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Published: January 23rd 2022
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Our trip to Italy didn't go quite as planned. We intended to spend nearly the whole month of October exploring Puglia with some time in Naples and a few days on the Amalfi Coast at the end. I imagined pleasant sunny days of about 25 degrees at the beginning of autumn in Southern Italy where it hardly rains. Because of Covid and the uncertainty of travel, we booked the flight two weeks ahead and only booked the first three nights in Naples and that turned out to be a good thing. Just after we arrived there was an extreme weather event in the north with record breaking amounts of rain and the south got the tail end of it.
The weather forecast was bad in Bari so we changed plans and decided to go to the Amalfi coast instead. It was supposed to be a bit better there. In the end, it wasn't great for the whole trip but on the bright side, even though rain was forecast every day, after the beginning it didn't rain anymore and we even had some beautiful, sunny days and afternoons too. But my summer clothes and sandals definitely weren't needed. And I was
very glad of my Uniqlo jacket.
We flew into Naples where we spent three days and we returned for three days at the end. I'd been there before and I really like Naples. I love the contrasts here -- it's neglected and dirty but it's also magnificent and grand. It's full of life. There are shops, cafes, restaurants and markets everywhere. The streets are always full of people laughing and eating and drinking and shouting/talking to each other. We were staying in an airbnb right in the historical center, very convenient for walking nearly everywhere.
These are some of my highlights:
The Line 1 Metro - in particular Toledo Metro Station - part of the Naples Metro Art Project.
Piazza del Plebiscito and the Royal Palace with San Marco Opera House and the Galleria Umberto Shopping Arcade nearby.
Chiostri di Santa Chiara - a beautiful tiled and painted cloister right in the middle of all the chaos.
The Christmas market and La Pignasecca food market (we never managed to get a table here at night, always lines of people waiting).
The 15 meter San Gennaro mural painted by Neapolitan street artist Jorit Agoch
in the Forcella neighborhood.
St Elmos Castle for magnificent views over the bay of Naples and the ancient steps of Pedamentina San Martino down to the Spanish Quarter. (The stairs are hundreds of years old and very neglected. Could do with some TLC but it's a nice walk down with panoramic views if you don't mind stairs.)
Vesuvius looms over it all - you can see it nearly everywhere. Sleeping for now. How would you feel about living in the shadow of a deadly volcano?
For more things to do in Naples, follow this
Time Out link. We have been to most of the places on a previous visit. I also saw photos of magnificent palaces near Naples on Instagram and I haven't been to the Catacombs yet. I've been three times and there is still a lot of things I want to do.
I first visited Naples 5 years ago after reading Elena Ferrante's Neapolitan novels, one after the other. My Naples is very different to the book but that is what first inspired me to visit. I've just watched The Hand of God, the very personal story of Paolo Sorrentino growing up in Naples. The movie
reminded me again of how much Naples loves Maradona. There are Maradona murals, statues, shrines, everywhere you go. It's a never ending love story.
After three days of mostly rain which didn't bother us too much we were supposed to start our road trip to Bari in Puglia but the storm had moved over to that side of Italy, so we decided to stay on the Amalfi coast where there were a few good days forecast as well.
We hired a car for 18 days from Avis in Naples. It was expensive, there was zero service, the office was situated downstairs in Garibaldi train station and the garage was under the plaza with no signs, the service light came on after one day, the front breaks were making noise and worst of all - we ordered a small car and got a gas-guzzling Ford jeep, take it or leave it. I've heard the other car hire places in Naples are no better. This was our one and looks like only experience with Avis.
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D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley
Italy and bad weather
You recovered nicely. Looks like a great time. But-- as you say.... no sandals needed.