RAVELLO



Ravello, the Gateway to the East, with its alleys, stairways and roofed passages clings to the steep slopes of Dragon Hill. The village is suspended above the sea. The panoramic road coming from Amalfi and Atrani climbs in hairpin bends up the narrow Dragon Valley (Valle del Dragone), planted with vines, fruit trees and olives. It affords several bird's-eye views of Atrani, the coast and the sea. The white walls and russet tiled roofs of monasteries, chapels and dwelling houses are scattered over the slopes. Not to miss,a visit to Villa Rufolo, built in the 11C by the rich Rufolo family of Ravello, and the residence of several popes, of Charles of Anjou; and more recently, of the German composer Wagner, where he completed his masterpiece Parsifal. The 11 and 12C architecture and the gardens make a picture of truly Oriental beauty in which sunlight shimmers, tearoses bloom and fountains play. From the main square Piazza Vescovado the path leading to Villa Cimbrone will please the stroller. There are views of the Dragon Valley and the Monasteries of Sant'Antonio (Gothic porch and small Romanesque cloisters) and Santa Chiara. At the garden entrance of Villa Cimbrone, walk along paths with box and cypress borders to the belvedere, from where there is an immense panorama of the Gulf of Salerno as far as Paestum.

     
         
 

Beautiful gardens with views across the mountains and the Coast below, surround this home of the powerful medieval family of that name. It is a magnificent building; its Moorish cloisters beckoning from an avenue shaded by ancient trees. The extensive gardens of exotic plants and brilliantly coloured flowers frame vistas of the water far below. Here, each Spring a Wagnerian festival is held at sunset; there, suspended high above the cerulean sea and the coastline, the composer is commemorated, and so too is the inspiration he derived from his love of Ravello.

The charms of Ravello also captivated an Englishman, Lord Grimthorpe, who built the Villa Cimbrone early this century with the help of his valet, Nicola Mansi, a native of Ravello. Together they transformed an ancient villa, enriching it with antiques, paintings and relics collected from all over Italy. Today the gardens of Cibrone are a Mediterranean sanctuary. Tall cypresses reach heavenward, the fragrance of massed roses fills the air; pathways lead us to statues of Roman gods. Along the "Avenue of Immensity" huge pink oleanders line the way to the Belvedere posed on the cliff's edge. From this little building you can pause to take in the unforgettable views from here across the "Infinite Terrace" to the sea and sky beyond.