We arrived in Naples on Day 7 and 8 of the trip and on first impressions, the city had many beautiful qualities - a wide bay full of cruise ships from around the Mediterranean; a UNESCO World Heritage listed Old Town; a number of imposing fortresses that would have rebelled any invading flotilla; and of course being the birthplace of pizza.
However, our first thoughts on arriving at Naples train station wasn't as positive as it appeared chaotic, dirty and it was lucky that we had organised a driver to pick us up as the city itself is very large and perfect for a tourist to get lost easily.
Hotel Miramare
When we met up with our driver, the conversation was limited as he didn't speak a word of English. A lot of hand gesturing and memories of primary school Italian classes got us through the key parts of the transaction a) confirm our name and hotel; b) check the location we were driven to matches the address of the hotel; c) pay driver.
Our hotel - Miramare, faced the Bay of Naples where several large cruise ships were docked and the shadow of Mount Vesuvius dominated the skyline.
It is hard to imagine what life must have been like in AD79 when the mountain blew its top off and the lively towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum were buried out of common memory. After checking in, we decided to take a short stroll up the esplanade and find some of the famous pizza to eat. The heat (close to 40degrees C) made sitting outside a bit uncomfortable, but the shaded umbrellas of the restaurant and the tasty food made the experience worthwhile.
The Bay of Naples and Mount Vesuvius
A Surprise Visitor
After lunch, we settled into our room and waited for the place to cool down before venturing back outdoors. It was then that an SMS message tipped Mei off that we would be joined for dinner by our friend Farah, who 'by coincidence' had detoured from Santorini back to London and now was in Naples. For dinner, we headed to the former island (now connected to the mainland) of Megaride where the area of Borgo Marinari contains a number of restaurants and the fortress of Castel dell'Ovo (Egg Castle).
Castel dell'Ovo at sunset
Castel dell'Ovo at night
Transatlantico Restaurant
Dinner was at the Transatlantico restaurnt, right on the waterfront where we ate the local specialty of pasta with clams, octopus salad and drank a bottle of wine. After dinner, we headed for the nearby bar - Vanilla where we had mint granita, watched the sunset and the city's nightlife to come alive.
Wine and boat watching
Seafood pasta
Shoreline of Naples
Pompeii and Mount Vesuvius Tour
The next day, we started off early for a day trip to Pompeii and Mount Vesuvius using a packaged day trip, purchased through Viator. The tour included a shuttle bus transport and as we were the first to be picked up, we were treated to a short tour of downtown Naples as well.
The Galleria Umberto
A shopping arcade in downtown Naples
Pompeii
As the bus filled up, we headed out towards the Pompeii site where we met with a local guide who did the commentary in both English and French. The site had been excavated since the 18th century and had been a tourist attraction for rich young men doing the Grand Tour of Europe.
Friendly Pompeii
Near the temple of Venus
Gladiator Quarters
The site is huge, and we just made our way through the main attractions - the Forum, Red Light district, amphitheatre learnt about the equivalent of fast food, traffic crossings for chariots and the bathing system that dominated the 1st century AD.
Wide neatly paved streets
Inside the amphitheatre
Standing on ancient traffic islands
A shop that would have been filled with olives and
other fast foods
Walking around the site was quite tiring, however it was an amazing experience to see how a city that existed 2000 years ago had survived being buried under 7 metres of hot ash and how the victims bodies had been vaporised leaving an empty cast that archaeologists filled with plaster.
Cast of a plaster victim
Suggestive fresco in the Red Light district
Pointing foreign sailors to the Red Light district
The most popular photo point in Pompeii
The ruins of the marble Forum
Pompeii with Mount Vesuvius in the background
Ruins of government buildings
Mount Vesuvius
Lunch was held at a nearby restaurant that catered for tour groups. We ate some tasty cannelloni in order to have the energy to climb to the summit of Mount Vesuvius. The shuttle bus drove most of the way up the winding mountain, with the last 800m being a direct uphill trek to the edge of the crater.
At the edge of the crater
Looking inside the volcano
The views were worth the effort, with the trip downhill being a lot less strenuous and the lemon Callipo being the best tasting treat on offer at the car-park.
Video summary of the sights of Naples
Dinner with Friends
The shuttle bus took us back to our hotel and as it was already early evening, we got ready for dinner. The restaurant, Antonio and Antonio had been chosen and to Mei's surprise, there were a number of unexpected guests at dinner - Roopa, Rob, Allee had joined Farrah and Wai was expected to land later that night. Surprise!
The waiter offered a selection of local fish for dinner, of which we partnered with side salads and a buffalo mozzarella ball that tasted quite meaty and filling. Dessert was a platter of traditional cakes, including the famous Rum Baba and our first taste of the local booze - lemoncello and meloncello. Completely full, we walked along the esplanade before finishing the night with a gelati from a cafe next to the hotel.
Local fish and potatoes
Dessert platter
Celebrating with meloncello
Goodbye Naples
The next morning, we headed upstairs for an early breakfast on top of the hotel where we said goodbye to the view of the Bay of Naples and got ready to meet up with our friends and our mini-bus driver who would take us onward through the Amalfi Coast to Positano.
View from the breakfast table
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