Naples, In the Shadow of Vesuvius: Pompeii and Pizza

****A series of Posts about our travels through Southern Italy*****

January 1, 2008-January 2, 2008

We arrived in Napoli on New Year's Day after seven hours of traveling on trains only to find out that the circumvesuviana train (the metro system in Naples) was not running. Just our luck!! Our hotel, Casa Mazzola (which our friend's Lawren and Steve from Verona had recommended), was in Sant'Agnello, a hill top town near Sorrento and 50 km from Naples. We had many bags and Ollie, so taking a bus was out of the question! We ended up taking a taxi for 150 Euros that took nearly 2 hours! We were so glad that we had agreed upon a price before the taxi driver saw how much traffic there really was (heading back towards Napoli)! Our taxi driver was really friendly, albeit sexist, and many times wanted to pull off the highway so we could take pictures of Vesuvius or the coast. He was so proud of Naples, which was really nice. As we came to find out, our taxi driver was only interested in what Reed had to say and could care less what I had to say! At one point he asked when Reed's birthday was and also when Oliver's birthday was (he knew Ollie was a boy), commenting on both of their astrological signs (something that a lot of Italian seem to be interested in) but never once asking about my birthday! Just an observation.....

We were a little worried when we arrived at Casa Mazzola because it was definitely not near the Circumvesuviana train line, like the owner had said. Instead it was about 2 miles up a winding road. (A Note: Casa Mazzola is def. budget friendly at 50 Euros a night, however without a car it can be difficult. There is one bus with infrequent service down to the Circumvesuviana. In addition, without a car it is necessary to get a ride from the owner to get to any restaurant.)

We were not quite sure that anything would be open for dinner or even sure how we would get to a place if it was open. The owner, Luigi, found a restaurant that was open, La Rosa. This place was great and cheap. We were the only people in the restaurant and we shared an order of gnocchi alla sorrentina (with bufala mozzarella) and both had a margherita pizza (Reed's had sausage and onions). After a long day it was time for bed!

Wednesday, January 2, we woke up early to head to Pompeii. The views from out B&B out towards Naples and the Gulf of Naples were spectacular.

Mt. Vesuvius and the sunrise

Gulf of Naples

Vesuvius and vineyards

The circumvesuviana train was running and in 30 minutes we had arrived at Pompeii. We planned on spending a few hours at Pompeii touring the main sites (The Basilica, Casa del Poeta Tragico, Lupanare (brothel), and the Terme Stabiane (thermal baths)) before heading to Naples for lunch.

Mt. Vesuvius behind Pompeii

Some of the more interesting things we learned from the audio tour was that the basilica was not used for religious purposes; instead it was the center of law and home of the tribunal. It's name, the basilica, was adapted later because of the similarity in appearance to Christian basilica's. The Lupanare was one of 25 brothels in Pompeii. The name, Lupanare, comes from the Roman word "Lupa" which means prostitute. The lupanare had 10 rooms and the price for a prostitute was equivalent to 2 glasses of medium quality wine!

Ruins of the Basilica

We were shocked when we got to Pompeii and saw that dogs were allowed at the ruins. Not limited to the stray dogs that make Pompeii there home, but also a number of tourists had brought their dogs along!

Preserved human

Preserved dog

One of the other interesting things I learned from the audio guide was that Pompeii was pretty much under construction at the time Vesuvius erupted. An earthquake 10 years earlier had pretty much leveled the city and at the time of the eruption construction was under way!

Pompeii street

Orange and Lemon stand outside the gates of Pompeii

The lemons were huge!

The weather was really cold and windy so around 12:30 we decided to head back and catch the circumvesuviana train into Napoli so we could sightsee and have some great pizza! We really wanted to have pizza at Da Michele in Naples, which is supposed to be the oldest pizzeria (having made pizza since 1870!) but the line was crazy and it looked like we might have to wait for a long time and it was already 2. Instead we headed over to Trianon, which is right across the street and we only had to wait 30 minutes.


Ttrianon has been tossing pizza dough since 1923 and the walls are covered with black and white photos of old Naples. We both had the margherita pizza con bufala but were kind of disappointed that the pizza was not as good as it had been the night before!

Waiting for Pizza!

The menu

The pizza!

After lunch we wandered around Spaccanapoli, the ancient heart of Naples. Spaccanapoli is really interesting, having a number of alimentari (food shops) and restaurants nestled in narrow winding streets.

It even has a doll hospital!


Naples has a lot of charm and a lot of potential. Of course we took all the precautions with our money etc., but we never felt threatened or unsafe. The buildings were beautiful and if you take time, Naples is a city worth visiting and exploring.






As we were walking around we came across a lemon store which sold lemon liquors and other lemon products including lemon pasta! The very nice man inside, invited us inside to see his production of limoncello and gave us a taste! We also found an alimentaria/salumeria located at Piazza Luigi Miraglia (in the heart of Spaccanapoli) that has been opened since 1895! We bought some bread, olives, Mozzarella di Bufala, and salumi for dinner. The store owner told us that in order to have the best mozzarella we needed to soak it for 20 minutes in warm water. We later found out that this is done in the winter because the cold temperatures change the texture of the cheese.

Lemon rinds used to prepare Limoncello

Before heading out we stopped by the cathedral, which is fairly plain on the outside but very ornate on the inside.

Exterior Facade

Interior Facade

The 17th century baroque Capella di San Gennaro is one of the highlights of the interior. Inside the chapel you can see the skull and a few phials of the saint's congealed blood, St. Gennaro, the city's patron saint. St. Gennaro was maryred in 305 AD and legend has it that his blood liquified within the phials when his body was returned to Naples. On the 1st Sunday in May, September 19, and December 16 thousands of people gather in the cathedral for the Festa di San Gennaro to witness the saint's blood liquify: a miracle believed to save the city from potential disasters.

Capella di San Gennaro

Ceiling in the Capella di San Gennaro

We finished off the day by eating some of the great food we had bought in the city!

Soaking the Mozzarella di Bufala in our bathroom sink...

Preparing dinner

Wine, bread, cheese, olives, and salumi all from Napoli!

Tomorrow: We head out of Campania and visit a majestic seaside cathedral in Trani and then off to Ostuni, Puglia's white city where Opera music is played in the streets!

Ristrorante La Rosa
Via Nastro Azzurro, 28
80063 Piano Di Sorrento (NA), Italy
+39 081 8083556