Piazza Flavio Gioia » Molo Pennello »
Spiaggia di Duoglio » Spiaggia di S. Croce/Arco Naturale »
Spiaggia della Marinella » Capo di Vettica » rada di
Conca dei Marini » Capo di Conca » Grotta dello Smeraldo
We make our way to the Pennello quay, where the boats
that provide the service to the Emerald Grotto and to the beaches
are waiting. To rent a private boat you can also head for the port
in via lungomare dei Cavalieri, or ask for the telephone numbers
of private boat rental at the Tourist Office….
Once aboard the boat , we leave the quay, and follow
the coast line to enjoy the enchanting and rocky coast at its best…
It is easy to pick out via Maestra dei Villaggi with
its many branches and then one after another the pretty villages:
right above Amalfi is the village of Pogerola followed by the village
of Pastena which is over-looked by the Church of St. Maria Assunta;
then comes Lone, part of which is grouped around the Church “della
Natività di Maria” and the other part that spills down
the mountains to the magnificent Duoglio Beach; on the western side,
the sparse houses of Vettica Minore, surrounded by a greenery that
reaches down to the crystal waters of St. Croce, and behind Conca
dei Marini, the bell-tower of St. Pancrazio, the houses that cascade
down to the sea and the striking promontory of the Capo dei Conca…
(Pale
blue route)
The coast seems to be divided into longitudinal segments, nearly
all the parishes along the coast have an area down by the sea and
a higher part hidden amongst the terraces of lemons and grape vines,
and precipitous groups of olive trees…We go ahead with our
excursion…
Behind the port we see the pretty beach of the Sirens
and the adjoining Grotto of St. Andrew, which tradition gives as
a hiding place of a mysterious sea ox. The mythical creature was
said to eat only onions that he robbed from the country people at
night, but he has not been heard of since when on one of his raids
he was frightened by the shots of a blunderbuss…
As we travel on we note the private bathing facilities
of the exclusive Hotels of Amalfi and magnificent private villas:
that pass in a rapid succession until we reach the promontory of
the Pine, the “Old Ladies Paunch” as the local fishermen
call this rocky protuberance under the Pine…..
We now come to the beautiful Duoglio
Beach
and separated from it by the rocks St.
Croce, named after the ancient church that was once situated
in the large cavity on the western side of the “Grotto”…
The beach of St. Croce is particularly famous for
the transparency of its sea but even more so for the magnificent
Natural Arch that we find as we head
west.. This bizarre natural sculpture in the sixties was the scene
of a publicity campaign for a famous brand of chocolates, which
was the origin of the name “The Lovers
Arch”, and the tradition that to kiss under the arch
seals an unbreakable bond made by the couples who pass under it…
It is almost impossible to resist the temptation of
a swim in this emerald water but we must carry on, the enchanting
little beach of La Marinella is waiting
and also the Promontory of Vettica…
Riding the promontory we find another guard tower,
the fifteenth century Tower of Vettica,
and deep in a luxuriant park, Villa Ponti. The entire rocky spur
at one time was property of Carlo Ponti, the famous film producer,
and the annexed tower was his engagement present to his beautiful
wife Sophia Loren…
The film “Whi?” by Roman
Polansky was set in this house and it was also filmed there , but
it would take to long to cite all the films and famous personalities
especially as we round the promontory and arrive in the sea road
of Conca dei Marini…
In an epoch not so long ago the best of the International
jet-set loved to spend their Summer holiday on these beaches. Their
private villas were here- but many have now passed into other hands-
those of the Agnelli, the Moet et Chandon, the Ruffo and D’Urso…They
had as their guests, artists, writers, politicians, famous film
directors who came to spend their days in complete relax; the old
fishermen still talk about the sea trips of the famous First Lady
Jackie Kennedy and Princess Margaret of England, who in the sixties
was a frequent visitor to Conca dei Marini…
The eastern part of the bay is dominated by the imposing
Hotel Saraceno, at the end of the sixties famous for its night-club
where one could hear the pop singer Peppino Di Capri…
High up above over the great cavern is the Convent
of St. Rosa that although firmly anchored on the rocks seems
to be suspended in the air….
