The Amalfi Coast...and another day in Salerno

After a day in Pompeii we were ready for some time in our own home town, so after a well deserved sleep-in, we spent our day getting a little more familiar with Salerno. The town has a long history - it was already a Roman colony at the end of the 2nd century A.D. When the Roman Empire fell, the Goths ruled - followed by the Normans who conquered the town in 1077 and made it their capital. During the medieval period it was passed between various noble families ending up as part of the Kingdom of Naples until the unification of Italy. It suffered earthquakes in the 17th and 20th centuries, was heavily bombed during WWII and the site of the Allied invasion of Italy in 1943.
Foregoing the elevator, we wandered the alleyways, heading downhill through the old town. Along the way - and behind a gate - we saw an old fountain which belonged to The Palazzo Ruggi d’Aragona. Although unable to gain entrance we did stop to admire this “Fontana del Nettuno.” Above the semi-circle basin of the fountain is a coat of arms and the niche itself is made of rough stone which simulates a cave. Statues of Neptune and other deities fill the basin. Although a little rough and in need of some refurbishment it’s still an attractive piece. Our stroll took us aimlessly through arches, alleyways and narrow streets, until we stopped at another interesting place - an ancient castle with a terrace - all built during Norman times. The Castel Terracina suffered damage during the earthquake of 1275 and afterwards was donated to a monastery. Although little is visible of the castle today, we did enjoy the terraced steps and alleyways that can still be accessed - they’re used regularly as a way to travel from upper to lower levels of the old town.
All streets seem to eventually lead us to the “Lungomare” (seafront promenade). On this day, the seas were rough and the sky was stormy, which provided some gorgeous light on the ocean and mountains - some impressive waves too! After a while we turned into the shopping/pedestrianized precinct and found a café where we enjoyed a pastry and gelato. Directly across from where we sat, local kids were coming out of school and being met my parents and grandparents - many stopped by the café while the children ran around. Just a normal everyday scene common to many communities, but a pleasure to watch - especially while eating some excellent Italian sweets!
We ended our day with dinner at a place just a few blocks away. With nights getting cooler we were still able to sit “outside” - protected from cool winds by clear plastic windbreakers and a welcome heater. The pizza and pasta were excellent. Afterwards we discovered that the elevator closed at 9pm, so there were a lot of steps to climb before we reached home....a good way to work off dinner!
The following day we were off again - this time on a local bus bound for that infamous drive along the Amalfi Coast....and yes it is winding and scary - but the views are stunning. Salerno is not on the Amalfi Coast - technically - but it is the last stop on its eastern route. The town of Amalfi itself is a travel hub......buses can be caught here to head westwards along the coast to Positano and Sorrento. In season there are plenty of choices for regular ferries, but at this time of year there is only a 9am one to Capri.
Our bus was crowded and by the time we arrived at our destination, a few of the passengers were nauseous - and worse! Knowing how it feels, I passed the Italian lady sitting across the aisle from me a mint to suck - she seemed grateful. Fortunately I managed to survive the ride without feeling much more than “delicate” - although I did go through a lot of mints!
Salerno to Amalfi takes about an hour, but as it’s a local bus, it makes a few stops along the way. It’s difficult to take any photos through the bus window, so I abandoned that idea early in the journey - and tried to concentrate on the surroundings - not on the nausea, or oncoming vehicles. Horns are frequently used by cars, trucks and buses, seemingly covering a multitude of messages to other drivers e.g. coming through, thanks, get out of the way or I am just around the corner! Most of the time we were high above the ocean as we drove along this twisting, narrow route - sometimes winding down steep inclines to reach the villages below. We’ve all seen photos, postcards and films of this gorgeous part of the world....and it doesn’t disappoint - it looks exactly like everything you’ve seen!
Planning to see something of the town a little later in the day, we first bought a bus-ticket to Ravello and climbed aboard a mini-bus to take us there. The journey takes about 20-30 minutes - once again, climbing upwards and winding around and around....but on this trip photos were much easier to capture through the large picture windows of the bus.
Ravello is a tiny village set almost 400 feet above the Tyrrhenian Sea. It was founded in the 5th century as a place to hide from the Barbarians. Peaceful and lovely - the Villa Rufolo, the annual music festival and world-class concerts being the main reason that tourists visit. It’s also long been the destination for musicians, artists and writers. Because the village is very small and there’s not a lot to see except for the views! In mid-November some shops, restaurants and cafés were closed for the season, but we enjoyed checking out the old buildings and a couple of ceramic workshops. The views from anywhere are magnificent - sometimes a tiny sliver of the sea can be seen between buildings, and at other times huge expanses of it come into view. At this time of year the surrounding terraced areas are still noticeably green.
The charming main square has a church on one side, and a couple of shops and cafés on the other two. A large terrace, dedicated to the surrounding scenery, takes up the largest side of this square. We decided to forgo the much visited Villa Rufulo for a couple of reasons. Although famous for it’s cascading gardens - which we would love to have seen - prior research had advised us that this late in the year it was not worth the time....we also wanted to spend some time later in Amalfi.
Having skipped breakfast, we took a seat in the square’s café for coffee and what was probably the best tomato, basil and Buffalo mozzarella cheese sandwich we’ve ever eaten (this famous cheese is a speciality of the region). We also had the view to enjoy, which was pretty special too!
In order to buy our bus-tickets for the return journey we were told to go the the little tobacconist next door to the café - except it was lunch time and they were closed for 2 hours, as was the only other place in town that sold them. ***Note for tourists....local bus drivers do not take cash, you must have a ticket to travel on them. The bus to and from Ravello runs only once an hour***
Knowing that most Europeans take their lunch breaks seriously and it could be longer than the posted 2 hours, we went to the small tourist office for help - fortunately they were not at lunch! The lady there did try to help us - phoning a couple of the local hotels who often have bus tickets available for their guests....but apparently not off-season. With no luck she advised us to throw ourselves on the mercy of the bus driver who may let us on and then allow us to pay for the tickets back in Amalfi. “Lady Luck” was with us and the driver let us aboard - he obviously didn’t really care too much - he stopped halfway through the journey and another driver took over....guess his shift was over!
The remainder of the afternoon we wandered along the town’s smallish seafront and its old town. Unfortunately although there are some lovely old streets, buildings and alleyways, most of the shops are given over predominately to tourists souvenirs - for example we saw no evidence of local crafts. Food was the exception, with many local products available - especially limoncello, of which there was plenty! One store in particular had a very enthusiastic sales-person who was inviting anyone who passed by to sample not only a taste of this drink, but also cookies, chocolates and sweets in which it was featured.....much to the entertainment of not only tourists but to her co-workers too!
Amalfi has a stunning cathedral, which is certainly worth seeing.....The Cathedral of St. Andrew sits at the top of a large staircase in the centre of town. The large bronze doors to the cathedral are impressive - they date back to 1061. The square bell-tower was built between the 12th and 13th century and its elaborate top is highly decorated with marble and majolica - a type of pottery that is covered with an opaque white glaze, is then painted, glazed and finally fired. With Moorish arches on the outside, this stunning cathedral has a Baroque interior dating from the 1700s. The supporting columns are lovely with their marble inlays. The central aisle has a ceiling which is highly decorated with paintings depicting scenes from the life of St. Andrew.
Despite our critical views on the town, Amalfi certainly is worth visiting for it’s gorgeous setting - plus the Cathedral, which has to be one of the architectural highlights of this region and, of course, the limoncello!