Happy New Year! I hope your holiday weekend was full of excitement and a good dose of relaxation, too. The new year always starts off with a bang in Amalfi thanks to the incredible fireworks display over the harbor. I thought you would all enjoy watching this beautiful video of the show this year by Amalfi based photographer Andrea Lucibello. It’s a bit slow to start, but it’s fun to watch the whole town light up in different colors when the big fireworks start going off. You won’t want want to miss the grand finale!

My holiday weekend was spent close to home since one of our cats is very sick. But how many places in the world would you find a vet who would make a special visit to his studio on New Year’s Eve and also New Year’s Day? We’re grateful to know one such vet on the Amalfi Coast! Even though I’ve been home a lot, there was festivity in the air with church bells ringing, fireworks and, of course, the local Capodanno bands. (Capodanno means New Year’s.) These bands make A LOT of noise. So much noise that you can hear them from the next town over sometimes!

These bands are a local tradition that spills over the mountains from Naples. They are a ton of fun to watch, especially when you take a close look at all the homemade instruments. In the video below of the Capodanno band in Amalfi, you can see all the instruments as they pass by. So much fun!

Wishing you a fun start to 2017!