A pizza the action from Italy 🇮🇹
Earlier this year I watched Eat, Pray, Love and it changed my life. No joke. Julia Roberts is sensational as ever as the protagonist set on discovering inner happiness, love and peace - (by the end of the film she really has her shit together) - and as I sat there watching it I cried like a lemon because I could relate to feeling unfulfilled and a bit lost in my career and life. Turns out a couple of hours of watching Jules munch down an authentic Neapolitan pizza and live her best life is all it takes to see me dribble at the TV (🍕🍕) and start Googling flights to Italy in a bid to have a bit of a break from my existential crisis...
Incidentally, it was also the perfect opportunity to spend a few days catching up with an old Italian housemate of mine, (when I say old I mean “former”, not some over the hill old gubbins) - so with my Italian tour guide at my side, a yearning for sun and immense quantities of carbs, I set off on a whirlwind trip for a week, managing to conquer Naples, Ischia, Modena and Venice.
Naples
We started in a Naples for four days. Day one saw me try not to get lost prior to Alfonsina’s arrival, grabbing a long lunch by the coast, reading my book, sipping some vino and munching the freshest, tastiest darn pizza you can ever imagine (thanks Antonio & Antonio’s!) The tomatoes were SO TASTY THEY DESERVE CAPS, and the mozzarella was hella good too. My mind was blown at every bite.
I got warned that Naples can be a little sketchy if you are an obvious tourist - (which as a small freckly blonde lady I am). With a strong army presence on the street adding to a safe-ish but weird vibe, and a myriad of backstreets looking virtually identical to each other in the Spanish quarter where we were staying, I decided to have a chilled evening, ready to hit the hay after 23 hours of being awake. I did a little yoga in the Airbnb - but it was a bit savage in a tiled floor without a mat! 😴😴
Day two, Alfi arrived and we headed to see Naples historical and beautiful sites in the old town, including a tour of the former Greek turned Roman aquaducts that we’re used as bomb shelters during the world war. Lots of walking around in 33 degree heat was a tad dizzying after an Aperol or two! But we managed to squeeze a lot in, visiting the Castel Sant’Elmo (castle), many of the churches, the veiled Christ marble statue (amazing!), the botanical gardens and a lovely neighbourhood called Vomero that reminded me slightly of Paris.
Ischia Island
Our day trip to the island of Ischia and Maronti beach was absolutely stunning. I wolfed down a plate of incredible seafood pasta in between sunbathing and a dip in the sea. I paid around 44 euros for the round trip including the ferry and a bus ride to the beach - absolutely worth it for the views though, and restaurant Belmare was a treat - nestled towards the quieter end of the beach.
Modena
We took the fast train up to Bologna after our stay in Naples, (which is known colloquially as the red city, or the farty city thanks to it being the home of bolognese…), before hopping on our connecting train to Modena, a much quieter and safer area (in comparison to Naples that is) in northern Italy. It took 4 hours on the Frecciarossa (red arrow in Italian, or fast train in layman’s terms) so arriving late evening we chilled feeling a bit knackered, had some dinner and then basically suffered with no air con in Alfi’s flat. I basically just resorted to stuffing ice cream down my throat to keep cool. No complaints really. The following day, Alfi headed back to work and so I wandered around taking photos in the centre of town. It was another scorching day so I made sure to indulge in more ice cream and Aperitifs to cool me down - top points to the Italians for serving you snacks with your drinks on the regular, I was living for the snacks. In the evening we headed out for a few drinks with Alfi’s Italian mates in a local cocktail bar, preceeded by a tasty dinner in the flat cooked by yours truly. (That fresh pasta though 😍!) One day in Modena was just enough to get a flavour for the place.
Venice
The next day I got the fast train again, up to Venice Santa Lucia this time. I checked into my Airbnb (10/10 would recommend: Guesthouse Abatea, near Saint Marco’s square) having successfully navigated the water buses - was simple enough - then headed out for some grub and took my camera out to capture some snaps.
In the evening I headed to a free walking tour (check out best rated on tripadvisor - & pre-book!) It was good to wander and take some photographs without the worry of getting lost, but despite the guide’s strong navigational and historical competences, he made it quite clear early on that he felt REALLY strongly about sustainable tourism and so the overall tone of the walk struck a balance between cynical and scathing. I learned that mine (and many others’) ‘whistle stop’ tours were killing Venice 🤭...sorry Venice, one day was all I could afford... it’s a vicious cycle!!)
It was getting dark and I saw Venice turn from charming, romantic setting to panic-enduring maze before my eyes. It took a while to find my way back to the accommodation and on arrival I felt grateful not to have been swallowed up by Venice’s back alleys. The lesson learned? ALWAYS ENSURE YOU HAVE ENOUGH DATA TO NAVIGATE YOUR OWN WAY OUT OF AN AWKWARD NON-ROMANTIC ENCOUNTER. Safe to say my Giffgaff goodybag has taken a boost since that sitch... the highlight of Venice was actually that I finished ‘Norwegian Wood’ by Murakami and it really moved me. It is quite a beautiful book.
All too soon it was time to go home. Sad. The boat ride to the airport was epic though! Less sad. I returned with a few phrases of essential Italian firmly under my belt... which is now two loop holes looser to accommodate all the carb loading. 😄
