The Rest of Naples

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The rest of Naples that I saw were all places I'd seen before, still fun spots to stop by and re-see. There are always places I'd like to re-visit, as well as new places I'd still like to go back and see. However, Naples is always a treat for me whether it's familiar or not. Next trip, I'll probably go back out to Capri, and then maybe even over to Sicily. I've wanted to go to Sicily for ages. In the meantime I got another peak at Pompeii.

 Also there was another trip to the beautiful Caserta Palace, complete with carriage ride of course.

A quick stop along the Amalfi coast, and some pastries from a great little shop in Naples.

And of course I had to end the trip with a final authentic Italian meal - pizza and gelato.

Medieval Village - Naples Italy

One of our adventures in Naples took us to this little medieval village at the top of a hill. There was absolutely no one there, and it was incredibly windy. But we had a fun time wandering through the deserted streets of the little town. Only in Europe do you stumble across an ancient little village like this in the middle of a major port city. I love Italy.

Christmas Castle in Naples

Because I was in Naples towards the end of November, they were starting to get ready for the Christmas season. As such, there was a local Castle that they dress up with all kinds of decorations at this time of year, and for two weeks turn it into a big local famers/ flea type market.

Every booth there is all hand made.

I could have spent days there.

There were local fresh cheeses, meats, breads, jams, chocolates, pastries, soaps, candles jewelry, pottery, leather workings, Christmas ornaments, woodwork, etc. etc. etc.

I could have spent tons of money if I had been there long enough. We were on a time schedule, so we didn't have a ton of time to spend here. Definitely a good thing because I would have spent more than I have.

But sadly there are a few things I really regret not buying while I was there. Since I have family out there, there's a good chance I'll go back for a visit again before they leave. I will definitely plan it for close to the holidays. Not only so I can go back to this beautiful Christmas market, but also so I can see the city all done up with lights for the holiday.

Sorrento Italy

I've always liked Sorrento. It is such a beautiful little town along the Amalfi Coast. I've been before, and I wanted to go back to do some shopping. This is a great place to do shopping of all kinds. It's also where my brother's favorite little restaurant is at.

When we got there, the restaurant wasn't open yet for dinner. To kill time we did a lot of shopping. two leather purses, gelatos, and some other treats later we finally enjoyed an amazing feast of food.

I just love Italy.


View of Mt Vesuvius from Sorrento

The Blue Grotto on Capri Island

The Blue Grotto is a cave that's part of the Island of Capri. Getting to see it is all a matter of timing. It's only open during certain times of the year, and even then, it's only open during those times of the year when the weather is just right.














Getting into the cave is tricky. Our small tour boat taking us around the island stopped and weighed anchor, while we were slowly transferred to a row boat, big enough to hold 4 people. This whole escapade is not recommended for people without a strong stomach. The boats rock quite a bit. I took Dramamine before hand just to be on the safe side.

The row boat, rowed by a local, then rowed us over to a floating doc where we paid for this extra trip into the grotto. From there he rowed us to the cave entrance. To get into the cave, us passengers lie down flat on our backs. The rower then lays down on top of us, in order to get into the cave entrance. It's definitely a bit precarious.

But once in the cave, it is quite beautiful. The acoustics are amazing, so our rower gave us a beautiful serenade as he rowed us around inside for a few minutes. To leave the cave, the same creative laying down had to be down. We of course tipped our man, then were transferred back onto our touring boat. We had to wait for all passengers to return to the boat, so it took a little while. Totally worth it though. And we were quite lucky to hit it on a day when it just happened to be open, and there weren't any crowds yet.