Punto Campanella and Paestum in one day
Saturday, 7 May 2011
Sea coasts host many a land’s end. This is the one at the west end of the Sorrentine Peninsula. Its name is usually given as Punto di Campanella, or a version thereof. The latest construction there I think dates to WWII, and the guidebooks say ruins go back to Roman times. From the landward side, this is an obvious spot to keep track of passing vessels. From the water, however, this is a difficult spot to access.
Oh, and that looming chunk of rock on the horizon? That’s Capri. (Where’s the hem on your slacks?)
That hike occupied our morning after we tore ourselves away from the fine table our B&B set. Mid-day we drove south to Paestum, a long-occupied city that today has some Greek ruins (temples/civic-ceremonial architecture) set amidst mostly Roman residential streets and housing complexes. Here’s a photo of the two largest standing stone buildings, within, I think, a walled precinct. I wonder how much time the hoi palloi spent near them.