Imagine the busiest traffic you have ever been in - maybe Vancouver or Toronto if you have ever driven on the freeways there. Now take that big road and shrink it to two lanes with no shoulder. Ok, now take that and give it a lot of hairpin curves, some hills, some narrow corners and some blind intersections. Surround that narrow curving busy road with buildings, cliffs, pedestrians and a thousand scooters coming from every direction much faster than the traffic. Ok, now throw in a dog, some baby prams, a couple of tour buses, a peloton of racing bicycles, some lunatic Italian drivers and a rental car that has no scratches. Now put your wife behind the wheel and three singing, fighting, complaining, need-to-pee 11- year olds in the back seat and relax for a nice drive along the Amalfi Coast of Italy. I did far more damage to the vinyl dashboard with my finger's death grip than anything that happened outside the car.
Everybody tells you to avoid Naples but it can't be as bad as Pompei back in 79.
If you can stand up without hanging on to a tree, build a town.
The Amalfi Coast is on the Sorrento peninsula about 300 km south of Rome and near the ruins of Pompeii and the ruined city of Naples (Italy's Mumbai). It is mountainous and therefore the roads and towns tend to cling to the cliffsides or in the higher mountain valleys. Absolutely spectacular views of the Mediterranean with towns stretched from the seaside up the terraced mountains.
We took an open bus from the town of Amalfi to a mountain village called Ravello and then hiked down. We took a centuries old trail that was used by the locals to transport goods up to Ravello before the road was built. It was an easy, fun downhill trail with lots of breathtaking views.
Easy to hike down but it would have been a killer to go up with a basket of fish on your back.
Grow some lemons, make some cheap wine, marry a hard-working Sophia Loren type - it's all you need.
The damn Catholics grab all the great spots.
Take the high road and the low road.
About 6 hours after driving to Amalfi, we had de-compressed enough to finally get back into the car for the return trip. Next time we're taking the boat.
If you have some time, have a peek at this video but I remember this road much busier. http://onceinalifetimetravel.me/2012/09/18/the-road-of-terror-driving-along-the-amalfi-coast/
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