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TRAVEL · March 24, 2024

A New Season Begins – March 2024

Happy Spring! It's that time of year when shops and restaurants are spiffed up, the ferries start running again, and the bakeries are full of Colomba cakes for Pasqua. That can only mean one thing: a new season has begun! If you're visiting the Amalfi Coast soon, here are a few things happening ...

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HISTORY & CULTURE · June 4, 2023

La Rondinaia – Visiting “The Swallow’s Nest” in Ravello

There are places where a spirit remains, especially when those places are much-loved homes. One such place is La Rondinaia, a remarkable villa in Ravello that was home to the American writer Gore Vidal (1925-2012) for more than 30 years. Its whimsical name—meaning "The Swallow’s Nest"—comes from the ...

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TRAVEL · October 23, 2022

Amalfi Coast Autumn Festivals & Events

With mild temperatures and plenty of sunny days, autumn is a beautiful time to visit the Amalfi Coast. Do keep in mind that September is in many ways a continuation of the summer. It's still quite warm and is one of the best months for swimming and enjoying time outdoors. Temperatures do start ...

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PEOPLE · October 9, 2022

The Amalfi Coast in Song: An Interview with Lucy Kiely

In a landscape so beautiful it often seems straight out of a film, what's missing is a soundtrack that captures the essence of the Amalfi Coast. That's where the music of Lucy Kiely, an Amalfi Coast based jazz singer and songwriter, comes in. Lucy's latest album Un'Estate Italiana has just been ...

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PEOPLE, PHOTOGRAPHY · July 10, 2022

Photographing the Amalfi Coast: An Interview with Emanuele Anastasio

From brilliant summer days to moody winter storms, the Amalfi Coast is a photographer's dream spot every day of the year. There are, however, some very special days when a photographer's keen eye can capture a moment of history. One of those days is the Regata delle Antiche Repubbliche Marinare, the ...

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Moon Amalfi Coast

BOOKS, WRITING · February 8, 2022

Moon Amalfi Coast with Capri, Naples & Pompeii, 2nd Edition

It's no secret that I love books. For as long as I can remember, I've loved books. The discovery, the possibility when stepping into a library or bookstore, the comfort in stacks of books around the house. The time spent with books is always special, whether it be hours that pass while lost in a ...

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LIFESTYLE · October 24, 2021

The Summer of C

After what has been a long year and a half -- for so many of us -- this was the summer I thought I'd be reading a lot of books and relaxing at the beach. Maybe even reading some of those books while listening to the sound of the sea in Amalfi. (Maybe more than maybe.) Instead, it was the summer I ...

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HISTORY & CULTURE · November 18, 2020

William Kentridge’s “More Sweetly Play the Dance” at the Arsenal of Amalfi

There are few places in Amalfi where the history of the town can be so well felt in its very stones than the Antico Arsenale della Repubblica di Amalfi - the ancient Arsenal of the Republic of Amalfi. Just a few steps from the busy traffic circle Piazza Flavio Gioia, the Arsenal is where Amalfi's ...

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FOOD & DRINK · July 26, 2020

Recipes from Expats in Positano

The joy that comes from cooking and sharing meals is a staple of Italian daily life. During the long days of quarantine on the Amalfi Coast, time together over lunch and dinner was often the highlight of the days for many families. In fact, in the early days of quarantine the only thing you might ...

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FOOD & DRINK · July 4, 2020

New Live Streaming Amalfi Coast Cooking Classes with Mamma Agata Live

If you've been missing the flavors of the Amalfi Coast, I have some exciting news. The Mamma Agata Cooking School has launched a series of live streaming cooking classes direct from their kitchen in Ravello! Since so many travelers are unable to make it to the Amalfi Coast this year, they've created ...

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TRAVEL · June 13, 2020

Amalfi Coast Tourism Restarts

After months of being quarantined and a slow restart, earlier this month marked the reopening of travel between regions in Italy and, an even bigger step, the reopening of borders in the European Union. While we're all happy here in Amalfi to see shops and restaurants opening again, it has been ...

