This year my family and I ventured overseas to the gorgeous Amalfi Coast of Italy for a 2 week escape. With all of the travel involved in getting here, we decided to visit a small region and get to know what we could. My husband and I spent the first week at a b&b in Sorrento touring the historic district. Next, we met up with the rest of my family in Praiano, a small town next to Positano, where we rented a villa and really settled in. While on the trip, I turned 30 years old and it was incredible to celebrate with my family at such an amazing location!

Next comes to food. About 70% of what I cook at home is italian so what I was most excited about was the food. I probably ate about 5 pounds of proscuitto on the trip and tried out several amazing cheeses, anchovies (they really are better there), fruits (figs=yum), handmade pastas, grilled boar, suckling pig (my husband’s favorite), and pizza of course. We did cook a few meals and visited the local mallaceria (butcher shop) to purchase the biggest beef roast I have ever seen. My husband marinated and grilled the beef using grapes, grape leaves, rosemary, and lemon, all found growing around our villa. I decided to show off my italian pasta making skills and made some gnocchi to go along with it. 🙂

The locals were amazing and happy to serve the tourism industry which keeps this area strong for about 6 months of the year. I asked several italians if I could photograph them and each had a unique pose for the camera. Enough talk…I can probably describe the trip best by showing you what I saw: