Amalfi Coast, Italy
The Amalfi Coast spans nearly 30 miles between Salerno and Sorrento and includes a dozen or so villages, including Amalfi itself. It is famous for the breathtaking views and the vertical villages clinging to to the cliffs. It’s late fall and most the crowds are gone, but the Mediterranean is still warm enough (if you are used to Lake Michigan) for a swim. On top of all of this, some longtime friends were flying over from the States to spend time with us and help us celebrate my 50th birthday. Life is good!
Naples street market goes day and night
We spent a night in Naples first, which is a city the guidebooks no longer even bother to sugarcoat and struggle to find anything good to say. It can’t be all bad, right? Hmmm…I’ll say our AirBNB host was amazing and we got a chance to see the street market in full swing, which was very cool. After that - wow! The air pollution and state of the city and infrastructure was startling and a stark contrast to what we’d seen elsewhere in Italy and certainly what we have seen of Europe. On the positive side, as a port city Naples has transportation logistics going for it!
We met our friends the next morning. They had just landed and were ignoring jet-lag like the travel pros they are. They bused over to the Naples train station and we met there and took a local train to Salerno, a short walk to the ferry dock, and an hour later we were at the Amalfi dock. We rented an apartment in Atrani, which is an easy 15-minute walk from Amalfi, but has a much more laid-back vibe than the town of Amalfi itself. This ended up being a perfect location as we could hike to Ravello, walk to Amalfi, and catch a ferry at the dock in Amalfi to the other cliff-side cities as desired.
The week flew and we spent time hiking to Ravello, taking the ferry to Positano, eating out, cooking, swimming, and having cocktails on the roof of our apartment overlooking the sea. This is what the Amalfi Coast is made for! A HUGE thanks to Jim and Beth for making the long journey. They, along with Trish and Zach, made it a great 50th birthday celebration that stretched the entire week.
When the week was up, we all took the ferry to Positano and then another ferry to Sorrento. After one last meal with us, Jim and Beth headed to catch a train back to Naples and an early morning flight back to the States. We headed for a long hike to our next AirBNB just outside Sorrento in Sant’Agnello. We based there for almost a week to focus on schoolwork for Zach and to plan the logistics for our next stop, Africa.
Up to Sorrento from the ferry dock
