Positano and the Amalfi Coast

In this blog the pictures start with broad landscape shots. These will be followed by pictures from the streets and steps of Positano. Then some shots showing architectual details.
Our trip along the Amalfi Coast started with a ferry ride in Salerno.  Fortunately it was a beautiful day for the ride.  There was enough chop on the water to make picture taking a challenge.  The next 7 pictures were taken at 1/2000 of a second to try and get some sharpness to them.  The picture above is of Salerno as we are leaving the harbour.

The next three pictures are of Amalfi.  Our ferry stopped here to let off a few passengers.  Amalfi appeared to be a little bigger and flatter than Positano.

Wind surfers braving the ferries and other yachts.

Along the coast you could see a mix of old fortifications and new homes.

Pirates raided Amalfi and Positano during the middle ages.  Positano was abandon for a while during this time period.

Beautiful and hilly Positano.

Until the late 1800s the only access to Positano was by donkey path or sea.

We were fortunate to have a full moon during our visit.

During WWII Positano became a haven for artist and writers escaping Nazi Germany and Russia. 

In 1953 John Steinbeck wrote an essay on the town that popularized Positano among the tourist and it became a trending stop for tourist.

While the water is quite inviting, the beach is not sand but rocks and gravel.  Definitely a water shoe beach. 

After walking up 400 steps from the beach with our luggage we found ourselves at the bottom of these steps.  The first flight up to the door of our hotel.

A view from the stairs.

A well deserved rest about mid-way up to the hotel door.

The last flight outside.  Little did we know there were two more flights inside before we got to the room.

Kathy and I rode a bus up to Nocelle so I could get some pictures of Positano.  We stopped for some lemonade before we walked the 1700 steps down to the road to Positano.  While Kathy was checking her pictures on the iphone (back right corner) I was checking out the lemonade girl.

A small sample of the 1700 steps.

Lots of shopping opportunities in Positano.

It looked like every other shop sold women's clothing.  This was one of the more colorful collections.

The buildings had a lot of charm. Land owners who want to renovate can not make external changes.

Most of the roads are narrow and there are no sidewalks. This is actually a wide spot.

We walked up about 400 more stairs above our hotel to the post office so we could send post cards to the grand kids.

Bougainvillea grows all over town. It is nicely trimmed to fit the buildings.

There are a few churches in Positano.  There were quite a few natural grotos with statues of saints and fresh flowers.

There are also statues in the gardens.

There were fresco of saints and angels on a few buildings too.

Next is a picture series of doors and windows.  If these don't interest you skip to the last picture.

Not sure I would want to enter this door given the stone head.  Not sure what the owner's message is here.

This hydrofoil is our ride out of Positano tomorrow.  We are headed to Sorrento.  We were glad to hear that it is a little flatter than Positano.