Is this Heaven? No it’s Iowa Praiano, Italy!
After 4 days jam packed with sight seeing and touring ancient ruins in Rome, Ben and I hopped a bullet train, a local train, then a bus to Praiano, on the dream-like Amalfi coast in southwest Italy.
Once an ancient fishing village, Praiano, located between Positano and Amalfi, is home to under 1,000 residents and a handful of quaint hotels.
The phrase of this leg of our vacation was – “no seriously – people actually live here!”
It blew our mind that this is normal. This is a normal, every day sight for the people that live on the Amalfi Coast. I can’t imagine growing up with this kind of natural, breathtaking beauty in my backyard.
The houses and villages in this area are literally perched and built into the cliffs of the coast.
Aka – you CLIMB to get home!
And climb we did!
Every morning, after breakfast, we’d set out on a hike. We’d either climb down the main hill to town from our hotel, and begin wandering that way,
(making sure to stay VERY CLOSE to edge of the road, as they’re literally only wide enough for a 1 bus and 1 moped, as evidenced by Ben getting scraped by a bus as it tried to squeeze through a tiny street next to a car and us!)
or we’d head straight to any of the half dozen staircases right outside our hotel, start to ascend and explore!
The scenery in the hills will take your breath away. The seemingly ancient stone cliffs, walls and staircases that the town residents use to get home are covered with beautiful flowers and vines.
Every new turn lead to a new discovery.
Whether it be a beautiful rose bush growing out of the planters that are built into the rock,
a quick peak at the beautiful sea down below,
or an entrance adorned with the Virgin Mary.
Beautiful!
Homes are named by their owners (Villa IGE has a nice ring to it, don’t you think?!) and are located right off the staircases and paths.
We never got sick of smelling the luscious scent of meals being prepared, wafting through open windows as we passed by. The house in this picture was cooking up sausage and peppers when we walked by at 10am. The scent was unmistakable and were this close to knocking on the door and asking to stay for lunch!!!!
One of the most interesting things we found in Rome was the abundance of free flowing public water fountains, cascading clean drinking water (water in Italy is high in calcium, btw!) at all hours of the day and night. We were so tickled to find the pattern continue in the hills of Praiano. How cool, right?!
During our hikes we ran into friends like this tiny, grey kitten.
Who found us mighty interesting and followed up for a good ways.
OMG CAN I TAKE IT HOME?!
But we never got sick of climbing and exploring. Well, ok, once we were racing up the biggest staircase possibly in the entire town trying to get to a local pizza place before it closed for the afternoon (I know) and I literally thought I was going to die. I was ready for a break after that!
The COOLEST thing, though, about the villas in the hills, was the orchards and gardens that nearly everyone grows in their backyards!
There were grape vines hovering over pumpkin patches, spilling over the tops of stone walls.
Ok, I’ll admit…
I picked one. I KNOW!!! I held off all week because I KNOW these are on people’s private property, but I couldn’t resist – it was so hard!!! Best grape I ever had.
Pumpkins are a local specialty here,
and of course the tomato vines were off the charts.
Many homes had sweet, juicy tomatoes bunched and drying in the sun. Can you imagine what those must taste like?
The crops that were in most abundance were lemon trees,
pomegranate trees,
olive trees (literally, olives just littered the ground throughout the entire town!)
and banana trees! Fig trees were EVERYWHERE too, and we also delighted in seeing cactus fruit, oranges, limes, eggplant, zucchini and peaches!
When we weren’t hiking in the hills of town, we were at the beach!
The water in this part of the Mediterranean is crystal clear and perfectly turquoise.
!!!
There was a main beach in town that was tucked between three sheer cliff faces.
So cool, right?!
This day, during particularly rough seas, a small boat had sunk and a group of locals were pulling it to shore.
Success!
Of course it wasn’t all hiking and exploring. We sipped our cappuccinos every afternoon and drank our wine on the terrace at night.
We sat in the piazzas and listened to the sounds of the town. The children laughing, the church choir singing and the sounds of the waves down below.
And we swam. 
Infinity pool into the Mediterranean, anyone?!
If you’ve ever thought about taking a trip to the coast of Southern Italy – DO IT. Start saving $20 a week and go in a couple years. You will never forget the experience and perspective it gives you on your own life. Do we NEED Costcos, Super Targets & giant shopping malls? Would life be simpler without them? Maybe yes, maybe no – but it’s still neat to see how other people live their lives in simplicity.
