Spectacular Coastline

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Geo: 40.6344, 14.6026





Sorrento, an hour south of Naples' urban intensity, is a great base and the gateway to the much drooled over Amalfi Coast. The real Amalfi thrill is the scenic drive; the curving coastal road is exhilarating, so just unwind with memorable Neapolitan fare.


It is two hours south of the bustling chaos of Naples and it boasts 100km of coastline and a wild, mountainous interior sprinkled with pastel-hued, historic villages which still follow a traditional way of life. Deemed by UNESCO "an outstanding example of a Mediterranean landscape, with exceptional cultural and natural scenic values," the coast was awarded a coveted spot on the World Heritage list in 1997. This coastline is one of the most beautiful in the world. Marco the manager dropped us to Sorrento station and we bought our day passes from the tobacco shop in the station which is around 8 euros, we waited for Sita bus and one bus left completely full but they got another bus ready after few minutes, it is best to start the bus from Sorrento if you want to sit down and enjoy the fantastic views as the bus gets full quickly. Also avoid the peak hours as locals use the bus and it would be difficult to find a seat. I sat on the right hand side for the sea views. The bus was full after one stop, as you hyperventilate, notice how the Mediterranean, a sheer 500-foot drop below with the hotels, and villas clinging to the vertical terrain.

The rugged coastline is riddled with sea caves, sandy coves which tease from far below and cliffs reaching 200m, the coastline becomes ever more dramatic with breath taking scenery as the increasingly spectacular corniche road with around 1190 hairpins, which opens one vista after another with each turn. We passed the Positano, Grotta dello Smeraldo, a marine cave of luminous emerald waters that you can visit by boat or elevator/rock-cut steps, the village of Praiano, the Vallone di Furore, one of the coast's most impressive gorges; before arriving at Amalfi. That was very good engineering by the Italians to build the road and thanks to our bus driver for such careful driving on the famously winding, narrow roads which are challenging to drive. We got off at Amalfi and walked to the other end of the road for the bus to go to Ravello, an open tourist bus allowed us on the bus with our passes with no extra charge. There was heavy traffic with remarkable series of hairpins and more drop dead views.


Ravello is considered one of the most romantic and beautiful small towns in southern Italy. Perched on steep, terraced slope and closer to the sky than the sea, Ravello has lush gardens, quiet lanes, sleepy, sun-drenched corners, and a lofty setting at 1,198 feet which has vantage points for views over the azure coast below. At its heart lie an 11th-century cathedral and the Villa Rufolo, Moorish villa the latter one of two villas for which the town is famous. Built in the 13th century, the villa's guests have included popes and kings, as well as Richard Wagner, who composed part of his opera Parsifalhere in 1880. Views from its idyllic gardens are magnificent, as are those from the nearby Villa Cimbrone. Ravello overlooks the towns of Scala, Atrani and busy Amalfi, and from some places, Maiori down the sea road. The first settlement in Ravello is said to date back from the 6th century, when a few Romans arrived on the slopes of the Lattari mountains, in flight from barbarians This town is small, quaint above the glistering blue sea with brilliant views, it was very peaceful and serene here.

After exploring Ravello we took the bus and got off at Sant Agata which overlooks Mount Vesuvius and the Bay of Sorrento. We explored here and then we took the bus which goes to Termini after asking few locals. We watched the sunset from Termini's little square which has a small park with benches which was beautiful as the sun melts in the sea. When we reached the hotel, Claudia informed us that there might be a strike so we might not be able to go to Pompeii, she spend lot of time showing me alternatives. That was very kind of her; we went to the restaurant in the hotel for our dinner. We had pizzas, pasta with zucchini and garlic bread. The pizza was delicious, thin crust with lovely toppings, one of the best pizzas I've had in a long time. We all enjoyed the meal, there was a party at the hall for the Claudia's family and she told me that the strike was called off, Thank goodness, I sighed with a relief.

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