Report from Amalfi number 1

Alice Heyer and her friend Franke arrived on July 7, Pat and Bob Warakomsky arrived on July 8, and Barbara Jacksier and Ev Chasen arrived on July 10. We have been busy at various activities, such as attending piano master classes taught by Ian Hobson, John Perry, and Aldo Ciccolini and attending evening concerts. We went to the town of Amalfi via coach along the narrow, winding, and treacherous coastal road to eat dinner at Da Maria Trattoria and attend a piano recital by Michele Campanella in the museum adjacent to the Cloisture (Chiostro del Paradiso) and Cathedral (Chiesa del Crocifisso). The next day we journeyed, again via coach, to Ravello, where we toured the Cathedral (dedicated to San Pantaleone, patron saint of Ravello) and the Villa Rufolo. Ravello is also hosting their annual music festival at this time. Alice and Franke will return there on the 18th to attend a Wagner concert. Returning to the hotel, we attended a piano recital by John Perry. The next venture was travelling to Sorrento by coach, but this time via the Autostrada, which was faster and smoother, but I'm not sure if less dangerous! We toured the Correale Museum, which was followed by a marvelous performance by the Fine Arts Quartet of Mendelssohn music in commemoration of the 200th anniversary of his birth. This was followed by a buffet dinner at the museum that started after the concert about 11:00PM. The next evening we attended a flute recital given by Nancy Stagnitta, accompanied by Ian Hobson, in the Vietri Sul Mare Oratorio. On Sunday, we travelled by ferry from Salerno to Positano. This was a wonderful trip along the Amalfi Coast, we could marvel at the houses punctuating the cliff sides, and the numerous terraced lemon trees. After touring the Cathedral that is home to the Black Madonna, Alice, Pat, and Bob took a local bus that traversed a loop around Positano. We stopped and had a marvelous lunch at Il Grottino Azzurro, which was written up in Frommer's Guide and lived up to every word in its description of the food. In the evening, we attended a piano recital by Ian Hobson.

Everyone is enjoying our stay in Vietre Sul Mare, and all the events. The only down side is the unavailability of the pool and beach at our hotel. Today Pat W. attended a cooking class along with Tom Mastroianni.

I will post all photos taken during our stay (we are leaving on July 15) upon our return home, and I will provide the link here in the blog.

Click here to learn more about the Amalfi Coast Music Festival

Bob W.