I’d also encourage you to stay in a smaller town like Praiano. Neighboring Positano and Amalfi are bigger, but are largely tourist towns. We took a day trip to Positano and were weak with relief when we got back “home” to Praiano – away from the crush of high prices and tourist traps! Don’t get me wrong – both are absolutely beautiful, but I think Praiano gave us a real taste of what life is like in a small, coastal town in the Mediterranean!
Be back tonight with highlights from Roma! Ciao!
Other Italy Recaps:
Vlogs, updates and posts from Italy
When In Italy: Eat, Drink & Have Gelato!
It’s nice to see that you and your husband took some time to RELAX and really savor this travel experience. I have gone on trips where I just rushed, rushed, rushed the whole time to get from one place to another, trying to see as much as possible in a short amount of time. That is a mistake, for sure! Not gonna lie, I am jealous of your trip!! That place looks GORGEOUS!!!!!
SO BEAUTIFUL! The beaches, the old stone alleyways, the fruit trees, the buildings..GAH!
Kristin: I found your blog from Tony’s Cafe di Scala post on Facebook.
Four of us are heading Italy at the end of November and beginning of December. We’re definitely heading to the Amalfi Coast, so wondered if I could pick your brain about where you stayed, etc.
If you have a minute, email me.
Thanks in advance. Looks like an amazing trip. We’re more pumped now, after looking at your pictures.
Amazing recap.. thank you for sharing with us!! Can’t wait to get there one day.. =)
This reminds me of my trip to Cinque Terre in April. It was so beautiful and I have such great memories from my travels abroad! Thank you for sharing your adventures
Thank you so much for sharing these photos of your vacation! This is my dream vacation! I can’t wait to go!
Hi Kristin! My daughter has been following your blog for some time now, especially the recipes, and she sent me to look at your travel photos of Praiano. I just wanted to let you know that they are GORGEOUS and I think now we absolutely must include Praiano into our trip to Italy that we are planning. I write a blog about a town called Stresa, waaay up in northern Italy near Switzerland. Next time, I hope you’ll travel up that way! Your blog is truly wonderful, thank you for inspiring us in so many ways!
Dana
[...] risotto stuffed with meat and cheese then fried to a golden crisp that Ben and I fell madly in love overseas? Here! In casserole form! And it’s not even that bad for [...]
Question? What was the name of your hotel in Praiano? Thanks!!
It was Hotel Margherita. Family run, amazing food, wonderful location, unrivaled views and just the right price! http://www.hotelmargherita.info/
I myself stayed at the hotel Marguerita. It is a wonderful hotel. Food to die for! Casa di sogni, magicii, segreti. Priaiano is a magical and very scenic town!
[...] and I dreamt of our own retirement while watching zillions of House Hunters International episodes last night, and all day today [...]
[...] unmistakable scent always reminds me of Ben’s and my trip to the tiny, seaside town of Atrani, Italy too, where lemon trees were so abundant the fruit seemed to fall out of the sky. I love that one [...]
[...] 6. Are you the saver and bill-payer in your house or is your husband on board, too? I run the finances as far as paying bills, etc., but Ben and I have the same views on saving for our future, as we’d both like to retire young and move to the Amalfi Coast. [...]
[...] sort of feel like I’m cheating on Praiano by wanting to go to Santorini, but I’ve always wanted to go, and cough I was really jealous [...]
[...] Church in the Grecian Cyclades Islands. There was a church that looked almost exactly like this in Praiano on the Amalfi Coast that I just adored. I love the nearly 360 degree view here [...]
[...] my lungs have not burned this bad since racing up an ancient stone staircase in Praiano in .5, to get to the local pizza joint before they closed. [...]
[...] going to go Hotel Margherita in Praiano, Italy. Magnificent views, location, and people – not to mention a private patio for each room with [...]
[...] like the movie Under the Tuscan Sun inspired me to travel to the Amalfi Coast, Mama Mia had me dying to visit the impossibly picturesque islands of Greece, where the movie was [...]
Hey! I just found your blog on Glamour for the BBQ chicken quesadilla. I also live in Iowa and am visiting the Amalfi coast next week. Glad I stumbbled upon your blog!
[...] beautiful, hand painted plate we picked out in Praiano’s famous pottery shop reminds me of our trip of a lifetime to Italy, while a giant spoon and fork [...]
[...] picture – it looks nearly identical to the tiny town market Ben and I went to everyday on our Amalfi Coast vacation, straight down to the gorgeous fresh fruit display out [...]
[...] officially changed my future retirement home location from Praiano to the Lake of the [...]
Some of these pics remind of my favorite movie “Under the Tuscan Sun”. It looks like you had a wonderful vacation.
It’s my dream to someday visit Italy. And these pics make me want to go even more.
Your blog is awesome.