Piccolo Paradiso

The coastline here is dotted with free-form towns nestled in the sides of hills. I love the little stacked villas facing the beaches, the clusters of buildings hanging over seaside cliffs, and the winding streets that zig zag from the tops of mountains all of the way down to emerald waters. The little towns here are so organic - it's like they've sprouted up from the soil. And speaking of the soil, I learned today that it's rich with ash from Mt. Vesuvius, which makes for some pretty luscious vegetation. The Italians here grow lemon trees, tomatoes, fennel, et cetera, under their grapevines, and all of those flavors find their way into the local wines. The cows munch on wild fennel and arugula which is what makes the mozzarella here so inimitable.






The colors here are great too - washed out pink and peach pastel homes, with the occasional saffron or rust-tones building, fuchsia bougainvillea, and of course the sea in its many shades and ranges of blue and green.