Sorrento lift

Let the lift from the port do the hard work for you

The long, tiring climb uphill from the port or beach is a thing of the past for Sorrento visitors and residents.

Sign for the lift in
 Villa Communale

Two lifts now connect the centre of town with Marina Piccola and the nearby beaches.

Travellers returning from a day trip to Capri, Ischia or Naples can be whisked up from the port to Piazza Gargiulo in the Villa Communale in 20 seconds.
From there it is just a few minutes walk to Piazza Tasso and the shops, bars, restaurants and hotels in the centre of the resort.
A single trip costs 1 euro but you can also buy a return ticket for 1.80. Between May and September the lift runs from 7.30 in the morning till midnight. For more information visit www.sorrentolift.it.

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Death in the High City

Brand new detective story set in Italy

A new crime novel with an Italian setting has just been published on Amazon.

The novel is the first in a series featuring detective duo Kate Butler, a freelance journalist, and Steve Bartorelli, a retired Detective Chief Inspector who is of Italian descent. His father’s family are from a village just outside Sorrento.

Believed to be the first British crime novel to put the spotlight on Bergamo in Lombardia, Death in the High City centres on the investigation into the death of an English woman who was writing a biography of the composer Gaetano Donizetti.

Of interest to anyone who enjoys the cosy crime fiction genre or likes detective novels with an Italian setting, the book is currently available as a Kindle edition, but can also be read on smartphones, tablets and computers using Amazon’s free Kindle app.

The dead woman had been living in an apartment in Bergamo’s Città Alta and much of the action takes place within the walls of the high city. The local police do not believe there is enough evidence to open a murder inquiry so Kate Butler, who is the victim’s cousin, arrives on the scene to try to get some answers about her cousin’s death.

Kate visits many of the places in Bergamo with Donizetti connections and her enquiries even take her out to the beautiful Lago d’Iseo. But after her own life is threatened and there has been another death in the Città Alta, her lover, Steve Bartorelli, joins her to help her unravel the mystery and trap the killer. The reader is able to go along for the ride and enjoy the wonderful architecture and scenery of Bergamo and the surrounding area while savouring the many descriptions in the novel of the local food and wine.

Death in the High City by Val Culley was published in May, 2014 and is now available on Amazon.

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Take home a decorative souvenir of Sorrento

If you would like a beautiful memento of your holiday in Sorrento, why not treat yourself to an article made from inlaid wood.

Intarsia, the craft of inlaying a decorative, design in wood, is an ancient Sorrentine tradition. You will see wonderful old examples of this type of marquetry work illustrating religious subjects inside Sorrento’s Duomo in Corso Italia.

If you wander along Via San Cesareo, the ancient street that runs parallel with the Corso, you will see shops selling pictures, boxes and small tables decorated with inlaid wood that have been hand-made by artisans in Sorrento.

A shop specialising in objects made from inlaid wood.

Turn down one of the side streets that go off Via San Cesareo at right angles and you will see the artisans at work creating these items in full view through the open doors of their workshops.

In nearby Via San Nicola you can visit il Museobottega della Tarsialignea and see precious early examples of the craft and pieces of furniture and pictures from the 18th and 19th centuries, when these items were sought after by the rich and famous people who visited Sorrento on the Grand Tour.

The museum is housed in an 18th century palace, where courses and events for people wishing to learn the craft take place. The palace also has an exhibition of paintings, prints and photographs by artists from Sorrento and abroad depicting the coastline and scenery around the resort over the centuries.

The museum is open Monday to Saturday from 9.30 to 13.00 and 16.00 to 20.00 between April and October. It closes an hour earlier during the winter.

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Chiesa del Carmine Sorrento

See the art treasures in historic church just off Piazza Tasso

 

A stunning sight in the centre of Sorrento is the ornate façade of the Chiesa del Carmine in Corso Italia.

The yellow-painted church with its white decorative features looks beautiful against the blue sky when viewed from Piazza Tasso.

Chiesa del Carmine in Corso Italia in Sorrento

Chiesa del Carmine is on the left hand side at the beginning of Corso Italia going in the direction of Sant’Agnello.

It is believed the church was originally built near the spot where a group of Sorrentine Christians were martyred in Roman times.

The present building, which has an attached bell tower, was constructed on the site of an earlier church at the end of the 15th century.

It was based on a simple design with a single nave but contains some fascinating art treasures.

