‘Oh, so you’ve heard about Naples, then?’ the British backpacker asked.
Yes, I had. Don’t go there, look both ways and watch your back, hang onto your bag, hang onto yourself. But when you’re planning your European sojourn a week in advance, the criteria of a destination narrows itself to ‘rooms available’. And they were, so I went. The perpetual struggle of a planner trying not to plan.
Like the favourite child that gets all the attention, Rome is undeniably the Circular Quay of Italy, whilst Naples ‘business as usual’ is well, more like home.
I filled my obligatory quota of history with a day trip to the nearby towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum, made all the more enjoyable by the perfect summer weather, and spent my second day skipping the recommended museums and churches (except the archeological museum, where most of the remnants of Pompeii and Herculaneum now lie) to wander the more modern streets of Naples.
Following the afternoon gelato (chocolate and coconut, the best combination), I walked back along the coastline to the hostel, with stunning views of the Bay of Naples to my left, and sunlit terraces with window boxes of poppies to my right.
For the underdog, Naples certainly put up a good fight.
-Sarah
Sarah