The Path of the Gods

Since I had never traveled out of the country before going to Italy, I was greatly looking forward to the differences I would see and the new perspectives I would gain. Now that I am in Paris after a month in Europe, getting ready to leave on a flight back home tomorrow, I feel that it is appropriate to discuss the part of the trip that impacted me the most. To be honest, I had originally planned going on this trip as a sort of vacation and celebration of my last year in college and probably education in general. However, what I did not plan on was learning as much as I did. Every town and region we visited had something uniquely applicable and tangible to teach me whether it be the economics of sheep farming near the Cinque Terra or the intricacies of orange growing in Sicily. Our guide or “center of the world” Allesio was an incredibly valuable resource to me. Through him I learned about and saw places I would have never dreamed of going to as a tourist of the country.

View of the Island of Capri from the Path of the Gods

Looking back on this past month, one place we visited stands on a level multiplicatively higher than any other experience for me, and that place was called the Path of the Gods. The Path of the Gods is a walking trail between the towns of Agerola, Praiano and Positano along the Amalfi Coast. We started our journey in Agerola by walking down a small side street and suddenly we were on the trail. There were no large signs or entrances signifying the start of the path. Looking back, I am still blown away at how a place as beautiful as this is not advertised heavily. The panoramas of the landscape, waters, and Island of Capri were easily the most stunning views I have ever witnessed in my life. There are no words to describe the sense of awe I had during the three hour hike. The Path of the Gods is a name that simply could not have been chosen more precisely. The weather was as perfect as could be during the winter in Italy and we soaked up every ounce of Sun we could. There were some local wine growers who waved and greeted with shouts of “buongiòrno” as we passed their homes, but those are literally the only other people we saw on the trail. I couldn’t believe that no one was there after just coming from Rome where there were tourists everywhere, especially since this place struck me ten times harder than any place in Rome could. The three hours spent walking the trail will forever be immortalized in my mind as one of the most special experiences in my life.

The village of Positano along the Amalfi Coast

I know the effect the Path of the Gods had on me would not be typical of everyone who visits it, but I feel that is what makes Italy so special. Sure, there are the areas such as Rome, Naples, Venice and Florence that really pump the economy of tourism in the nation, but I feel that the real gems in Italy are those you have to venture a bit off the beaten path to discover. Of course, this can also lead to problems such as the town of Noto and many others in Sicily that are not getting the money they need from tourism to maintain their cultural heritage sites. This is where the theme of our course, investigating environmental and economic change in Italy, really comes into play. How do those in charge of maintaining the economy in Italy spread the tourists out enough to ensure the small areas that really need it are discovered and acknowledged? What should be preserved and what should be left to fade away with limited resources? How should new technologies be integrated into ancient sites without contaminating the history? These are all questions that we have had the privilege to discuss at length with experts and students alike over the past month in this course, and I look forward to seeing how the economy of a place so ancient adapts and changes over the coming years in a world that gets faster by the day.

-Tyler Larson