While tourists conduct the serious busi-
ness of visiting artmuseums andRo-
man ruins, Italians head for theCostiera
Amalfitana (theAmalfi coast) to feel sun
and spray on their faces and cavort along
a coast even the Italianmasters couldn’t
have conjured. Here, along the southern
flanks of the SorrentoPeninsula, the
coast is sobeautiful that evenUNESCO
couldn’t ignore it. The verdantmountains,
with their cliffs racingdown to turquoise
waters, are recognized as aWorldHeritage
Site. Pastel andwhitewashedfishing vil-
lages hewn into said cliffs donot detract
from the beauty. The coast’smost famous
towns—Amalfi, Positano (pictured right),
andRavello—must be savored. Amalfi
with its seaside cafes, Positano for its sea-
food restaurants and cliffside stairways,
and Ravello because of its sun-kissed
gardenswhere, on a star-filled summer
night, youmight attend aworld-class
symphony performance in the gardenof
VillaRufolo (part of theworld-renowned
Ravello Festival). Nor should youneglect
a visit toVietri sulMare (famous for its
ceramics), ahike along the steep ravines
of Valle deiMulini, or a row through La
Grotta delloSmeraldo, the aptly named
EmeraldGrotto. In summer, one cannot
ignore the sea and the precious opportu-
nity to take a chartered sail past the very
cliffswhere the Sirens temptedOdysseus,
one of the few able to resist this alluring
shore.
Amalfi Coast
TRAVEL
Destination: Summer
©WALTERBIBKOW/JAI/AURORAPHOTOS
