Every day this little slice of heaven on earth offers up a secret to those that are willing to listen!
Today as we headed off to Amalfi and Ravello. I was expecting to see more of the same type of sights that we have seen here in Positano. I was very pleasantly surprised to discover the secret that today held for us.
Along our journey our driver Rino points out local points of interest. One of these is Sophia Loren's main residence. She owns a whole promontory on the Amalfi coast! They all revere Sophia here!
Our first stop of the day was the little town of Amalfi. It had strains of Positano, but it a little more sophisticated, perhaps a little more "grown up". Amalfi is one of the oldest strongholds of the area, and has a very distinct Moorish heritage to it. You can see this typified in the architecture, and on hearing some of the history of the town, you can imagine it vey easily in ancient times.
This area of the Amalfi coast is UNESCO protected. Buildings, roads etc. must be repaired to be in accordance with how they were built centuries ago. This particular town of Amalfi has actually decreased in size over the centuries, due to erosion from the sea, and they have lost several meters of the actual town frontage. The actual village was designed around the river, and alleyways weave their way around what used to be the river, which is now the main street of the village, this is actually quite busy, so to escape into the alleyways is wonderful. As you gaze above, and around, you get a feel of how this village was back in ancient times. All of these villages on the Amalfi coast are vertical cities. It was very important in feudal times, as they could close in their ranks and protect themselves, from the marauding hordes. I could imagine, as I stood in an alleyway them pouring boiling water, or oil onto their enemies!
We make our way around the village, and were treated to some of the local delicacies! We visit a pastry shop,
but rather than taste pastry, we were given crystallized orange and lemon peel that has been dipped in chocolate to taste. If you haven't guessed already the citrus, and lemon in particular, is king here, and everything has a citrus slant! We then headed to a bakery, and we're treated to some Amalfi staples. One in particular was a "dried" bread. It appears that no self respecting Amalfi housewife would be caught dead without this "dried" bread. It will last for months, and all you need to do to reconstitute it is to put it under running water! After that, it is fit for paninis (sandwiches), or salads such as capponatas!
We stop at the local fish market, to see what the sea has brought in today.
Life here is so different. The locals do not shop for the week, as we do, and they don't leave home with a particular menu in mind. They head to the market, and they see what is available and fresh today, and they plan their meal around that! Today there were some gorgeous mini artichokes on offer!
Cheese is a very important part of the Italian diet, and no piazza would be complete without the local cheese shop. We stop and taste their wares. My taste of the fresh ricotta and provolone cheese today only reinforces my thoughts from yesterday - I am going to make (well at least once) my own ricotta and mozzarella when I get home. I have already sourced out what I need to do it!
Another little thing we learned while in Amalfi was that they were very important in the production of paper. Here they didn't produce paper with papyrus, like the Egyptians, they made their paper with linen. We visited a little paper shop, and I found a print that I just fell in love with - and only 8.50 euros!! The texture of this paper is incredibly smooth, and almost sexy it's nature.
While Amalfi was pretty, and quaint, it wasn't the secret of the day! That still lay ahead of us!
Back into the car, and on we go.
We weave our way along "the snake road". This road looks quite perilous, and there are many scrapes of fenders, as evidenced on all the cars, but you can never really get too much speed up along the road, so I can't see that it has too many vehicular fatalities, motor scooters - well,that may be an entirely, different story! They love to weave their way in between cars and buses going in either direction. To traverse this road is almost like doing a dance. At points on the road, cars dance backward and forward, kissing each other, backing away, until both can pass each other to go their separate ways!
We arrive at our final destination of the day - Ravello.
This picturesque little town is not so much on the well trodden tourist walk! While it does have tourists, it is not bustling and crowded like it's cousins along the coast. Ravello has been favoured by the the highbrow of society over time. The likes of DH Lawrence, Gore Vidal, and Richard Wagner have made Ravello their summer home over the years! Oh, and just a little tidbit of gossip - Ravello, is where Mr. and Mrs. Smith was filmed, and where the whole "Brangelina" love story started!
We weave our way through the village,
and arrive at the beautiful Villa Cimbrone (pronounced chimbronay).
The grounds were spectacular, and because it was less crowded, we had time to stop and enjoy its beauty. This used to be a palace for aristocrats, but now it is an upmarket hotel. Today they were preparing for a wedding. This would truly be a wonderful place to have the most romantic wedding in the world! Not only was it spectacularly beautiful, but out on the lawn, there was a helicopter landing pad! Imagine the bride arriving by helicopter! Truly lifestyles of the rich and famous!
We meander around,
then visit all the local little stores.
I fall in love with a ceramic pasta dish setting, but rather than be rash, I decide to think about it over lunch! Which was delicious!
Had a lovely "wrap" I'm not sure exactly what it was. It was a cross between a tortilla, and a thin and crispy pizza base, and the filling was shrimp (prawns and lettuce and a mayonnaise sauce) delicioso! We teamed this with a peroni beer, and sat back and enjoyed the piazza! I finish with a gelato - dark cherry and ripples of melted, real chocolate, which of course have solidified, an a scoop of zuppa inglese - which is kind of like a cassata - it has mixed peel and dried fruits through it! Mmmmmm......
Some more meandering.......
Back to the car, and the trip home. No, I did not get the pasta set, sense prevailed. I just couldn't justify the expense! Perhaps next visit!
We sit now on the balcony of the (Albergo) Hotel California,
and we anticipate the meal ahead of us with all our new found friends up at the Scirocco!
Life is so different here, so civilized. Our hostess Maria sees us ready to go out. She asks us where we are going, and we tell her. She calls to verify all is ok, and that the transport is organized. Before you know it, there is a young man dressed in a suit, picking us up in a Mercedes to take us to the restaurant. We are greeted at the restaurant like family. Kisses on both cheeks - buona sera Signors Barbara, Signora Caterina. After a delicious meal, they tell us our driver is ready to pick us up, and another young man is here in his alpha!
Our time is drawing to a close, I'm going to be sad to leave this little slice of paradise!
