Your journey starts from the rich and historical building Mezzacapo, which now houses art exhibitions …. to explore the agricultural life of the community with stunning views and short hiking trails.
Take street “Casale de Cicerali”, cross the busy road “Via Nuova Chiunzi”, the steps will take you to an open altar with a wooden crucifix.
Continue up to the right and soon you will see a small Chapel dedicated to “Our Lady of sorrows”, where St. Alfonso de’ Liguori. preached
On the wall to the left, you will see a plaque dedicated to a Jewish community that lived in this area in the Middle Ages. On the way up, you will enjoy breathtaking views, a quite and peaceful atmosphere, the pretty houses of local people and a 5 star hotel, the luxurious Botanico San Lazzaro, surrounded by green vegetation.
If you are lucky, you will come across the “ flying farmers”, carrying baskets of lemons up and down the steps. This was once women’s work, carrying the heavy baskets on little padded cushions on their heads, singing traditional folk songs.
You will be overcome by the perfume of the lemon trees on the terraces surrounding the town. Lemons are part of the gastronomic excellence of Maiori. Indeed, lemon cultivation has changed the very landscape, by the creation of terraces, which the local people refer to as gardens.
The terraces were built with the brute physical force of man, and here man meets nature. This is the striking thing about the community, more than the glittering sea, more than the majolica church cupola, the love of man for his earth, men worked this difficult terrain into a land that could feed the community, just like a sculptor does with stone or marble to produce a work of art.
The effort of climbing all those steps will have its reward in the incredible views over Maiori, the houses, monasteries and churches.
The tour ends on the eastern side of Maiori, on the main coastal road SS163, near another symbol of the town of Maiori, the “Corner Tower” or Ant’s Nest Tower, known today with the misnomer of “Norman Tower”, a watch tower dating to the XVI century.