Amalfi Coast

Can you feel the warm sun on your skin and the gentle breeze from the bright blue sea? Can you smell the sweet scent of lemons hanging from green leafy trees? High above the sparkling water, my cliffs stand tall and proud, and my little towns cling to me like a beautiful, colorful necklace. I am a special place in the country of Italy, where the mountains dive right into the sea. People come from all over the world to see my beauty. I am the Amalfi Coast.

My story started a very, very long time ago. In the 1st century, some of the very first visitors, called the Romans, thought I was the perfect place for a vacation. They built beautiful holiday homes along my shores to relax and enjoy the sunshine. Many years passed, and one of my towns, also named Amalfi, grew very brave and important. Around the year 839 CE, it became a powerful seafaring republic. This means it was a strong city that ruled itself, and its sailors were famous for traveling all across the Mediterranean Sea on their ships. Later, around the 13th century, the clever people of Amalfi learned a wonderful secret: how to make special, thick paper by hand. It was a craft they became famous for, and some people here still make it today.

If you travel along my winding roads, you will see my famous towns, like Positano and Ravello. They look like a rainbow of houses tumbling down my steep cliffs toward the water. The houses are painted in lovely shades of pink, yellow, and white. Because my hills are so steep, the people who lived here had a brilliant idea. They carefully built flat steps into the hillsides, like a giant green staircase. These are called terraces, and they are perfect for growing groves of my famous lemons. In the 18th and 19th centuries, people who loved to paint pictures and write stories started to visit me. They fell in love with my sunny cliffs and colorful villages and shared my beauty with the world through their art and books.

I have a very special birthday to remember. On December 5th, 1997, I was given a very important title. I was named a UNESCO World Heritage site. That is a fancy way of saying that I am a treasure for the whole world to protect and enjoy. I was so proud. Today, I love it when visitors come to see me. They walk along my winding paths, taste my sweet lemons in yummy lemonade and treats, and watch the little boats bobbing in the bright blue sea. I am a happy, beautiful place that shows how people and nature can work together to create something truly wonderful that everyone can share.