Ciao! I'm Laura.
  • Journal
  • About
  • Writing
  • Contact
  • Home
  • Journal
  • Books
  • Podcast
  • About
    • Writing
  • Contact

Ciao Amalfi

LIFESTYLE · May 6, 2011

Photo Friday: Under the Lemon Groves in Ravello

On  any of the regular walks I take through Amalfi, Scala and Ravello, I have my favorite spots to stop and enjoy the view. Perhaps a glimps of the coastline through a garden or between two old buildings. When I see a new staircase or pathway, I'm always so curious to know where it leads and what ...

View the Post

LIFESTYLE · March 8, 2011

Buon Carnevale 2011!

It's Carnevale time in Italy, and for the first time in two years I'm missing Carnival on the Amalfi Coast due to my travels in America. While I'm not a big fan of the dressing up or dodging silly string wars going on between the local kids (or wondering where all that confetti ends up ...), I don't ...

View the Post

WRITING · January 31, 2011

Looking Up to Infinity

Recently, I've been writing about one of my favorite towns on the Amalfi Coast over at CharmingItaly.com - Ravello! While looking through my photos, this one that I took last summer while out on a boat caught my attention. You can see the beautiful little town of Atrani, and, high above, the very ...

View the Post

TRAVEL · December 8, 2010

Climbing Mt. Vesuvius

On a sunny day at the beginning of November we headed over the Lattari Mountains to Naples. Destination: Mt. Vesuvius! After climbing Mt. Etna in Sicily, my mother was very excited to tackle another volcano. I hadn't ever been to the top of Mt. Vesuvius, so I was really happy she wanted to go. Head ...

View the Post

WRITING · August 25, 2010

Bleeding Espresso’s Gita Italiana 2010

Have you all been following the Gita Italiana 2010 (Italy Tour 2010) over at Bleeding Espresso? If you love Italy, then this is the perfect chance to do some virtual traveling around the boot this month. Michelle has invited guest writers from all over Italy to write about where they live, and each ...

View the Post

WRITING · August 12, 2010

Head Over Heels in Love with the Amalfi Coast

    Recently, I was asked to write a guest post with the theme of “love” over at Andrea Perullo’s wonderful blog My Beautiful Adventures. The first thing that came to mind, of course, was the Amalfi Coast! Head over to Andi’s blog to read my guest post Love: Head Over Heels For the ...

View the Post

WRITING · April 30, 2010

Spreading the Love…

Thanks to the new Travel Inspirations Series here on Ciao Amalfi, I’ve had some of my favorite writers around the blogosphere stopping by and sharing some of the places around the world (and here in Italy, too!) that have inspired them. Keep watching in the coming weeks for some great new additions ...

View the Post

  • ← Previous
  • 1
  • 2

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!

Ciao Amalfi

  • Journal
  • Moon Amalfi Coast
  • Newsletter
  • Contact

Amalfi Coast

  • Amalfi
  • Positano
  • Ravello
  • Amalfi Coast

Explore

  • Travel
  • History & Culture
  • Food & Drink
  • Shopping

Laura Thayer

  • About
  • Writing
  • Book Reviews
  • Work with Me

Latest on Instagram

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. ☁️
  • Privacy Policy
  • Site Disclosure

Copyright © 2025 Ciao Amalfi · Theme by 17th Avenue