Have I mentioned how much I love my job?

The joy of returning to so many gorgeous places in Italy, discovering new secret gems and then the excitement of sharing everything with my travellers is the best job in the world. How I’ve loved changing my life over the years, only to find another passion 17 years ago that came from nowhere.

Italy is a country made up of thousands of small villages and towns. Tuscany alone has 273 towns across its 10 provinces, but they encompass smaller historic hamlets and villages taking the total number to well over 1,000.

Tucked into the north-east corner of the region of Lazio (capital Rome) is tiny Civita di Bagnoregio with a permanent population of around 15 people. In a beautiful shop owned and run by brother and sister Daniella and Andrea, I buy amazing hand and body lotion made from flowers in a secret garden!

Take a 20 minute walk through a labyrinth of tight, steep alleyways above Amalfi and you arrive in Atrani that is officially the smallest town in Italy by area, spanning just 0.12 square kilometres. It is wedged in a ravine on the sea and a favourite place for aperitivo. So close, yet so far from thousands of tourists in Amalfi.

Italy is a small country, yet there are endless places to discover. Here are three irresistible, less known, less visited villages that are quite special.

Many years ago, on a whim, I took a ferry ride to the enchanting seaside fishing village of Camogli. By train, it is only a five minute one stop journey from Santa Margherita in the region of Liguria.

Its famous close neighbours of Portofino and the Cinque Terre tend to put Camogli in the shadows, but the cluster of bright houses painted in Liguria’s classic colour palette and the harbour filled with fishing boats are photographic heaven. It is a place to linger and capture the beauty whilst eating Trenette con le Acciughe, Camogli’s signature dish combining pasta with fresh local anchovies, garlic, olive oil, white wine, cherry tomatoes and toasted pine nuts. So good.

Hard to imagine, but this town of less than 5,000 people was once known as the “City of 1,000 white sailing ships”. In the 19th century, the city was one of the greatest powers of the merchant navy of the peninsula. In fact, in 1856 Camogli owned a fleet of 700 ships compared to Hamburg’s 560 vessels, a city that was considered one of the most important ports in Europe at that time.

Everyone falls in love in Camogli . . . and with Camogli. Why? Because this town loves to celebrate romance, particularly in the days leading up to Valentine’s Day. Every year, there is a public contest to design an image which will be printed on a collector’s plate and distributed by restaurants throughout the town offering special menus for couples celebrating the occasion. The streets are adorned with poems and love letters and a variety of romantic events are planned. It’s Italy!

Hidden in a tiny cove, accessible by foot or boat only, and a 30 minute ferry ride from Camogli and Portofino, this secluded dot on the map is the perfect place for a seaside lunch. For the past thousand years, a Benedictine monastery has nestled in this deep cove in the promontory of Portofino.

In the 16th century the fate of the monastery became intertwined with that of the Doria family, one of the oldest and most powerful Genovese families in history. In 1983 the Abbey was donated to the FAI (Italian Environment Fund) who have restored it as an extraordinary example of Ligurian Romanesque-Gothic architecture that is accessible to the public.

On the seabed in front of San Fruttuoso at a depth of 17 metres, there is a 2.5 metre bronze statue of Jesus Christ with arms outstretched overhead. It was commissioned in 1954 by Duilio Marcante, the father of Italian scuba diving, to honour those who lost their lives at sea. Divers from around the world visit; on calm days with clear visibility, swimmers can catch a glimpse of the statue.

Once a year at the end of July, a candelight procession of boats and scuba divers move from the abbey to the Christ of the Abyss statue where a priest blesses the waters.

The second biggest island in the archipelago of seven islands is approximately seven kilometres long and five kilometres wide. The island was formed by six extinct volcanoes and has a permanent population of 2,300-2,500 residents.

Just in case you missed it in my ‘On the road reporting’ newsletter about Sicily in May, Lingua is a tiny coastal village just two kilometres from the island’s main port town called Santa Marina Salina, population 200-250 people.

After circumnavigating the island, famous for capers and a sweet dessert wine called Malvasia, we settled in for a seafood lunch on the waterfront, only to be greeted by a strong Aussie accent. The owner of the restaurant splits his time between Australia and Salina and is rightfully proud of his island and family restaurant.

We always remember a stand-out meal and the legendary Calamaretti alla Malvasia was to die for. Baby squid are stuffed with a mixture of breadcrumbs, grated parmesan, fresh parsley and garlic before being cooked in onion and the amber coloured dessert wine known as the “nectar of the gods”. The Malvasia wine gives the seafood an incredibly rich, subtle, sweet-and-sour depth that you won’t find anywhere else. Seriously, you would go to the island of Salina just to have this dish. And we will. In October.

Next week, Part 2 reveals three more exquisite places.

Ci vediamo la prossima settimana.

Deb