This dead city longs to be living

 

We spent most of the day yesterday at the Archaeology Museum, colloquially known as the MANN (Museo Archaelogico Nazionale di Napoli). We chose not to make the trip to Pompeii because it’s jam packed with tourists in the sweltering heat, which is what we’ve been astutely avoiding since day 3 of this trip. And man, the MANN was jam packed with artifacts from Pompeii. It also has one of the largest collections of Egyptian artifacts in the world. Oh, and a weird sex room to see what acts the Romans were comfortable painting on their walls. Much of it was tame, some of it was shockingly nasty. I don’t want to spend much time thinking about what they were too embarrassed to paint on the wall.

 

We also went to the Catacombs of San Gaudioso to see the twisted funeral practices of the Dominican friars. From our time in Rome, we were already familiar with the idea of Christians burying their dead outside the city in underground catacombs, but the surprise in Naples was the fact that the friars squeezed the dead bodies of all liquids (which is probably very similar to what is done to get milk out of almonds). Then the wealthy few pay extra to get their heads cut off and put on display.

 

This morning, Daniel took us out to see the central business district of Naples, which was first envisioned in the 1960s but started construction in the 1980s. It’s now a strange dystopian wasteland of high rise buildings, broken escalators, garbage and stray mattresses. We did go on a weekend, but it’s hard to imagine this place ever being a thriving downtown. There’s a new Metro station under construction that looks incredible, maybe that will help them finally realize their dreams.

 

Is it any wonder

There’s squalor in the sun?

With their broken schemes and their lotteries

They never get nowhere

-        Patty Smith, Dead City

Ancient fishing technique?

If I hung out with a beak this big, I’d wear pants

If you look close, I think he’s wearing a Yankees hat

It’s a mummay!

Incredible every day wall art from well before the Renaissance

San Gaudioso starts innocent enough but you can tell something sinister may lie beneath

After squeezing the juice, everything left gets jammed into boxes until full 

By paying a bit more, your drained head can live on as a greeter (at least for a while)

Looks great, but where is everyone?

A bit pessimistic, maybe they haven’t seen the new metro station yet

All the stairs looked like this, stay above ground

One of the best empty towers I’ve ever seen

There were definitely more weeds than people while we were there

This has potential to become the most beautiful metro station in Europe

Naples Toledo station currently holds the title as most beautiful in Europe 

Forza Napoli

 

It’s good to be back in Naples. After being shocked and completely unprepared, we completely fell in love with this place. It’s raw and gritty, but also beautiful. The people can be aggressive, and many don’t even bother trying English, but they’re surprisingly warm and friendly. 

 

The town is full of surprises. A building can be covered with graffiti but astonishingly pretty and ornate inside. The cobblestone streets are winding and narrow, filled with cars that somehow fit alongside people. Scooters can come out of nowhere and nearly run you down, but there might be an Italian woman nearby who puts the driver in their place. No one picks up after their dogs on those streets but they’re rabid about separating their trash and recycling. You can step over a corner of the street that looks like it’s been used as a toilet and walk right through a model’s photo shoot and then buy some of the most amazing food on the planet. An unassuming pizzeria can be in the Michelin Guide. You won’t expect it, but if you give it a chance, it will always be in your heart.

 

An evening stroll to dinner

Margherita from Antica Pizzeria di Matteo, where President Clinton shoved pizza in his mouth more aggressively than we did 

Much of the art is on walls, just not always indoors

A door that deserves a chance

Somehow it’s bigger on the inside, and much more beautiful

The oldest thing we saw today

This sign has special allure in our family

There’s always a surprise around the corner or up the stairs. Usually good, sometimes not.

A marijuana vending machine, good for work and health, bad for the Mafia!

A scalding little package of fried pizza from a world renowned pizzeria 

Stairway to Heaven

 

Positano is as incredible as we remembered. Limoncello, lemon sorbet, and a lot of stairs. Pictures tell the stories better than words on this place.

The view from our patio

It never gets old

Prettier in the dark? Too bad it’s not dark all the time

This cat may have died walking the steps, a bad sign since we had 460 steps to go

Lemon sorbet at the top helps the heat

Daniel took this photo, it’s really good

When there is a walkway, it’s not very big.
Amazingly, you get used to cars breezing by your shoulder.

Mangia, mangia, mangia – but not in an ossuary

As we walk around Italy, it seems that many Italians are talking to each other about food and eating. I can’t blame them, what we eat next is on my mind after every place we stop. Given our toddler-level Italian, I suppose it could also be that they’re saying something else that sounds like “mangia,” but that definitely seems less likely. 

 

We’re staying in the Testaccio area of Rome and have gotten to know several restaurants in the neighborhood. From cacio e pepe, amazing sandwiches at Trapizzino, and pizza, to a lot of gelato, we’ve eaten well this first week.

 

We also found another ossuary at the Capuchin Crypt. The story of Francis of Assisi and the Capuchin monks was a fascinating lead up to seeing the crazy sanctuaries of bones. It is highly questionable that the same monks who don’t want to see bare shoulders in church would be ok digging up the dead to decorate a church, but they’re definitely selling it. And to use a quote from Marquis de Sade celebrating the place like they do seems a bit like quoting Jeffrey Dahmer on the book jacket of your cookbook – “thanks, but I think I’ll pass.” Incredible to see, nonetheless. Unfortunately, no photos or bare arms are allowed inside.

 

From here, we’re off to the Amalfi coast for a few days.

Our first date in Europe at Restaurante Angelina a Testaccio, where the bowls could also be wash basins

All sandwiches should be triangles

This guy became an incredible meal

It looks like bird poop, but the pistachio McFlurry is actually good

Photo from Google Maps, taken by David Mariani (who’s either sly with the camera or had special permission from the Crypt)

One fine day (or two)

 

“Then before my eyes, is standing still

I beheld it there, a city on a hill”

- David Byrne, One Fine Day

 

I think it’s safe to say we finally got this trip dialed in. We figured out how to avoid the overly touristy sites, manage the heat, and get our pace right to not drive anyone to a breakdown.

 

Yesterday we saw the Catacombs of San Callixtus on the Appian Way. Because Christianity was still illegal, the early Christians needed to bury their dead outside of the city and did so in an intricate system of underground crypts. Several of the early popes were buried there. It’s an incredible site with the added bonus of being a cool 40° underground. No joke, people were wearing coats.

 

Nearby is the site of the Ardeatine Massacre where the Nazis ruthlessly slaughtered 335 civilians in Italy in response to Italian resistance attacks. The memorial to the outrageous act is somber and worth the walk across the street.

 

We ended with a lovely stroll through Trastevere, including some great views of Rome and ended with gelato. There are few things better,

 

Today was our second and final day trip from Rome, this one to Orvieto. A new site for us, the city on the hill in Umbria delivered more than we expected. An incredible duomo, some amazing porchetta, and plenty of shade with a breeze. I have no idea why there was a lion mascot on our train home, but it seemed to be a fitting end,

No pictures were allowed inside, but here’s proof the catacombs were underground

A somber site of 335 dead civilians

Not Trevi Fountain. More importantly, not crowded.

A view of Rome from Trastevere

Tiber at night

What a duomo in Orvieto

The paintings in the duomo are said to be inspiration for Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel

Orvieto on a July weekend. Note how beautiful and how it’s not crowded.

Orvieto from above.

Why is there a Lion mascot onboard, and why aren’t these people more excited about it!?