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Published: October 19th 2013
The rain that threatened yesterday arrived during the night, and we woke to wet, dreary weather. But given our limited time on the Amalfi Coast, we felt we had to do SOMEthing today, and our room's atmosphere isn't exactly conducive to just "hanging out", so opted for the destination that offered the most possible indoor activities--Amalfi, about 30 minutes away by bus. By the time we'd finished the sumptuous breakfast provided by Luigi--fruit, eggs, tomatoes, prosciutto, cheese, yogurt, toast with homemade spreads--the rain had turned to light sprinkles. We decided to walk over to Praiano, 5 minutes away, check out the town, see the church (of course), then catch a bus to Amalfi. Sounded good at the time. The first part of the plan went smoothly. We got to explore some of the tiny streets of the town of Praiano in order to reach the church, San Giovanni Bautista (St. John the Baptist). This turned out to be my favorite church of the trip so far, with its sweet Majolica tile dome and gorgeous interior tile floors, the 3-D bronze heads of the 4 Evangelists on the doors, and contemporary "broken tile" mosaics on the piazza out front. Then as we
headed to the edge of town and a less popular bus stop (when the buses are full and see a crowd waiting to get on, they won't stop), the skies let loose, and we waited by the side of the road in a downpour, not certain when the next available bus would come along. Then just as we were about to give up, a car drove by us, stopped a ways up the road, then reversed back to us. When the window rolled down, we saw it was Angela, owner of our pensione. True to her name, she was our angel of mercy and gave us a ride into Amalfi, which she was passing through on her way to pick up her niece at school. (Kids go to school on Saturday until noon in Italy.) And even better, she pointed out a beachside restaurant (Stella Mare) known for its pizza, where we lingered for a couple of hours over wine and the best pizza of the trip, until the downpour subsided a bit. Then we forced ourselves out of our dry bubble and headed over the Amalfi's Duomo, the Church of Sant'Andrea, with its impressive black and white marble facade
and harmonious mix of Gothic, Romanesque, Baroque and Byzantine architecture. Actually two connecting churches at one point, the older structure is now a museum of church-related artifacts, with some of the early frescoes and original architecture now restored. You are funneled into the crypts, which includes the altar that contains St. Andrew's remains (the miraculous arrival of which in Amalfi is a local legend), then up into the main church, with its now expected gaudy Baroque embellishments.
After touring the church, which was being set up for it's turn on TV the next day--each Sunday, a different church is chosen as the location for a national TV feed of the celebration of mass--we headed out under gray but almost dry skies. We winded our way through tiny streets lined with tourist shops, then up into the Val di Mulini (mills), just outside the center of town. Beginning in the 12th century, this area was once the center of paper making, for which Amalfi was renowned. The paper mills harnessed the water provided by the river running through the valley out to sea, and used water wheels to power the equipment that chopped up fabric scraps to turn them into
paper pulp. We had a little guided tour of the various pieces of equipment used to do this through the ages, and Sandy got to try making a sheet of paper the old-fashioned way. Our last stop was the Arsenale, the old medieval shipyard, but which turned out to be a museum that had almost nothing to do with ship building, other than one case on the "invention" of the compass by Amalphian Flavio Gioa in 1302. The building was cool, the exhibits almost incomprehensible to us, but highlighted Amalfi's role as a former power in Italy's complicated history.
It took us awhile, but we eventually got on a bus back to Praiano (and even got a seat!). On the way we had a great view of the precarious twists and turns along the cliffs of the Amalfi Coast Drive. But even more entertaining, was the head to head "negotiations" and maneuvering that took place when two buses going opposite directions met up on a too narrow stretch of road. The Asian tourists in the adjacent bus, from whom we were only millimeters apart, stereotypically pulled cameras out to film the whole thing! (Have to say, it crossed my
mind to do the same...)
That night there was a brief respite in the weather, and it was clear enough for us to walk into Praiano for a delicious dinner on the lively roof top deck at La Strada restaurant, with a view of the lights of Positano twinkling down the coast.
Almost forgot GTBT!
Sandy: GOOD THING--Eating delicious pizza in Amalfi while it was pouring outside. BAD THING--My part of our suite is like sleeping in a cave!
Sharon: GOOD THING--The Praiano Church BAD THING--Rain! And predicted for tomorrow, too!!
Dave: GOOD THING--Angela picking up up at the bus stop in the pouring rain. BAD THING--Disappointing Arsenal Museum
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