A Quick Tour Of Italy - The Amalfi Coast And Sorrento

A Quick Tour Of Italy - The Amalfi Coast And Sorrento

If you are looking for a European tourist destination, consider the Amalfi Coast and the city of Sorrento in the Gulf of Salerno. These tourist attractions popular with jet setters and many others lie in the Campania region of southwestern Italy on the Tyrrhenian Sea. Frankly, this area is hardly undiscovered. Make sure to see our other articles on Campania destinations in this series; they cover Campania's capital city Naples, the historic ruins east of Naples, the area west of Naples, and finally the Isle of Capri.

Paestum lies about 50 miles (85 kilometers) southeast of Naples. The Greeks first colonized this area about 2700 years ago and originally named the city Poseidonia in honor of the King of the Sea. It sided with Rome when Hannibal invaded Italy and started to decline around fifteen hundred years ago. Paestum was abandoned during the Middle Ages possibly because of malaria, although it's now quite arid. Some ancient city walls still stand as do many of its defensive towers. Paestum contains some of the best-preserved Ancient Greek temples in the world. Most of the site hasn't been excavated yet.

Salerno was settled well before Roman times. Its Medical School is said to be Europe's oldest university. Salerno was the site of an Allied invasion during World War II and briefly hosted an Italian government that declared war on Germany. Make sure to see the Eleventh Century Cathedral with its Byzantine and Arab influences, St. Benedict Church stemming from a Seventh to Ninth Century Monastery, and the Baroque St. George Church.

Amalfi was once a major trading center with schools of mathematics and law. The Amalfi maritime code was widely used in the Mediterranean area for centuries. The Cathedral of Saint Andrea, considered the most stunning cathedral in southern Italy, was initially constructed during the Ninth Century and has been rebuilt and expanded since then.

Sorrento has been a resort town for two thousand years. Sorrento's excellent museums include the Museo Correale di Terranova, and the Inlaid Woodwork Museum. The relatively new Mineralogical Museum boasts a dinosaur collection including baby dinosaurs and dinosaur eggs, and Permian reptiles that predate the dinosaurs by millions of years. Before you leave Sorrento visit its historic city center which includes some protective walls from the Middle Ages, the Fourteen Century Saint Francis Cloister, and a much older neighboring monastery.

Lemons are a local specialty, especially when the rinds are made into a sweet liqueur known as limoncello. There are two DOC wines produced in this area: Costa d'Amalfi and Penisola Sorrentina. Both are made in a variety of styles with a variety of local grapes. Try them. But you can surely buy better Campania wine.

Levi Reiss has authored or co-authored ten books on computers and the Internet, but he prefers drinking fine Italian or other wine, accompanied by the right foods and people. He knows about dieting but now eats and drinks what he wants, in moderation. He teaches classes in computers at an Ontario French-language community college. Visit his Italian travel website http://www.travelitalytravel.com which focuses on local wine and food.