Europe's unsurpassingly beautiful coastline is '...the only delectable part of Italy ,which the inhabitants there dwelling do call the coast of Malfie,full of town,gardens,springs and wealthy men.' Thus raves Boccaccio in his 14th-century Decameron,writing about the Costiera Amalfitana - the Amalfi Coast.Rugged,crugged and extending around the bay of Salerno from Positano on the west to Vietri sul Mare on the East,this is where the Amalfi Republic held sway on the middle Ages,when Amalfi was one of the richest towns in Italy.The coastal sections-steep,winding and ultrascenic-can only be traversed by boat or by two-lane roads.When driving round-trip,many choose to go only in ore directionon the coastal roads,going the other way via the highway or by train from Salerno,or by boat from Amalfi or Positano.The first town on the Amalfi Drive is,to many travelers,the best:Positano.People head for this most popular of Amalfi Coast destinations,which is set in a natural amphitheater,as though to a hit play.The show does not disappoint.
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