11992 Costiera Amalfitana

I have been promising some (and threatening others) to do this thread for a while - so here it is.

The Amalfi Coast, or Costiera Amalfitana in Italian, is a stretch of coastline on the southern side of the Sorrentine Peninsula (Province of Salerno). It runs from Positano in the west to Vietri sul Mare in the east.

The main towns of the Amalfi Coast are - Vietri sul Mare, Cetara, Maiori, Minori, Ravello, Scala, Atrani, Amalfi, Conca dei Marini, Praiano and Positano.

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The Amalfi Coast is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site and is renowned for its rugged terrain, scenic beauty, picturesque towns and diversity; every town has its own special character so let's have a look at them in a bit more detail.

[B]Vietri sul Mare[/B]

The first town we come across as we head west from Salerno is [I]Vietri sul Mare[/I].

The town is built on a little promonty and is right on the seaside where there is an impressive Saracen tower. Historicaly, Vietri was the old town of "Marcina" and the Romans conquered it about a zillion years ago. Apparently, they have recently discovered a Roman thermae and a "murus reticalatum" in Vietri.

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Only in the 17th century was Vietri free to begin life as an indipendent municipality. Other places that are a part of Vietri are Molina and Raito, where the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, with its frescoes can be found. Just slightly to the west of the town is the beautiful beach of Marina di Vietri, watched over by the Torre Crestarella. However, it's also surrounded by a flourishing agricultural area and the highest point in the town is dominated by the dome tiled with majolica and by the tall bell tower of the parish church of San Giovanni Battista.

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It's a very pleasant little town, which, together with the scattered villages of Medina, Marina, Raito, Benin-casa, Albori, Dragonea and Fonti, (from here you can take mountain paths and I'll tell you about those in another post) has a population of about 10,000 overall. Vietri Sul Mare has produced ceramics since the 15th century and its trade was mainly between Sicily and Calabria. The decoration of Vietri ceramics use the typical colours of the coast. - bright blue for the sea and sky - rich yellows for the lemon groves. There are a lot of speciality foods from this area and the one of the most famous is Capocolla - a cured ham similar to Prosciutto or Bresaola, but much nicer and sliced so thinly that is is almost transparent. Try it - it's a very delicate flavour and absolutely lovely.

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Vietri is popular seaside resort which bases its greatest economic resource on tourism.. and therefore, extremely busy in the summer, so try to visit just before or just after the peak season - far more enjoyable. Plan to spend the whole day there and wander around -have lunch at one of the trattoria in the side streets and don't pay the first or the second price asked for your souvenirs. Pretend you are Neapolitan - walk away in disgust at the high prices - and when the vendor csalls you back - haggle like mad!

[CENTER]Antonio Carluccio is from Vietri sul Mare
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It's a nice little place. :yes:

Category
Campania

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 03/24/2009 - 08:19

We did an organised walk [but unaccompanied] along the Amalfi Coast a few years ago
[Firms such as Inntravel and ATG arrange them - we used ATG. ATG arranged hotels and baggage transfer, and gave us a 93 page booklet that contained local information and 60+ pages of walking notes - fantastic! ]

It was definitely the best of all the walking holidays we have done [the worst was in the Leutasch Valley in Austria]

The scenery is fantastic, especially when walking the 'Pathway of the Gods' - the old mule track along the top of the cliffs, although the climb up to it was a bit of a b*gger.

Anyone who loves walking - do it! - you won't be disappointed.

Sunflower do a pretty good guide to the area, that covers a lot of the walks available in the area - something like 'Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast'

.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 03/24/2009 - 13:23

Not long to go until we put all this local knowledge to the test... thank you both.
I see from Tripadvisor that there are some problems on the road at that far end of the Amalfi Coast, not that it will stop us at all!
I look forward to further episodes.....

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 03/25/2009 - 17:26

Cetara is the next little place along the coast.

It's an ancient fishing village and the name comes from "Cetari" - the name given to the local tuna fishermen. Cetara is almost hidden between a dip in the lush coastal landscape - between the sea and the hills behind. This area, rich in woodland and vineyards, dominates the valley in which it is located. It is an old fashioned paradise made up of a mixture of lemon groves and almost inaccessible areas, which then slopes towards the sea. If you travel along the Amalfi Coast road, between Vietri and Punta di Fuenti, you will be not be able to resist stopping here. It is a very quaint little place.

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Cetara is like being catapulted back in time. The village is still reliant on fishing. It has a small bay and a stream known as the "Canillo". The most striking building is the Vicereale Tower, once used for defence purposes, but now a private home.. and I may evict the owners one day!

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Traditional events include the celebration in honour of the Immaculate conception, the Tuna and Anchovy market and annual fair, the Festival of St Pietro and St Paolo and the Naval Procession with a firework display for the Celebrations of the Patron Saint, St Pietro. Cetara is probably most famous for its anchovy and tuna fish production.

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The Anchovy sauce made here and called "colatura di alici" is from one of the oldest recipes in Italy and is made from the drippings of the anchovies after they have been packed in wood barrels with salt and left to ferment. It's a wonderfully rich flavour and worth bringing back to enhance all types of dishes - from antipasti to grilled meat. Another speciality from here is "Bottarga di Tonno" which is dried Tuna roe and tastes fab on some boiled new potatoes or pasta - or just on a chunk of fresh bread.

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I haven't been to Cetara for many years, but I remember it as a lovely place to spend a relaxing afternoon. We went swimming in one of the coves nearby and watched the fishermen mending their nets. It's very picturesque - a typically southern Italian fishing village, where the rest of the world just passes you by.