The church has a painting of Mary the Madonna holding the baby Jesus, believed to date from the 16th century, depicting her as dark-skinned in the style of the Vergine Bruno di Napoli, a painting of a dark-skinned Virgin Mary in Naples.

There is a large ceiling painting by Onofrio Avellino depicting the Virgin Mary with Saint Simon and angels, believed to have been completed in 1710.

Along with other 16th and 17th century paintings, Chiesa del Carmine is also home to two gilded, wooden containers of saints’ relics and bones which are believed to date back to the 16th century.

Villa Fiorentino a hub for culture in Sorrento

 

In the centre of Sorrento, just off Corso Italia, Villa Fiorentino provides an elegant setting for cultural events and exhibitions.

The villa was chosen as a residence by the Fiorentino family and completely refurbished in American style in the 1930s.

Villa Fiorentino set back from busy Corso Italia

During the war it became a refuge for famous people, including the tenor Benamino Gigli, who sang O Sole Mio and Torna a Surriento there in honour of Signora Fiorentino.

On the death of the lady of the house, the villa with its beautiful gardens, was bequeathed to the city of Sorrento and has now become the headquarters of Fondazione Sorrento, an organisation dedicated to raising awareness of the area’s rich heritage of art and culture.

Visitors to Sorrento will have the chance to take a look at the interior of Villa Fiorentino, at Corso Italia 53, during an exhibition of the works of Mario Sironi, the Italian painter and illustrator, between 21 February and 20 April, 2014 .

The exhibition will be open daily from 10.00 -13.00 and 16.00 to 20.00, staying open until 21.00 on Saturdays and Sundays.

For more information visit www.fondazionesorrento.com.

Spaghetti alla Nerano

Serve up memories of Sorrento with this authentic pasta dish

Spaghetti with zucchini (courgettes) or Spaghetti alla Nerano is a dish that was born on the Sorrentine Peninsula and tastes best when eaten while looking at the stunning sea views.

Spaghetti alla Nerano cooked to perfection!

But this delicious pasta dish is very simple to make and will conjure up wonderful memories of the bay of Naples and the holiday you enjoyed there, wherever in the world you serve it up.

It is believed to be the invention of a lady called Maria Grazia, the proprietor of Ristorante Maria Grazia down at Marina del Cantone which overlooks the beach below Nerano just a few kilometres south of Sorrento out along the peninsula.

The only ingredient you might find difficult to get when you are away from Italy is provolone or caciocavallo cheese, but you can always double the amount of parmesan that you use instead.

For centuries there was a restaurant on the beach at Marina del Cantone providing meals for the local fishermen.

Ristorante Maria Grazia started up in 1901 and the owners claim to have invented Spaghetti alla Nerano at the beginning of the 1950s.

But you will now find this dish on the menus of the other restaurants at Marina del Cantone and at restaurants in the resort of Sorrento itself.

For four people you will need:

400 gr spaghetti

700 gr zucchini (about four whole zucchini)

extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves of garlic

sea salt

black pepper

100 gr provolone or caciocavallo cheese cut into cubes

100 gr grated parmesan

fresh basil

Cut the zucchini into thin slices and fry in hot oil. Take off heat before they start to burn. Blot dry on kitchen paper, then plunge into boiling water for a few seconds and then drain.

Cook the spaghetti until al dente

Brown the garlic in olive oil in a frying pan. Remove the garlic, add more oil and some sea salt and then add the drained zucchini. Add the spaghetti with a ladle full of the water it was cooked in. Add the cheese and black pepper, mix well and serve topped with leaves of fresh basil. Buon appetito!

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Visit il Duomo - the elegant cathedral in the heart of Sorrento

Entrance to il Duomo from Corso Italia

The main church in Sorrento is il Duomo, also known as the Cathedral of San Filippo and San Giacomo, which is right in the centre of town in Corso Italia.

Il Duomo dates as far back as the 11th century but was completely rebuilt in the 15th century in Romanesque style.

It is well worth going to have a look at the magnificent interior, which has three naves separated by pillars and an ornate ceiling.

Il Duomo houses some rare 14th century bas-reliefs, paintings by artists of the 17th century Neapolitan school and a fine 16th century archbishop’s throne in marble.

The choir in the apse provides some wonderful examples of the decorative inlaid woodwork, intarsia, that is a Sorrentine artisan tradition, being used to illustrate religious subjects.

Next to the cathedral is a bell tower resting on an arch with four columns, which dates back to medieval times, and an elegant Bishop’s palace.

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