Sorrento Say, But Your Racism Can’t Stay

Day: 246

Towns / Cities Visited: 160

Countries Visited: 29

Steps Taken Today: 10,135

Steps Taken Around the World: 4,037,039

The time had finally arrived to bid farewell to Naples. We would have loved to stay longer but there were adventures to be had further south, thus we packed up our things and were soon on our way. Taking the local train to the main station, as we weren’t quite masochistic enough to relive the bumpy walk we had endured on our arrival, we were soon emerging out the front to try and locate the shuttle bus which would deliver us to the airport.

Now, we were not, in fact, catching a flight; we were seeking the airport because, as anyone who has ever rented a car will tell you, it’s almost always cheaper to do so from an airport. Tracking down the correct bus we were extremely lucky to even make it on board. It may have been an airport shuttle, but whoever organised this system seems to have somehow forgotten that people catching flights generally carry luggage with them. As a result, at least a third of the space was not taken up by passengers, but rather all the suitcases and bags they were clinging desperately too. I mean, if I’m honest, you didn’t really have to hold on to your luggage; the bus was so full that even if the driver slammed on the brakes, I’m pretty sure it would be physically impossible to even move. As we crammed into the standing space beside the driver’s compartment, I witnessed possibly the most blatant racism I’ve ever seen in my life. There was just enough room in front of us for two more people to board, and despite a black lady and her travel companion being next in line to hop aboard, the driver turned them away and instead ushered through the white couple behind them. To say I was gobsmacked would be an understatement. If I’d known how to say, ‘Fuck you, Sir, and your racism!’, in Italian, I would have said it to that driver.

Eventually, we were released from the racist piloted sardine can we had found ourselves in, and after a little hunting we found the shuttle van out to the car rental place. Going through the usual paperwork and parting with money, we made our way over to our fairly scruffy looking station wagon. It had certainly seen much better days, and the GPS only functioned in Italian, leaving us at the mercy of Google maps for directions, but it fit us and all our bags, so it would just have to do.