13.06.18
Nice relaxing start to the day because today we arrived into Naples and as we had decided to not go on any tours we could get off the boat at any time (we aren’t doing any tours on this Spanish speaking boat so the only times that we are on a tight timeline are the ones were we have organised to catch the transfer bus into the towns)! So unlike the rest of the boat (who made the mad dash to get to the exit quickly) we donned our swimmers and settled up on the pool deck to have a swim. First time I’ve 
seen the pool deck empty!
After we felt more than relaxed enough (about lunchtime) we decided to finally get going and headed off the boat and into Napoli! (the boat docks right in the middle of the town so very easy to do your own thing). We had downloaded a basic “what to do in Naples in a day” and headed up to the main part of the old town via the old fortification. En-route, and not meaning to, we stumbled onto the old Royal Palace and were absolutely blown away (today it’s a shopping mall).. a huge palace that is roofed in with glass- totally gorgeous. We followed the people and kept wandering up the main street and up to the old town.
First stop was to find a pizzeria and enjoy some of Naples finest. We found a really nice pizzeria in one of the main piazzas in the old town and settled in for a really yummy Capricosa (or however it is spelt) pizza with a glass of the local brew. Very tasty + such a beautiful location for some lunch.
From lunch we kept wandering into the old town, stopped off to ogle at some gorgeous churches and ended up at checking out some old greek and roman ruins buried under the city. The tour was actually through the old cisterns that still exist under Naples.. all the volcanic activity in the area and the cisterns that were built by the Greeks in the 5th C BC are still more than standing! They even survived the bombing in the second world war. One of the most interesting things that the guide told us about the cisterns was how they were cleaned back in the day (btw they were used right up until the 1800s when widespread cholera outbreaks occurred and the town committee decided to finally brick up the water sources and stop the residents using the cisterns). These poor people would climb down the wells (they are built in nearly every square in the city (although they are bricked over today) using hand holds that were chiselled into the walls and would then climb, spider like, around the edges of the water again using these grab holes—all in total darkness! Their job was to skim the tops of the water of garbage and then climb out with the garbage on their backs… Goodness! From the Greek cisterns we walked a block to see the Naples Theatre built by Nero (or what’s left of it!) The theatre was re-discovered in the eighties by some archaeologists inside an old ladies house! Apparently, when you look at this part of Naples via google maps satellite view you can plainly see where the theatre was as all the houses in those blocks are in a semi circle shape. Anyhow, the old duck was also doing a bit of bootlegging on the side and it was in her bootleg cellar (cleverly hidden under her movable bed) that many of the Roman arches could clearly be seen. From there the govt bought the old duck’s house and it was excavated + turned into a museum to showcase Nero’s theatre.
We ran out of time late in the afternoon so didn’t get down to see the Carravagio in the Miseriecordie, nor a chance to look in the Napoli Duomo.. next time I guess! Sore calves and slightly sore head but all in all a really lovely day in Napoli.. Tomorrow, it’s the eternal city.