coast drivers stop and proposition me sexually as I was hiking on the Coast road.

I have also heard drivers talking back and forth between themselves about tourists when they were unaware that I might understand alot of what they said. Not all the things I have overheard are exactly flattering.

I don't think couples and groups who travel this way see this side of the drivers at all, and are probably somewhat unaware of it.

There is a general sense that this is something that just goes on, and the drivers probably get away with alot. Although Francesco may deny it, I think he knows this to be true.

I'm glad your friend enjoyed herself immensely, and truly hope she took alot of safety precautions, as a driver who would do this has probably been around the block way more than a few times.

I don't think every single driver has this problem, but enough of them so that there is a general reputation that "drivers" will try to grab whatever they can.

francesco_m

Oooopsss...I'm not going to deny anything, for the simple reason that I probably have less direct experience with drivers in that way that you do. So I'll definitely take your word for it. But the way you make it sound-Bellastar-is that as soon as a woman enters a car with a driver, she'll meet a sort of maniac! I think I know a lot o professional drivers in the area who know how to behave,...then there's some other who feel like they have to play the part of the "Typical italian man" (kind of like in "Under the Tuscan sun&quot who end up being innocuous, and finally you get those (I hope a few) idiots who can be drivers or accounters, guides or lawyers (Bellastar, you're worrying me with your expressions: "this side of the drivers"..."drivers will try to grab whatever they can"...what is it?...a sect?). I don't feel like having to defend the category, since I believe respecting women is the first step of enjoying a woman's company, but please don't judge all of the drivers for those few "poor people" you've met.
Deeedeee- about your friend, I'm glad she experienced the good side of this medal,...and if she really wants a calendar, I'll send it to her for free since it's a 2004 (you have my e-mail). I just hope she's not going to want to put a cross on each day!...just joking ;-)

deeedeee

My friend was going through a divorce and attention from a man was what she wanted. She didn't go into detail and I didn't ask. She may have been using him as much as he thought he was using her, who knows.

I will write to you for a calendar, it will be a fun surprise and she won't cross him off, she has fond memories of that trip.

bellastar

Oh yes, Francesco, I am sure there are many professional drivers who know how to behave, and I am not saying that the minute a woman enters the car she will meet a "maniac", but I do think that there are more than a few drivers who will try to make a move on a female passenger if they are unnaccompanied. The ways that I was propositioned were crude and uninvited, and this is not really behavior I would want from the "typical" Italian man, as much as I, too, love to flirt .

I first heard this about the reputation of drivers from some local people the first time I visited the Amalfi Coast, and I though it sounded like an exaggeration, but then I hired a driver for an excursion who was highly recommended on the internet, and that's what happened to me!

Since I come to Italy often and have several friends there, some men included, maybe I am not so willing as the "typical" tourist to play along willingly, even if I might enjoy some passing male attention, like deedee's friend, who was willing to go on a one night stand with a married man and walk away.

Since the first visit, of course, I came to love the area and the people, and I have successfully ridden in other cars where the drivers managed to be charming and behave as gentlemen at the same time. But I did much more careful research beforehand after that first bad experience with a "professional" driver.

francesco_m

Once again...I feel sorry for these guys who behaved "in crude and uninvited ways", but mostly I'm sorry you had to bump in to these "unprofessional" drivers before finding charming and gentlemen ones.
P.S.: By the way, I honestly did not know about this general reputation