Salerno

Where you arrive by car or train, you are most likely going to pass through the town of Salerno. As a destination, it is not popular with foreign tourists. So that is good news. It is a good place to do some shopping at prices that are better than other areas of Italy, and, well who needs all those foreign tourists anyway.

If arriving by car, and you plan to stop in the town, make use of the large parking lot located by the sea. Once you get into the historic part of town places to park your vehicle are very few and far between.

They name Salernum was given to this town by the Romans who conquered the Etruscans there in 194 B.C.. The great castle of Salerno was built in the 5th century. In 1077 the Normans subjugated Salerno and put it under the rule of Roberto il Guiscardo.

Pictured here to the left is the Domo, the San Matteo cathedral, and it's cloister originate from the 11th century.

Due to the flourishing economy of this town, a school of medicine was erected and was one of the first and most important schools of this kind in the Middle Ages.

In November of 1980 a great earthquake shook the foundations of this town. Over 3,100 people were buried under the rubble during this earthquake. About 335,000 more were without shelter. Even today you can see the impact that this earthquake had. Especially on some of the streets in the historic part of town, there are many houses that are empty because people are afraid that they the roofs will cave in on them.