Campania

I have passed through Campania on various occasions, but once, returning from a trip to Sicily, I stopped here for tourism. I was with a friend and my Fiat Tipo when, driving back up the peninsula, we left the motorway to spend the night at Atena Lucana. The following day, passing through Roccadaspide and bypassing Salerno, we reached Paestum to see the splendid remains of the temples of Magna Graecia. Even in Greece you rarely see structures so well preserved side by side, aligned on a large lawn. From here we reach the Amalfi Coast. The road running along it is very narrow, winding among the mountains that plunge into the sea, and it seems to hang suspended between the rocks and the water. Not infrequently you come across cars with scratched sides; after all, there is so little room on the carriageway that driving is made difficult.

Paying great attention we pass by Vietri sul Mare, Minori and Maiori, observing them from high on the road — villages lapped by the sea, in part similar to those of the Cinque Terre in Liguria. Worth a detour inland is the village of Ravello, a true terrace on the coast from which you enjoy splendid views. Not by chance have aristocratic villas sprung up here, such as the one whose garden we visit. Coming down to the sea we meet Amalfi, one of the four Maritime Republics but also a splendid village resting on the coast with a beautiful church façade and a little harbour. Continuing along the road we stop at the Emerald Grotto, a cavity reached by an underground lift and visited by boat, less famous but in my view more beautiful than the one at Capri.

Back at the surface we continue, and after a few kilometres come to the Furore Fjord, a narrow inlet where fishermen shelter their boats, which we cross from the top of a bridge. Seen from the road, Positano; we reach Sorrento, where we spend the night in a hotel. The city has an upper part and another by the sea, and between the two there open chasms in the ground. The next morning we take the ferry from the port to Capri, where we first visit the characteristic centre with the famous Piazzetta and the little streets full of shops, then follow a hiking circuit that will lead us to discover the Natural Arch and the Faraglioni. Back in the village we take a circular bus to the island's other town, Anacapri, near which we visit the very famous Blue Grotto. Having gone down a staircase we get into a small boat where a local boatman takes us inside the cavity.

To enter the grotto, whose opening is often covered by the waves, you must duck your head; inside, a very beautiful natural environment opens up, brightened by the popular song of our boatman. Back at Anacapri we reach the port of Marina Grande and take the ferry to Sorrento, where we learn that because of a landslide on the Vico Equense road it is not possible to reach the north by land. We board another ferry and disembark at Castellammare di Stabia, from where in a few kilometres we are at Pompeii. We visit the historic centre with the Sanctuary of the Madonna, then spend the night in a hotel. The following morning we visit the archaeological excavations, a great Roman city submerged by the lava of Vesuvius. Besides the remains of houses, squares, streets, palazzi, monuments, temples, theatres and amphitheatres, there are also those of people petrified by the lava.

The eruption has protected ancient Pompeii for centuries, which is why it now appears so well preserved. The next day we take the Circumvesuviana railway, which passing through Herculaneum takes us to Naples, offering fine views of Vesuvius. In the Campanian capital we see Piazza del Plebiscito, Castel dell'Ovo, the Galleria Umberto I, the Maschio Angioino, the Spanish Quarters, Spaccanapoli, the Cathedral where the "Miracle of San Gennaro" takes place, and the National Archaeological Museum. It is beautiful to get lost in the city's alleys, where you glimpse characteristic corners or see numerous Neapolitan nativity scenes out of season, where perhaps instead of a shepherd you find the figurine of Maradona. After the visit, by the Circumvesuviana we return to the car and head home. It was not the first time I had visited the region.

In '85 I had done my military service in Benevento and on my days off I had gone with some fellow conscripts to Naples, on the slopes of Vesuvius, in the park of the Royal Palace of Caserta. On my own I had also been to Marcianise a couple of times, Messigno, Castellammare di Stabia and San Giorgio del Sannio. Obviously during the car I had strolled with my course friends around Benevento, a city of Roman foundation where I stayed about three months. I was also in Naples and Capri in '84 for just one day, on a there-and-back raid from Rome. A few years ago I went to stay with friends of mine who live in Ticciano, a foothill hamlet on the slopes of Faito in the municipality of Vico Equense. From here I set off on day trips to Naples and Herculaneum.

In Naples, since we were in early December, we went to see San Gregorio Armeno with its numerous stalls and shops selling Christmas decorations and nativity figurines. I also visited "Underground Naples", a tour inside the tunnels beneath the city, used since Roman times as cisterns for collecting water. During the Second World War these tunnels were used as an air-raid shelter. The guided visit also included the cavea of a Roman theatre, curiously kept inside an apartment. On the day devoted to Herculaneum we visited the imposing excavations. Leaving Ticciano and heading home I stopped at Caserta to visit the famous Royal Palace, both inside and in the gardens embellished with monumental fountains. Unfortunately this trip to Campania was blighted by almost constant rain, which gave its best during the visit to Caserta. A couple of years later I returned to my friends in Ticciano.

On this occasion a warm spring welcomed us. The first excursion was made between the Sorrento Peninsula and the Amalfi Coast. First stop at Sorrento, then passing through Sant'Agata sui Due Golfi we reached, through the characteristic alleys, the beach of Positano. From here to the Emerald Grotto, which, though closed, they let us take a look at. Next stop at Amalfi to visit the church and its museum. From here to Pompeii to see the Sanctuary of the Madonna, then back to Ticciano. The following day we went to the Solfatara of Pozzuoli, the characteristic seaside locality of Baia, Lake Avernus and the archaeological site of Cumae, famous for the Cave of the Sibyl. The day after it was Naples' turn, where I had been invited to lunch by a friend. I took the chance for a quick trip into the centre to see the famous Monastery of Santa Chiara.

On the day of our return we stopped again at Pompeii and then went home. A few years later, coming back from a trip to Calabria, I stopped briefly with a friend near the Battipaglia motorway toll booth to buy buffalo mozzarella from a shop.