There’s a saying in Italy about the month of March and its unpredictable springtime weather: Marzo è pazzo. (March is crazy.) While the weather really has been all over the place, it’s been a bit of a pazzo month for many reasons. Note I’m sending this month’s newsletter on the last day of March. This past month has taken me from winter in Amalfi to the snow geese and Sandhill crane migration in central Nebraska and really good times with my family there and then back to find spring has arrived in Amalfi.
And beginning tomorrow (April 1st) the ferries will start running again along the Amalfi Coast. (Huzzah!) Everyone is busy getting ready for Easter weekend, which kicks off the tourist season in Amalfi. So these last couple of weeks of calm since returning to Amalfi have been something to treasure.
As March weather is never long to last, you really have to enjoy those first beautiful spring days when they arrive. Last Saturday was just one of those days, the type you swear are the most beautiful days to ever have existed. The colors were extra bright, the birds seemed to be singing in celebration, trees blossoming and bursting out tiny, bright green leaves. Far too beautiful of a day to be inside!
As I was up in Ravello, I decided to walk down the mountain along the valley to Atrani and back home to Amalfi. It was like being alive in the idea of spring while listening to the mountain stream and waterfalls—heavier than usual—running to the sea.
I enjoyed looking at the little terraced garden patches along the way, spotting pea blossoms and neat rows of lettuces, and trying to guess which types of fruit trees were blooming. When I reached the beach in Atrani, kids were running and playing in the sun - there was joy in the air all around.
Then the weather turned blustery and cooler again and my morning walks have been more bundled up as I’ve looked out for a young cormorant—its chest still speckled white—with wings outstretched in an attempt to dry off in the damp sea breeze. Soon it’ll be moving on and those warm spring days will return.
Crazy or not, it’s been a very good month. I know it’s been quiet this last month around here, but I have a lot to share soon. Just wait until you see where I was at in Ravello last Saturday!
Ciao from Amalfi,
Laura
MOON AMALFI COAST - EBOOK ON SALE!
Planning a trip to the Amalfi Coast or know someone visiting soon? The eBook version of my guide Moon Amalfi Coast is on sale right now for only $3.99. A great deal! Even if you’re a fan a printed guidebooks (like me), it’s handy to have a digital version at your fingertips while traveling. You can buy it here:
NEW TO THE BOOKSHELF
I’m not sure how Stories of Southern Italy wasn’t immediately on my radar since it came out last year. But I believe I spotted it not too long ago via an Instagram story by Danielle Oteri - who writes Tante Belle Cose here on Substack. As a lover of short stories and all things southern Italy, it was a given. And a book that stretches from Virgil and Ovid to Ferrante holds a lot between its covers.
But, just a note, if you’re looking particularly for readings from the regions of Basilicata or Puglia, you won’t find much here. There’s just one selection each for those two regions: an excerpt from Carlo Levi’s Christ Stopped at Eboli and an excerpt from contemporary writer Nicola Lagioia’s book Ferocity. However, access to translations of so many southern Italian writers—and many not so easy to find—makes this an excellent resource and enjoyable read, especially if you really want to read in English the voices that shaped this place.
KEEP READING
There have been a lot of weird things written about the Amalfi Coast over the past month. Maybe it’s just a rite of spring for the tourist season kicking off. (A listicle that lists the top 10 towns of the Amalfi Coast begs the question: “Why not just list all 13 at that point?”) But here are some useful, interesting and fun things I’ve enjoyed:
My friend Eva Sandoval shared some great insight about getting around the Amalfi Coast using only public transport.
“From rags to riches: Amalfi’s ancient paper-making practice lives on” is a look at my favorite local product: paper!
A great interview with the lovely Rachel Roddy (who I had the pleasure of meeting last summer in Rome) + her recipe for pasta with chickpeas.
If “off the beaten path” means staying at very expensive hotels for you, this article might be of interest. (I’m sharing it mostly because I second the idea of picking a base outside of Positano.)
This video of the Italian ship the Amerigo Vespucci is gorgeous.
Here are some classic Italian recipes from the Amalfi Coast from a new cookbook by Ursula Ferrigno that just arrived in the mail today.
As far as arbitrary stupid goals go, this is one of the tastiest I've ever read about.
I recently ordered your new travel guide and it was really well done!! We’ll be on the Amalfi coast (in Atrani) for a week in September and after reading your newsletter I decided to order your guide. Thank you for an excellent travel resource!!
Isn’t it the statue of st. Biagio that’s carried , not St. Andrew? And it’s kept in st. Biagio church on the hill right? It might be interesting if photos of the inside of st. Biagio was posted on your site to show the beauty of an ancient church before st. Andrews was built.