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View of Scala on the Amalfi Coast

TRAVEL, WRITING · May 17, 2020

A Glimpse of My Scala in Italia! Magazine

While travel and most everything has been on hold this spring, the April 2020 issue of Italia! Magazine featured an article I wrote called 48 Hours in Scala. For those of you following Ciao Amalfi for some time now, you'll know that I've spent a lot more than 48 hours in Scala. About 12 years ...

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Ciao!

My name is Laura and the Amalfi Coast is my passion and my home. I’m a writer and photographer who is endlessly inspired by the incredible beauty of the Amalfi Coast. Welcome to Ciao Amalfi!

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This morning was a little cloudy when I went out f This morning was a little cloudy when I went out for my morning walk like I do most mornings in Amalfi. Down the coast, across the Gulf of Salerno, rays of light were shining right on the city of Salerno. I had set out with Salerno on my mind because it was there that 82 years ago today—on September 9, 1943—the Landing of Salerno began during WWII. My Grandpa was in the Army during the war - a lot of it in Italy. Yet he would never speak of where he was or what he did, and certainly had no desire to ever see Italy again after the war. While he probably wasn’t in that first landing in Salerno, he would have been somewhere in Italy, perhaps further south in Calabria or in Sicily. I always think of him during these days and wonder about those hard experiences he must have had in Italy. And very grateful for what he and so many fought for and endured. 

If you ever visit Salerno, south of the city there’s an Allied War Cemetery that is a moving and important place to visit. 🤍
Have I ever shared one of my favorite poems about Have I ever shared one of my favorite poems about Amalfi? It’s by the American poet Sara Teasdale (1884-1933). It’s simple and it’s heartbreaking - like first loves so often are. But I think about it often, especially on night walks in Amalfi. 

Night Song At Amalfi

I asked the heaven of stars
What I should give my love —
It answered me with silence,
Silence above.

I asked the darkened sea
Down where the fishers go —
It answered me with silence,
Silence below.

Oh, I could give him weeping,
Or I could give him song —
But how can I give silence,
My whole life long?
The best kind of mail day! Just received a package The best kind of mail day! Just received a package of the books I ordered from @papexbookshop in Florence. Looking forward to reading the latest books by @nickypellegrino and @phaedrapatrick set in Italy (comp research is so fun!) plus a book I’ve been eager to read about Dorothy L. Sayers, who was a wildly fascinating woman. Just putting this here as a little encouragement for all of us to support our local bookshops - even when they’re not that local! 📚
Juggling but make it medieval and add more flags! Juggling but make it medieval and add more flags! 💙 Amalfi celebrated the historic Byzantine New Year yesterday with a grand parade, including this impressive performance by the Sbandieratori e Musici della Città Regia from Cava de’ Tirreni. Even better, this year for the 25th anniversary of the event, they celebrated our beloved local historian Professor Giuseppe Gargano, who inspired the creation of this historic event in the 1980s celebrating Amalfi’s history. Congratulation to Prof. Gargano - the new Magister do Civiltà Amalfitana! 🎉
I’ve been spending some time lately with my fait I’ve been spending some time lately with my faithful old companion Longfellow. It’s been such a glorious reminder that my work with him has only just begun. Head over to Substack (link in bio) to read more about Longfellow’s time in Rome in 1828, the Piazza Navona lake, and the unexpected fun of traveling with poets. Bibliotourism at its best! 📚
It was a surprise to me to find such a brilliant g It was a surprise to me to find such a brilliant green sign of life on the top of Mt. Vesuvius on a cold spring day hiking up to the Gran Cono back in March this year. In the freezing wind with steam rising from the crater, there was this moss growing bright green and happy like a summer day. While we were in awe of the overwhelming bigness that is a volcano, it’s the moss there at the edge that I’ve found myself thinking of since that day. Especially while listening to “Gathering Moss: A Natural & Cultural History of Mosses” by Robin Wall Kimmerer. And, likely not by chance, it was recommended by my friend Amber who was there on top of Vesuvius that day too. It turns out that the first plants to grow on a volcano after eruption are called pioneer species and are most often mosses and lichen. Thank you to Amber who is constantly reminding me that there is so much more to the world than meets the eye. 💚
Blue and white skies over Amalfi. ☁️ Blue and white skies over Amalfi. ☁️
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