Naples

Naples. So much to say and I can say nothing what I say will be enough. I've told you that my first impression of Naples was nothing short of disappointing. Looking back I believe it was very circumstantial. My flight was delayed, I spent the whole day at the airport and by the time I got to Naples it was late, dark, and I was beyond tired. Pretty much like a child.  

The following morning we decided to head to Sorrento as soon as we could because by then I just wanted to lay under the sun. 

But when we came back to catch our flight home we got the chance to spend about 24h in Naples that were the perfect ending to our Italian summer. 

We ate, and ate, and ate, and sang aloud, and walked, and ate some more. There was a moment in time me and M. decided to part ways, and each of us walked their own way, exploring the city as we wanted. I remember wandering through Castel dell'Ovo, next to the water, looking at Vesuvius and keep on going with no destination, listening to Lana Del Rey and feeling so grateful for feeling such happiness, and to be able to take that from such simple, little things as food, a nice view and the ocean breeze. 

Italia made so happy and appreciated I can't put into words. And Napoli being our last stop, I feel like much of that happiness was consolidated there. Piazza del Plebiscito at dusk,  almost no one there, the cute little neighbourhoods and its residents, living their daily lives, kind of pulling you into their routines. The fruit stands, Galeria Umberto I, all the ice cream, pizza at da Michelle and Nino Sorbillo, the street markets along those narrow streets, where M. bought me a lovely turquoise necklace. The Aperol Spritz, a late night drink in a shabby setting next to a trailer selling spirits next to the bay and our last walk home. Our hide and seek game in the law department of the Università deli study di Napoli Federico II. We settled for breakfast at Gran Caffè Gambrinus the following morning, before heading home. The cakes look to die for. Honestly, everything there looks like that. And the ambience is so.. Italian? It feels just magical... But we overslept, in which I believe to have been a conscious choice ahah

Not that I regret that, to be honest, because I do want to come back to Napoli soon. There was so much left to see, I feel, and Gran Caffè Gambrinus if the first thing on my to do list. 

Vesuvius + Pompei

Pompei was hot. Pompei was too hot to be honest. Open sky, not a single tree offering a shadow as an escape. 

We took the Circumvesuviana train in the morning from Piano straight to Pompeii Villa of the Mysteries. That is the name of the station. You can easily reach the vulcano if you stop at Ercolano Scavi too. We decided to climb Vesuvius first, to avoid the midday sun. But honestly, that didn't make a difference. I believe that from the moment the sun rises until the moment the sun sets it's going to be unbearably hot up there. So bring a water bottle and get ready to get your clothes dirty and dusty. 

There are many touristic companies that provide the bus ride all the way through the vulcano hill, but you can only reach the peak if you walk. So the bus leaves you at a strategic point and then you just walk.  It's not a long walk, not too steep either, but can be quite tiring under the burning sun. 

Lovely views from above as you go around the vulcano, you can even see Naples bay from one of the sides of the hill! I guess I was hoping the experience to be more impactful overall, but I stood on a Vulcano and that's rather amazing to me!

It's very hard to get a picture of the whole cratera on your camera, because it is so wide!!! Probably that's what I was not expecting. I mean, I was expecting it to be big, but on the internet you can always see the whole thing in one picture, you know? ahah

And then, back down, walking first, bus next, until we were back in Pompeii. I was just so tiring, and dehydrated and hot and uncomfortable I didn't really enjoyed. I regret not having a guide or something/someone to guide me through Pompeii because I feel like I missed out on so much interesting information that could totally have changed my experience! So if you can, absolutely do that!

I think we were done by 3pm and honestly I just wanted to go home, take a nice shower and lay on my bed. From all days and thing we have done, if I had to exclude one, this would be it.  But looking back I am also very happy that I did it. 

On a side note, Lana Del Rey played incessantly on my earphones during this trip and here I am, reviving such lovely moments with Lana playing in the background once again.

It's been almost an year now... feels like yesterday to me.

Sintra

Italy 2019 - Capri

Capri was our official last day of "beach". 

We were supposed to leave the house super early (like 6am), go to Sorrento and from there take the ferry to Capri. Needless is to say that we were dying from the day before so we left home like 3 hours later! Bough lunch on our way to Sorrento in a supermarket, and then departed to Capri by the end of the morning. The trip takes around 30/40 minutes and I can say this was probably the most expensive "activity" we've done while in Italy. Also, bring everything you can food wise from the mainland since Capri is VERY expensive!

Everyone I knew that had been around the area had told me NOT to miss Capri and to spend an entire day there. I don't think Capri is the most amazing place of all the places I've been to, but I can definitely see why you should spend the whole day there. First of all, the ferry is quite expensive (40 EUR both ways), so you better make it worth it and spend as much time there as you can. 

Previously to our trip we considered going on a private boat tour that included snorkeling and lunch but we though it was unnecessarily expensive and decided not to do it. Looking back, for 20 more EUR I think that would have been the best option. There are lots of great offers (I later found a great one in Naples, maybe for a next time!), just look them up!

Personally, even though Capri didn't feel like the most magical place to me, the beaches there are amazing!! You probably won't see it at first since the ones around the port (where the boat leaves you and that you'll see first) aren't the best ones, but take the lift up to the hill, enjoy the view and then go down the other way, to the south side of the island. 

You can reach these beaches by bus but I enjoyed walking down all the stairs and alleys (it always gives me a best notion of where I am and how the place really is like). 

We spent the whole day at Marina Piccola Beach and it was HEAVEN! I couldn't get tired of jumping off the rocks and floating on those light blue waters. 

Italy 2019 - Ravello

Ravello stands on top of a hill, so no beach here, but it is truly SO romantic and feels somewhat magical, I can hardly describe it. It is beautiful and I decided I want to get engaged there, otherwise my answer will always be "no"! - ahah, a girl can dream, right? ;) 

There is a church in the main piazza too and like I felt there was a clear distinction between a more "touristic" and a more "residential" areas. Since it is so up high there are many viewpoints and you can get some of the best views from Ravello to all the coast. If you're anything like me, you will very likely be left in awe and feeling thankful for even the silliest of things. 

We left Ravello as the sun was going down - you know that beautiful golden hour - but not yet completely down and stopped once more in Amalfi to switch buses. 

When we finally managed to get into the bus that would take us to Sorrento it was almost 10 pm and this was the only occasion when the bus actually didn't stop due to being completely packed. The trip took what seemed forever and both me and Matei were starving, tired and dying for a restroom - yes, we were behaving like children at this point. But funny enough, we weren't grumpy and didn't come at each other like we did in Positano (due to conflicting personalities, I shall call it ahah). 

Even though it was almost midnight, by the time we got to Sorrento we were so pumped we decided to stay a bit longer, enjoy the nightlife and get some pizza. We obviously lost the last bus to Piano so this was when we decided to risk it all and walk following google maps! 30 minutes later and we had arrived home safe and sound, and that was probably one of the funniest nights of my life! I hope to never forget we tired we both were so we spent the whole way home singing (shouting, to be fair) songs we both knew so we would keep each other awake and going. Or how I was wearing just my bikini top and a skirt and how Matei borrowed me hist shirt. 

Even though me and Matei have indeed conflicting personalities, and I am admittedly a person who likes to have everything planned out and under control, Matei is the best travel companion I could ever ask for. Unlike me, he is patient and keeps me chilled. He's always up for adventure and leaves me some room to be crazy (which to other people may not be crazy, but my crazy is my crazy, you know).