The little village-town of Vietri sul Mare clings to the cliffs on the Campania coast, just up the hill from the port city of Salerno.
Vietri is a town built of ceramics: everywhere you go, there are ceramic walls, mosaics, tiles, shops, community park-lets, all strewn with and made out of ceramics. Vietri sul Mare ceramics might well be the ceramics you think of when you think of the joyous, brightly coloured, whimsically designed ceramics of the south. Plates and bowls to eat from, mugs and cups to drink from, jugs and pitchers to plant in and pour from, tiles to brighten your wall, your house, your pool, your benches…..oh and if there aren’t enough ceramics everywhere–lets put it this way: it isn’t easy to get more than a store or two through the town without a shop, gallery or simply a tiled sign or exhibition–there is also a huge museum devoted to all things ceramic.
With over 70 cookbook titles (including contributions) to her credit, Marlena conjures up flavours and dishes from the Mediterranean to Mexico, California to France to the Italian islands and single subjects such as chili peppers, olive oil, mushrooms, to a book on classic Jewish food from all over the world.
