Napoli, aka Naples Dump, where Vesuvias looms large

Naples. Sadly home to masses of trash; rubbish beyond belief all over the street and in chaotic piles every now and again. Have heard that the tip is full and the garbos are on strike.

Naples trash - near bus and train station

At present it would take a team of dedicated 'clean up Naples' day people weeks or perhaps even months to clean up. Then the police could come in and clean out the rodents that harbor and fester away here. Didn't get hassled but constantly on the watch for potential pickpockets or the garden variety thief looking for a poorly secured bag. Did see one poor old chap chasing after a younger chap at the train station would appeared to have stolen his bag; quicker thinking on my behalf and I could have helped out as the crook ran within 3 meters of Manda and I!

So yes, Naples not so nice and we'd been forewarned. Nonetheless it was a good cheap base for our day trips to Positano via Sorrento, Pompeii and the ever present Mt Vesuvias and it meant we could spend another day and 2 nights with Sud and Neeq.

Stumbled across a terrific pizzeria/pasta ristorante within walking distance from our hotel and in a slightly less polluted area of town (if thats possible). Had pizza here 3 nights out of 3! For 3.50€ you could get a 50cm diameter margarita pizza (handmade before your every eyes, base included, and cooked in a woodfire stove...) or a gourmet style caprese (tom tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, basil cheese, tomato sauce) for 7€. A steal! But the bases were just something else; kneaded and spun repeatedly from little dough balls then topped immediately. They do say Naples is the home of the margarita pizza and it would be hard to dispute it! Hence we returned 3 times! And ate 1 each. Pigs...



huge pizza!

 Amalfi coast line was rugged and spectacular, like the Cinque Terre, but for us lacked the character and serenity we found along the Cinque Terre. Citrus and tomatoes were in plentiful supply here hence good supply of delicious lemonchello and rich tomato sauces. We spent a very relaxing day at Positano, one of the small villages, along with many other tourists, where we swam, jumped off 10m rocky cliffs into deep ocean then tried to rock climb out, dodged incoming and outgoing ferries and smaller boats (much to their captain and crews dismay and the passengers delight - it was perfectly safe!), sunbaked alongside the private beach (chair and umbrella for 12.50€ - too expense for our budget!), and hired a paddle boat (15€ for the hour).

Manda on the Amalfi coast

Beach! Amazing umbrellas

The paddle boat was a personal highlight for us mainly due to yet another Brandy boating disaster... Not a capsize (as these paddle boats are incredibly buoyant and stable) but almost! We found ourselves a 'private/secluded' rocky beach so set up camp there for 30 min to swim, horseplay, sunbake etc; there were NO waves at all. Never even looked like there might be a wave. When putting the boat back in the water the waves rolled in. Thongs were lost, towel and bags wet, egos bruised and battered! Eventually Sud and I managed to pull/push the boat out of the waves and retrieve the thongs. Another funniest home video moment I'm sure had it been filmed! Eventually we got back out to the smoother waters and retuned the boat! I'm starting to realise that perhaps I'm not a boating person!

We took the train from Naples to Sorento then a bus to Positano (extremely bendy road for 45min which made Manda and I both feel ill) then a ferry and train back to Naples. Ferry ride really enjoyable!

Pompeii was more my scene; no sitting around watching time pass by. We took a 3 hour tour of the city (advertised as a 2 hour tour) with a flamboyant quintessential 65 year old Italian gentleman aptly named Mario (overweight, mustache, olive skin, comical, animated, and very likable - no red cap or boilers suit)!

Mario!!

He was really knowledgeable on all things Pompeii and clearly wanted to pass on as much as possible. So much enthusiasm. By the end of the tour he said his Duracel batteries were just about flat! No surprise!! Mine were too after 3 hours in the boiling sun!!!

Pompeii with Mt V in background

We then briefly had a look at the rest of the city excavations including, but not limited to, the brothel and the amphitheater. Simply amazing. Much of the original mosaics and frescos have been removed and placed into museums but there are still some fantastic examples on site.

leave it to your imagination

Plaster moulds of people and dogs quite astounding...

Mount Vesuvias was next on the compulsory list of "to do's" and at 10€ pp for the bus to the ticket office and then a further 5€ to climb the 30min to the top it was a bit of a scam. I guess I'm just used to walking somewhere for free and being able to go where you want (Mt Vesuvias had guide rails everywhere; there was no way you'd end up somewhere you shouldn't). Thinking back on it, it was worthwhile as the view was spectacular; mind you, it wasn't possible to see Pompeii as the crater walk only went half way round the crater. Oh well! An enjoyable day was had.

Manda on the crater rim

For now we're off to Rome which should be a highlight from what we hear. Loads to see an do!!!

Tip for next time: stay in Sorrento and catch the train to where ever it is you want to go. It's much prettier/hygienic and worth the extra cost I'd reckon!