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Hints
And Tips
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My dear guest
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the
fascinating natural geography of the
Amalfi
Coast
and the easy-going lifestyle of the local, joyful people will ensure
that your stay here, no matter for how long, will be filled with
great memories.
As with all holidays, there are always things which you should watch
out for, and I would like to help you with some little hints which
will make your time here more enjoyable and hitch free.
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Arriving by car
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Assuming
that you are driving and arriving from North, in
Napoli
you take the ring to the South and enter the highway A3
Napoli-Pompei-Salerno. Drive carefully on the A3 since there are
lots of heavy reconstructions in progress.
A few
kilometres before arriving to
Salerno
exit the A3 at Vietri sul Mare.
Some hundred
meters after the highway exit you will find a small parking place on
the right. This is a good place where to stop and take a first
glimpse of the sea and the coast. From here I suggest that you call
my office (+39 328 6645896 or
+39 089 855050 to
arrange for your arrival. If you arrive at Vietri too early you
could take the opportunity to visit the town of
Vietri
which is famous for its many pottery ‘ceramiche’ shops.
From Vietri sul Mare take the
Amalfi
Coast
road ( SS163 ). Erchie is some six kilometres in the direction of
Amalfi just after the little town of
Cetara
. The
Amalfi
Coast
road is narrow and just a sequence of narrows turns. Drive
carefully and be aware of motorcyclists going your opposite
direction ... they tend to cut the turns.
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If you do not bring a car
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Arriving at
Napoli
Capodichino airport
You have
three options: (1) rent
a car and follow the instructions above; (2) arrange for me to pick
you up at the airport; this would cost an extra charge; (3) take
either a bus or the train to reach Salerno and from there take the
bus to Erchie (see following instructions)
Arriving at
Salerno
train station
There are good connections from
Salerno
train station to Erchie. Busses leave every half hour in front of
the train station. You should look for 'SITA' busses heading to
'AMALFI'. Erchie is along the way after half an hour drive. Tickets
can be bought at the station news stand. While waiting for the bus I
suggest that you call me (+39 328 6645896 or +39 089 855050 ) to arrange for your arrival.
Also in this case you have the option to have me pick you up at the
train station.
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Moving around on the coast
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Even if you will be enjoying a
peaceful stay in Erchie, I think that you will want to take some
short expeditions along the coast. I suggest that you take the
opportunity to visit at least a few of the nearby celebrated places
like Amalfi, Ravello, Positano, Capri,
Pompeii
,
Paestum
.
 For your benefit I’m going to
say something about the coastal road.
The
Amalfi
Coast
is blessed with a unique geographical scenery. Along the coast you
will see rock outcrops and deep ravines interspersed here and there
with mountainous towers of rock and natural cavernous amphitheatres.
The road along these majestic cliffs is carved into the rock and in
places is very narrow and quite high above the sea. It remains
substantially as it was constructed in the first half of the
1800’s by King Ferdinando di Borbone, when horse and cart were the
main mode of transportation.
Obviously, driving along this
narrow winding road requires some concentration and extra
carefulness.
Between these mountainous
outcrops and steep ravines lies villages and houses, attached like
limpets to the side of hills between terraces of lemon groves and
lines of olive trees. The houses are located above and below the
road and because of the narrowness of the roads there is very little
car parking available … and if you find any you will discover that
they are very expensive ( for example, 3 euro per hour in Amalfi).
It is for these reasons that I
suggest that you use public transportations to move around on the
Amalfi
Coast
. While in Erchie is very convenient to use SITA busses. There are
connections every half hour to Amalfi, Positano, Ravello to one
direction and to Vietri,
Salerno
to the other. Tickets can be bought at the grocery store in Erchie.
From the
harbour
of
Amalfi
, ferries, hydrofoils, and mini-cruises leave night and day to
places along the coast, the islands of Capri and Ischia, Positano,
Salerno
,
Sorrento
, and
Naples
.
