Exploring The Supernatural Beauty Of Amalfi With Piaget

There’s a reason why travelers from around the world have been drawn to Italy’s Amalfi Coast for centuries. Situated on the northern stretch of the Gulf of Salerno, this strip of land in Southern Italy has a classic Mediterranean climate – warm and caressed by fresh sea breezes. The views are breathtaking, with steep hills that soar into the endless sky and overlook the azzurro water below.

The cultural landscape is just as beguiling, dotted, as it is, with terraced vineyards, ancient citrus orchards, and bucolic pastures. At the end of summer, seaside towns such as Sorrento, Minori, and Maiori are bustling with tourists, but they are of a much more relaxed variety than you would find in the rest of Italy. And when a day of being embraced by such sensual pleasures finally comes to an end, you get rewarded with world-class cuisine centered around seafood.
 

That is why the Piaget Polo Skeleton and Polo Blue Panda Automatic Chronograph are the perfect companions for helping you mark your time on the Amalfi Coast. Both feature dramatic views, a laid-back vibe, and a rich history. Piaget may be Swiss, but the Polo was made for living la dolce vita on the Italian Riviera.

The Piaget Polo is the creation of Yves G. Piaget, a watchmaker and gemmologist who joined his family’s business in 1966. Yves Piaget was mad for all things equestrian and urged the brand to sponsor the world’s largest polo tournament. Thus, when this sponsorship finally happened in 1979, he celebrated the new partnership by designing and creating the Piaget Polo, a sporty/chic timepiece with a fully integrated bracelet.
 

While the Polo’s roots lie squarely in the equestrian world, its design is well-suited to seaside pursuits. The watch was consciously designed as a continuous stream of solid sculpted bars wrapping around the wrist, with each link catching the light like ripples on the surface of the water of the Tyrrhenian Sea.

The original Polo was powered by an ultra-thin quartz movement, the calibre 7TK. But while the newest models are just as streamlined, they are now fitted with automatic calibres. And that brings us to the topic of architecture...

As much as the Amalfi Coast is known for its rugged landscape, it’s the picture-perfect villages like Positano and Ravello that truly take one’s breath away. Their houses seem to emerge from the living rock as if sculpted from the very stone they were built upon.

The aesthetics of the Piaget Polo Skeleton is likewise very sculptural. Released in February, the distinctive thinness of the Polo Skeleton has been updated with an open-worked 1200S1 automatic movement that is just 2.4mm thick, making it one of the thinnest automatic calibres in existence). Moreover, its new, svelter case means that the 42mm Polo Skeleton sits closer to the wrist, is more comfortable to wear, and has a more subtle silhouette than its diameter might suggest.
 

If you like driving, you must explore the coastal roads between the port cities of Salerno and Sorrento. It’s an epic journey, especially in late summer – with incredible views of sprawling villas, pastel-colored fishing villages, grand hotels, and windswept lemon groves popping up along the way.

It’s an exhilarating ride. Whether you look at driving in Italy as challenging or thrilling, it is an experience. Especially along the undulating roads that hug the Amalfi Coast. But it’s also a journey you’ll want to share, so bring your favorite traveling companions and the new Piaget Polo Blue Panda Automatic Chronograph along for the ride.
 

Chronographs are a part of car culture, and the Blue Panda honors that history with its sporty, stainless steel cushion-shaped case that caresses the wrist as naturally as the highways of Amalfi hug the cliffs. Launched last May, this chrono is faithful to the design cues of the classic Polo but smartly elevates the look with a stunning silver on blue Panda dial.
 

Like the Polo Skeleton, it’s a big watch – 42mm in diameter. But also like the Polo Skeleton, it never feels overwhelming thanks to its curved lines and a combination of horizontally brushed surfaces and polished bevels. And thanks to its slender profile (11.2mm), it won’t get caught under your cuffs when you need to check the time while driving.
 

Because the Amalfi Coast has so much to offer, the Blue Panda easily adapts to any situation: It has a water resistance of 100m in case you want to take a boat instead of a car. The sapphire crystal and the cleverly integrated ovoid chronograph pushers keep the timepiece looking sleek should you find yourself dining al fresco at the upscale (but still chill) Hotel Bacco in Furore.
 

It’s so easy to lose yourself in the charms of the region that you’ll need a friend to remind you when it’s time to move on to the next adventure. But to make sure you’re not missing out on anything, the watch is powered by the in-house 1160P automatic movement made in the Swiss village of La Côte-aux-Fées.
 

Finally, what makes the Piaget Polo Blue Panda Automatic Chronograph truly versatile is the new blue integrated rubber strap, which matches the chronograph’s panda-style sub-dial array perfectly.

Limited to 888 pieces, the Piaget Polo Blue Panda Automatic Chronograph is priced at $15,600.
 

For more information about the Piaget Polo collection, visit the Piaget website.

(Photography by Pierre Vogel, Video by Johan Corminboeuf)