Once belonging to the cloistered nuns of the second order of the
Dominicans, in the past it preformed an important role in the social
life and economy of the town, but the most famous undertaking of
the pious nuns was the invention of the delicious Sfogliatelle
S.Rosa ( flaky pastry filled with custard): the ways of the
Lord can pass through the kitchen!….
On the eastern side of the bay a magnificent sea-side
village . Conca dei Marini that in the era of the Amalfi Republic
was a maritime and commercial centre with a well furnished fleet
and the best sailors in the area. After the passing of the magnificence
of the Duchy, the people of Conca became able fishermen, and on
the beach at Conca until the middle of the XX century, the last
“tonnare” resisted, a structure that was also used as
a factory for the preparation of the fish and market of exchange
for the sale of the catch, mainly tuna and sword-fish….
On the beach we can still see the old “maccheroni” factory
of Buonocore, the white house with arches, the thirteenth century
house named Mele, once the “foresteria” (guest- house)
of the monastery S.Rosa, and also the little Church
of St. Maria della Neve, on the Saints day the fifteenth of August,
the whole hamlet is illuminated and there is an interesting navel
procession with a long trial of boats that sail to Amalfi with the
Madonna….
On leaving the hamlet we arrive at the promontory
of Capo di Conca, jutting out into a deep sea of an almost unreal
cobalt blue: it is one of the deepest parts of the high Tyrrenian,
a privileged point for the sighting of large whales….
Topping the promontory is the most beautiful tower
on the coast, the White Tower, erected
in 1563 for the viceroy of Naples, Don Pedro de Toledo. When the
tower no longer played a defence role it was used to hold the earthly
remains of the people of Conca, but statistically speaking they
are the most longeval people in the area: it must be the salubrious
air!…
On the right of the promontory in the beautiful bay,
the water assumes the most fantastic colours of green and blue.
The same marvellous colours we find in the magnificent Grotto, the
entrance is hidden in a crevice in the rocks on the waters edge
in front of us….
The Emerald Grotto
The entrance maybe hidden but in a few seconds time
will stand still as colour takes on a new meaning…The Grotto
is a extraordinary temple, an embroidery of millenary lights, where
the sea reproduces the most sublime colours: cobalt blue that merges
into turquoise… turquoise becomes green… an emerald
green that wraps itself around everything…
The inside is like an oriental temple, filled with
columns, stalactites and bizarre shaped curtains, that popular fantasy
gives curious names and likeness. There are mermaids and fantastic
animals, famous people: e.g. Garibaldi on his horse, who becomes
George Washington for the Americans and Napoleon for the French….
In this enchanting cavern the typical elements of
an inland grotto exist side by side with those of a marine grotto.
This is because once the grotto was above sea level and the slow
dripping created stalactites and stalagmites of various dimensions;
later about 6000 years ago the higher temperature of the earth and
the phenomenon of slow subsidence caused the sea level to rise thus
submerging the coast, the Tyrrhene invaded part of the grotto giving
us the marvellous ambient we find today, it is created mainly by
an aperture towards the sea at about 4 metres under the sea level…
The Emerald Grotto was discovered in 1932 by a local
fisherman who was curious about two strange holes in the rock face:
he proudly wore the band that declared him “The
discoverer of the Emerald Grotto”, until his death…
Before leaving please do not miss an interesting feature,
the under water “crib scene”
made of pottery from Vietri, every year at Christmas a large group
of divers from all over Italy come to pay homage in a very moving
procession….
The ticket entry in the Grotto is 5 €
You can go to Esmerald Grotto:
By boat, from Amalfi bear, from 9.30 a.m. to 4.0 p.m., boat ticket
come and come back € 10
By private boat. Here We can stop the boat on bearth.
By car, at km 26.4 of 163 Railway, entry by steps or lift…
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