A peculiar feature of the coastal
towns is that the streets are mainly a sequence of steps carved into
the rock face. These steps on the walkways are often old and
precarious, built variously of concrete or stone. So if you want to
explore the ancient town-streets I suggest you take care with your
choice of shoes. Also consider suitable clothes (covered shoulders
and knees) for visiting churches.
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A suggested one day excursion along the coast
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I would suggest
this one day expedition along the coast only if the weather
is good and the sea is unruffled.
- from Erchie take the
bus to Amalfi. Short
visit to the town
- from the Amalfi
harbour take the boat to visit ‘Grotta della Smeraldo’. The
grotto is famous for its emerald green coloured water but the
short trip on the boat itself is delightful for the great
scenery that you will discover
along the coast
- back to Amalfi by the
same boat
- from Amalfi take the
bus to Positano. Visit to the town and its many fashion shops
- from Positano pier
take the boat to
Salerno
. You will be amazed by the great vistas that you will encounter
along the coast
- from
Salerno
take the bus back to Erchie
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Climate
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You have chosen to visit a
Mediterranean country such as the south of
Italy
, where the climate is mild and pleasant. In summer, the temperature
ranges between the middle twenties degree centigrade and upwards,
and the gentle seaside breeze which reaches the balcony of the house
is normally enough to cool you. There may be however situations
where the temperature or air humidity becomes too high and this is
why some of the apartments are equipped with air conditioning.
It is not
possible to determine the expected electricity consumption when air
conditioning is used since air condition settings is depended on the
individual guest room temperature preferences. To allow you to set
air conditioning as you like, and, at the same time, to avoid
exceeding costs being charged to me, air conditioning use will be
charged to you according to the formula:
[(Meter reading at Departure – Meter
reading at Arrival)*0,20] – (5 * Number of weeks)
0,20 being
the cost in euro of 1 kWh and 5 the standard weekly consumption in
euro which is already included in the rental price.
In
winter the weather can be changeable with average daytime
temperatures in the middle teens. The mild climates encourage the
local citrus groves to provide good harvests and the local maritime
flora to flourish in luxuriant
greenery. Exceptionally there may be some winter weeks when the
temperature reaches below ten degree centigrade toward zero. For
this reason the house is equipped with a central heating system. In
January, February and, exceptionally, in March you may want to use
the heating system. The additional cost for gas consumption is 45
euro per week.
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Going to the beach
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For
six months a year the heart of the village is the main beach. Many
exclusive beaches and coves where to bathe, dive or take the sun,
are hidden along the coast and can be reached only by boat.
On
the beach, in summer time, you can rent a sun shade (ombrellone) and
beach chairs, eat in one of the three restaurants or relax over a
drink on the beach verandas. In high season the main beach may
become quite crowded. In this case you can rent a small boat ( pedalò
) to reach the nearby more exclusive harbours.
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Only in summer: UFC (Unwanted Flying Creatures)
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It is as a result of the verdant
vegetation and the summer heat that, mostly in July and August, you
may find mosquitoes ready to make a meal of you especially at night
while you are sleeping. I recommend that you bring mosquito
repellent with you. Please consider both skin and environment
repellent. Should you require it, the local pharmacies can assist
with remedies. Alternatively you could keep closed the mosquito nets
installed on the windows of some of my apartment.
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Crazy Water, Sweet Lemons
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Food is next to godliness on the
Amalfi
Coast
. I suggest that you try the local dishes in Amalfi where first you
take a walk along the harbour streets to look for a good fish
restaurant. Also, nearby in Cetara, there some very good fish
restaurants. Don’t hesitate to speak to locals to get advise. Even
if they do not speak English, they will be happy to make themselves
understood by way of gestures. Some local specialties that I would
suggest are: ‘scialatielli alle vongole’ (homemade local past
with clams), ‘totani con patate’ (local squid with potatoes),
‘pezzogna all’acqua pazza’ (local fish poached in ‘crazy
water’, actually, seawater spiked with garlic, tomatoes and
various herbs). The
Amalfi
Coast
is famous for its lemons, and this is reflected in a number of local
specialties such as delectable desserts, like la ‘delizia al
limone’, and a delightful digestive, like il ‘limoncello’.
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