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Greetings!
The Amalfi Drive
Imagine being behind the wheel of a car on a beautiful, sunny day, the sea is a deep blue and filled with puffy wisps of clouds appearing in many shapes. It is Southern Italy, it is in the late Spring and the weather is picture post card ideal. There does, however, exist a slight problem. The road you are traversing is unlike any that you have ever encountered, your steering wheel is never in one position for more than a few seconds and your perspective is of shear rock and around each bend there will be a car or bus hurtling toward you at unbelievable speeds. You are driving on the Amalfi Drive.
Winding its way from Sorrento to Salerno is the famous Amalfi Drive. Built by the Romans, it follows the contour of the cliffs that drop straight to the sea. The two lane road is treacherous, having driven it many times I still shudder when I recall the beeps of the big, blue Sita buses that appear out of no where and pass me leaving a centimeter or two clearance. One side of the Drive is gray cliff, the other an unobstructed drop down to the Tyrrhenian Sea. The Drive is described as scenic, and it is a most beautiful, thrilling sightseeing adventure. The Drive is about 50KM (30 miles) long and passes through some of the most picturesque towns. Sorrento is the major town of the Drive and home to many shops, bars, hotels and ristorantes. John Steinbeck said that in Positano he was always walking up or down a slope. Positano rises from the sea and the town hangs on sea side cliffs. Filled with tourists and the elite of Europe, Positano boasts fancy ladies shops and on of the most expensive hotels of the Continent, The San Pietro, that seems to suspended in space. Amalfi is, at least to me, the jewel of the area, my father's family was from this area and my family owned and operated a restaurant in Boston beside Symphony Hall called the Cafe Amalfi. Amalfi is small and a joy to visit. The Norman Cathedral is a must and the shops and sights located at sea side entrance besiege your senses as did the sirens who seduced Ulysses and his men many years ago. Above Amalfi lies the charming town of Ravello. Ravello is at the top of a steep hill that looks down on Amalfi. In Ravello you can visit the Gran Caruso winery and sip a cold bottle or two, if you are not driving, with a lunch of fresh tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil, shining in the sun because of that superb, peppery olive oil that the waiter splashed over your insalda caprese.
Leaving Amalfi one passes through Minori and Maori, resorts that cater to the hoards from Naples and the hill side towns that ring Avellino. Finally we enter Salerno. Salerno is big and not particularly attractive but a good place to find a reasonable hotel. If you stay be sure to visit the ruins at Paestum. Smaller than Pompeii, better preserved and much easier to negotiate. From Salerno you can access the autrostrada, to the North lies Naples and Rome, to the South Calabria and Sicily.
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