Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
Naming this blog entry after Dante's most famous work does not mean that I think my writing is so good I can rival the founding father of Italian literature. However, Dante, just so you know, you don't need 100 cantos to get through inferno, purgatorio and paradiso, you just need a weekend in Naples.
Inferno
Napoli. Quite possibly the closest feeling to being in a third world country in the whole of Europe, although it should be respected for not putting on a show for the tourists. Huge piles of rubbish filling the streets, buildings that look as if the concept of 'renovation' never made it this far south, and the threat of little devils on scooters who try to grab your handbag as they zoom around the corner. And it was raining. Although even hell has something going for it, I mean at least it's not cold, and in Napoli the little ovens of fire do produce something beautiful: the best pizza in the world. You have never eaten a pizza until you have eaten one in Italy, and you have never eaten an Italian pizza until you have eaten one in Naples, even if you do have to go to hell and back to get it.
Purgatorio
Every journey from hell to heaven should inevitably involve some travelling, and of course the journey shouldn't be easy, but this hour long boat ride from Naples to Capri honestly made me weigh up the return journey with finding a job on Capri until I had made enough money to pay for a private helicopter. Of course purgatorio isn't all bad, everyone was having a great time taking pictures on the deck, that is until their breakfasts decided to say buongiorno again. Fantastically, we had decided to come to Capri on a day of 'mare mosso' (rough sea), and the waves were throwing our little boat around as much as the old Italian ladies were throwing their rosary beads in the air and praying for salvation.
Paradiso
The first step onto dry land after that journey felt like arriving in heaven. Not necessarily because Capri is a beautiful island, which it is, but because it is made of earth and not water. If Prada designed islands, this would be it. It really is an Italian paradise for the rich who can afford to take the private helicopter. Even though this little island is part of the community of Naples, it has none of the same rubbish problems, dilapidated buildings or crime. Quite obviously, this tiny patch of land is where the 'sugar-coating for tourists' taxes end up, confirmed by the presence of Disney cruises.
In fact, it is due to Mickey Mouse that Capri is not the real Paradiso in this blog entry. Even though my Paradiso is currently full of tourists, Disney hasn't found it yet. My home in Italia. Siena: better than Florence since 900BC.
P.s. Sincere apologies to anyone who lives in/has family in Naples. Honestly I did have a lovely weekend there (aside from the afore mentioned incidents).
- comments
Sophia Berry Carly . . . this is incredible just like your sausage casserole! x