The long and short of Capri

Is this where those pants that are either to long or to short came from? Across the bay of Naples lies the small island of Capri. Once a small fishing village, little remains authentic there now. It has become a major tourist get away spot. A continuous stream of ferries arrives dumping tourists at its doorstep on a daily basis. The harbor is very small and very crowded. They had no room for us, so we tied up outside the harbor with two lines for safety on a buoy. There were several other boats tied up also. It looked like a great place to be. I rowed our little dingy into shore, dropped off the girls and then tied up to a small buoy right of shore. We had a difficult time figuring out the bus system and how to get to the famed blue grotto, but finally took the funicular up the hill and had a delightful lunch at one of the local restaurants. Our next move was to catch a bus down to the blue grotto. We looked down at the bay to check our boat out, and it was nowhere to be seen. With that small gut ache that you force down and deny it is there, I decide to go back to where the funicular was. I knew we could see the boat from there because we took pictures overlooking the bay. It was not there. That gut ache immediately blossomed into full panic attack as I went back to the girls and told them…it’s not there. We all made a mad dash back down the hill, willing with all our might for the funicular to some how speed up its steep decent. Trying to figure out how or even what to report to the authorities, I finally was directed to the Coast Guard. The guy looks up at me and says your boat has been towed to the harbor. It broke loose from the mooring and was headed for the rocks. I don’t know if it was damaged, but it is still afloat. There will be a fine for this. Come back when you have had a chance to inspect everything. He asks one of his sailors to take us to the boat. With dread, I follow sheepishly this all white uniform that has a walk all its own. Not fast, not slow, but very determined and precise. I did not know if I wanted him to hurry or to take his time and delay the bad news. When we finally got there, I inspect the boat, and not a scratch on it. I thank God and included all the Roman gods just incase that everything was ok. We go back to the coast guard office to fill out the report and find out what the fine would be. As it turns out, the buoy itself broke loose from its mooring with my lines still tied to it. As the guy is filling out the report, he realizes that it is my birthday. With a nervous laugh, I say I am not sure if it is a luck birthday or unlucky that the buoy broke loose. He looks up at me and says, well let’s make it your lucky day, I am not going to fine you. Good luck and have a great time in Capri. You gotta love the Italians. When you are most in trouble and down, they come to your aid. We spent the rest of the afternoon putting together big fruit baskets with lots of goodies in it to give to the coast guard and to thank the people that helped save our boat. We ended up staying in the harbor for a couple of nights before moving south once again.