We plan on touring both land and sea, taking a motor launch and checking out the towering cliffs along the shore. The destination would be Amalfi's main square and its century cathedral. The site has ancient origins, with the cathedral being totally rebuilt in the 13th century and embellished throughout the centuries. The doors were cast in Constantinople in 1066, and you can see Gothic arches and Moorish influences in the architecture as well:
Complicated, grand, delicate, and dominating, the 9th-century Amalfi cathedral has been remodeled over the years with Romanesque, Byzantine, Gothic, and Baroque elements, but retains a predominantly Arab-Norman style. Cross and crescent seem to be wed here: the campanile looks like a minaret wearing a Scheherazadian turban, the facade conjures up a striped burnoose, and its Paradise Cloister is an Arab-Sicilian spectacular.
http://www.amalficoastitaly.eu/duomo_san_andrea.htm
Amalfi is situated at the mouth of a deep gorge along the coast, and it's not hard to imagine how it built a reputation as a major shipping port in the Middle Ages. But in 1343 a disastrous earthquake caused a large part of the city to slide right into the sea. Prior to the earthquake, about 70,000 people lived here. Nowadays, the population is 6,000 - not counting the tourists traipsing through.
sources:
- http://www.flickr.com/photos/ciskatobing/2536543570/
- http://www.amalfiscoast.com/inglese/discover/wonder/cathedral.htm
- http://www.amalficoastweb.com/amalfi/english/cathedral.html
- http://www.360amalfi.net/?area=Amalfi
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