Whatever you know or think you know about Napoli, it’s true. Whatever you have seen or read about Napoli, it’s true. It’s loud, it’s noisy, it’s worn out, it’s dirty, hectic, full of dog shit on the pavement… but…. it’s so much more.
There’s a saying; Napoli non è una città, è un mondo…Napoli is not a city, it’s a world. And it surely is, it’s a world of its own.
One of the oldest continuously inhabited urban areas in the world and the capital of Campania region, Napoli is a home to almost one million people and probably a billion of mopeds.
It’s one of those cities that never sleeps. Somewhere, someone is always riding the streets and making sure you hear it.
Five full days in this chaotic city we were just making sure we make safe and alive, as pedestrians are a second-class citizens in Napoli.
The narrow streets are covered in cobble stones and cars are driving without stopping, just announcing their arrival by honking the honk.
Situated below the foothill of one of few active volcanoes in the region, Napoli is famous for pizza, football club and one of the most notorious organized crime families in Italy that have claimed dozens of lives. We were there for pizza. And a bit more.
Arriving to Napoli from Firenze was easy peasy. It took only 3 hours for the fast train FrecciaRossa to cover 500 km and connect Firenze to Napoli. Once it left the station, that typical Italian punctuality was seen in the fact that the PA was informing the passengers about the on time arrival, while being half an hour late in the start. Oh, well, what can you do?
The trip to Napoli was actually supposed to be my birthday trip in January 2020, but than pandemic closed the whole world and left us sitting in our homes for a while. When the opportunity for an Italian trip came back, without blink of an eye we decided to visit that wonder of the world. There are also direct flights from Napoli to different parts of Spain, which made the decision even easier.
We have spend almost a week in Napoli just wondering around, with few scheduled, planed and desired things to do and those were the tour Napoli Sotterranea – check, visit to aquarium – check, visit to Castel Sant’Elmo, pass by Castel dell’Ovo – check, check, day trip to Pompeii – check. What we have missed, because of poor organisation, is a visit to the tomb of Giacomo Leopardi and Virgil. The first one was a 1800 philosopher and a poet while the other was the character from the Band’s song The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.
Or was it the ancient Roman poet? Hm….got everything mixed up now 🤣
Our spacious Airbnb was located in Materdei neighborhood just minutes away from the Line 1 Metro station, that made easier for us to navigate both public and airport transfer.
The Materdei station was opened in 2003 and according to the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph it was ranked in 16th place as the most beautiful metro station in Europe.
Busy and vivacious Materdei neighborhood was a perfect location to stay, as it was a short ride with Metro or bus to other parts of the city and just 20 minutes walk down the hill to the city center. Bustling with bars, shops, restaurants and what’s most important with the best pizzeria in the city, it’s a definitive recommendation from us.
When it comes to the city it self, that is something to be decided on your own. Be ready to die. Either form traffic or too much pizza, that will be up to you 🙂