This is NOT laundry detergent! Perusing the grocery shelves, pretty much all the brand names are “foreign” here in Italy (sorry, bad joke!). The bottle was on the same shelf as bottles of something used for “bucato a mano”, loosely translated as “wash by hand”, so I assumed it was used to wash clothing. Well, it is used to wash clothes, but not in the “wash” cycle but rather in the rinse cycle. You see, this is fabric softener, a discovery I realized when I put some in the bathroom sink to hand wash a sweater and it didn’t produce any soap suds.
Another discovery – you can’t heat this in a microwave to make a cup of tea.
Why, you ask? It looks like a bottle of water, but look at the small print – “frizzante” means “carbonated”. Not only does it taste strange, the tea leaves leak out of the tea bag. So, it’s a quick run to the grocery store to rectify the situation.
I guess sleep deprivation due to a night of coughing paroxysms dulled my powers of observation. Once I remade a cup of tea, put the correct liquid in the crazy European style washer /dryer with the dirty laundry and ate a yogurt, I was ready to embrace my chill-out day.
It was great weather for a stroll along the Lungomare. It seemed like the entire town turned out along the lungomare on this warm and humid Sunday afternoon – not only the human population but also the canines – and a local dog rescue group was out in force with adoptable pups!
The walkway extends about a mile toward the pier where one can take a traghetto to Amalfi or Positano or one of the other small villages along the Amalfi Coast. 
The marina contains not only pleasure craft but also the simple fishing boats used by local fishermen.
Because it was still unseasonably warm, a few of the locals took advantage of the weather to “catch a few rays”. Unlike in the USA, bikinis are for all ages and shapes!
There was even a puppet stage set up for the kids! And with popcorn, too!
By the time I arrived back at the apartment, the washer/dryer had completed its cycle. But as the dryer cycle doesn’t work as efficiently as what is found in the American appliances, I ended up using nature’s dryer.
So, now we know the true reason there are so many balconies in Italy!
On my way back to the apartment, I encountered Christina and we made arrangements to meet for dinner. The rest of the day, I relaxed, studied a little, and took a nap.
Dinner was at Cicirinella, 
a small quaint restaurant on a side street behind the Duomo. I enjoyed the appetizer selection and a risotto with mozzarella di buffala and bruccoli and a wonderful panna cotta. 
While at dinner, it started to rain, so our post-dinner stroll was abbreviated. We parted ways and I collected my “drying” laundry off the balcony. Thank God for the balcony directly overhead as my clothes were pretty much dried!
Camino Musings 