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Amalfi

There is a small peninsula just south of Pompeii - at its tip is a town called Sorrento, with the island of Capri just offshore. The southern coast of this peninsula is called the Amalfi Coast.

The Amalfi Coast is a rugged, windy coast with mountain cliffs that drop into the sea. If you are familiar with California's Big Sur - it doesn't begin to compare with Amalfi in its beauty and precariousness of its nominally two-lane road.

The Coast is dotted with little towns that grip the mountain sides and creep down to touch the sea. In the middle of the coast is the town of Amalfi, and just west of that are the villages of Miorca and Minora.

Straight up the mountain from Amalfi is a town called Ravello, where we stayed in a quaint hotel. Our room had a balcony with a view straight down the mountainside and out to sea. At night, we could see the fireworks below us in the town of Minora.

The bus drivers navigating the narrow road on the coast are amazing. There was one harrowing moment when the driver barrelled around a turn - my legs flung out the door, while I somehow managed to hang onto the bus - just short of taking a minor flight over the cliffs and into the ocean.

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For more information on this Italy tour, email italy@graphcomp.com.