The Amalfi Coast, Italy - UNESCO World Heritage Site

 Place: The Amalfi Coast, Italy

Weather: Overcast with rain showers, 46/55F.

Route: From Naples 57 km SSE on A3 and SS145.

Personal memory: The Amalfi coast might be the most beautiful place I've ever visited.  I was in an exchange program in grad school in Mannheim, Germany and convinced a group of my friends - including one visiting from U.S. (although she is Canadian and now lives in Canada) to go on a week long trip to Italy after going to Oktoberfest in Munich.  I then convinced my Canadian friend to take a trip down to the Amalfi coast while the rest of the group was in Rome - where I had already been on a prior trip.  This was almost 20 years ago now - it's getting long enough ago that I almost feel like "did I really do all of that?"

Anyways - I rented a scooter in Sorrento where we were staying.  My friend and I rode around a little - my goal was to get to Positano - a place I had heard was incredibly beautiful.  She decided she had enough and I dropped her off (a decision she would later be glad she made).  I somehow made it to Positano just before sunset - weaving around camper vans and other tourists on a dangerous road on a cliff.  I took the picture below and then hurried my way back to Sorrento before the scooter rental place closed.  I almost got all the way back and in my hurry I gunned the scooter at intersection/round about and lost control. The bike jumped up over a curb and ended up sliding on it's side. I scraped my jeans and hurt my knee a little.  The most painful part was how much I had to pay the rental company (or my parents did at the time) to get the scooter fixed.  Anyways - it was memorable - even without the accident. I describe it as being similar to Big Sur in California - except there are magical Italian villages on the sides of the cliffs.

Website: UNESCO World Heritage Site

Video: 

Images:

The picture I took of Positano at dusk almost 20 years ago 

The town of Amalfi (from whc.unesco.org)