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LIFESTYLE · August 2, 2011

Practicing Reflection

This morning as I opened my journal to write down a few thoughts to start my day, a folded piece of paper slipped out from between the pages and fell to the floor. I leaned over to pick it up and smiled as I unfolded the sheet of paper to see my handwriting scrawled across the page in all the ...

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LIFESTYLE · July 17, 2011

Finding Home on the Amalfi Coast

It doesn't take long to feel at home on the Amalfi Coast. I imagine many travelers experience the same feeling of familiarity and comfort when they first arrive, just as I did in February 2007 when I first visited Amalfi. There's a warmth, openness and curiosity for foreigners in many of the locals ...

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LIFESTYLE · March 29, 2011

Grateful Not Only for the Good Days

Last Thursday I was sitting in the sun in Amalfi and enjoying lunch outdoors overlooking the Marina Grande beach. There were a few brave souls making their way slowly out into the cold water and returning soon enough to lay in the warmth of the sun. Spring is just about to burst open here on the ...

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LIFESTYLE · March 23, 2011

Coming Home Again to Amalfi

One of the small pleasures of going away is coming home again. When you love the place where you live, it becomes like an old friend that you haven't seen in awhile. You notice, perhaps, how they're wearing their hair in a new way or the new glasses. With a town like Amalfi, it's the small details ...

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PHOTOGRAPHY · March 17, 2011

The Eye Remembers Everything

Going back to a familiar place, whether be your hometown or a city where you spent many years, is a strange mixture of emotions. When I landed in the Minneapolis - St. Paul airport recently for a visit back where I went to graduate school, it was comforting to know exactly where to go. Even the ...

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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 month’s newsletter continues the travels in This month’s newsletter continues the travels in Italy with American poet H.W. Longfellow in 1828 as he made his way down to Naples. Plus a look at Grand Tour volcano tourism and a bonus of 19th-century tips for now not to be a tourist. Link in bio!
Mmmhmm autumn is definitely my favorite season. 🧡 This morning I woke up a bit earlier than my alarm and looked outside somewhat perplexed. The entire sky, the town—everything—had a burnt orange hue. A hurried lacing up of the shoes and still bleary eyed, but I just had to see it better for myself. It was a glorious sunrise. Now the rain has just gently started falling and I’m in full autumn ecstasy.

Later I’ll return to the piano to pick up where I left off yesterday learning this beautiful autumn waltz by @andreavanzo_composer. 🍂
Just by chance I happened to catch the very beginn Just by chance I happened to catch the very beginning and end of season at @cantine_marisa_cuomo this year. It was fun to see the grapes on the same vines just before harvest begins. Swipe to the right to see the same grapes back in May. Happy autumn!
Huge thanks to @italia_magazine for the lovely fea Huge thanks to @italia_magazine for the lovely feature of the second edition of Moon Southern Italy in the August/ September 2025 issue. Love the great description of @moonguides as well. Grazie mille! 🇮🇹
My heart might forever wander, but it’ll probabl My heart might forever wander, but it’ll probably always take a crosswalk. E si fermerà chissà…
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?
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