1) Today's objective was Procida - one of the Phlegraean Islands off the coast of Naples (in fact, it's the smallest island) in Southern Italy. As usual, we woke up extra early, before walking our way to Napoli Molo Beverrello to have breakfast. Then, we took a ferry over to the beautiful island of Procida. From Marina Grande (the main port of Procida), our first stop was Terra Murata - essentially the historical and cultural centre of the island - which provides a stunningly breathtaking view of the Gulf of Naples. Fun fact: the two long-range cannons at the top of the shaggy hill actually date back to the Neapolitan Republic of 1799!
2) After soaking in the phenomenal view of the entire gulf, we paid a short stop to Palazzo d'Avalos, completed in 1563 and which later on become the Royal Palace. In 1830, the building was converted into a citadel prison, before being closed in 1988. Sadly we didn't have the opportunity to enter, but hey, there's always next time :)
3) As things went, we continued down a series of narrow cobble-stoned paths and took a left, until we reached the Port of Corricella. There are bars and restaurants quite literally peppered all along this secluded area, with fishermen's boats neatly parked by the docks. As we were growing tired and hungry, we stopped by one of these cafes - Ristorante Bar Graziella - to have our lunch. At the owner's recommendation, we went for the mixed seafood platter and the spaghetti with mussels. The seafood was absolutely fresh (which came as no surprise really haha) and the pasta was cooked to perfection.
4) After lunch, we finished our tour of the marina, before walking back to Marina Grande to get the ferry back. We still had a lot more to cover though. Among the places we visited once back included Castel Nuovo (a medieval castle completed in 1282, becoming a popular hang-out for the leading intellectuals and the artists of the day), Galleria Umberto I (a public shopping gallery designed by Emanuele Rocco, who employed modern architectural elements reminiscent of the Galleria Vittorio Emmanuele II in Milan, Italy), and Piazza del Plebiscito (which consists of Palazzo Reale di Napoli and the church of San Francisco di Paola). We then took the Funicular Augusteo, and continued on foot to Castle Sant'Elmo.
5) Castle Sant'Elmo - a medieval fortress located on a hilltop overlooking Naples, is notable for its distinct hexagonal shape, which drew fierce criticism when it was first completed. Presently, it serves as a museum, exhibition, and offices. As it is, it provided us a magnificent view of all of Naples, including our next stop - Spaccanapoli road.
6) Spaccanapoli (lit. "Naples Splitter") is the long, straight and narrow street that traverses the old, historic centre of Naples, and when seen from above, seems to divide that part of the city. As we shuffled our way through the narrow pathway, occasionally having to make way for vehicles to pass through, my dad decided for us to have dinner here. Once again, he had found a famous pizzeria here, called Antica Pizzeria Port'Alba. First established in 1738 as a stand for peddlers, it is widely believed to be the world's first pizzeria. A cool fun fact is that a payment system, called pizza a otto, was developed that allowed customers to pay up to eight days after their meal. We had seafood pizza, spaghetti carbonara, and deep fried prawns. To top it off, we went for a side order of pizza fritta - a traditional Neapolitan deep fried pizza! Suffice to say, the food was phenomenal, and for me it was the freshness of the ingredients that really impressed me :)
7) We passed by Gesù Nuovo ("New Jesus"), which consists of the Church of Gesù Nuovo, the Church of Santa Chiara, and the Spire of the Immaculate Virgin. We went into the Church of Gesù Nuovo, which coincidentally had a choir performance that night! On the long walk back home, we managed to grab ourselves a couple of sweet treats, including a gelato each, and the famous local delicacy Neapolitan babà! A small yeast cake saturated in rum, babà is not unique to Naples and may be better recognised as "rum baba".
8) This was one heck of a tiring day for me, and boy was I glad to find a nice, warm bed to tuck myself into! That has been my day, and I hope you enjoyed reading about it. Enjoy more the abundant pictures here - sometimes words don't do them justice! Thanks for visiting as always, and have a nice day. Cheers! :D
The magnificent view from Terra Murata, Procida :)
With the friendly owner of Ristorante Bar Graziella - Vicienze O'Merican
That's Mary - the friendly waitress
View from the top of Castel Sant'Elmo - with Mt Vesuvius in the background!!
Choir performance in the Church of Gesù Nuovo
Babà :))
Papa with babà ^^
Where we got our gelato cravings satisfied :)
The clown guy in white robes and wearing a black mask is called
"Pulcinella" a.k.a. la maschera di napoli (the mask of Naples)
Museo Della Follia - "Museum of Madness"
Dinner at Antica Pizzeria Port'Alba :)
If I remember correctly, this should be a slice of pizza frutti di mare (seafood pizza)
Pizza frutti di mare
Fried prawns and oyster rings
Spaghetti carbonara! ^^
Pizza fritta - deep fried pizza!
Antica Pizzeria Port'Alba - the oldest known pizzeria in the world!
Belltower of Santa Chiara
Façade of Santa Chiara
Spire of the Immaculate Virgin
Along Spaccanapoli Street
Funiculare Centrale - as we made our way to Castel Sant'Elmo
Mozzarella di bufala ("buffalo mozzarella") - a type of cheese unique to Italy
The distinct hexagonal shape of Castel Sant'Elmo
The silhouettes of my parents juxtaposed with the lovely backdrop of Naples and Vesuvius
My finger pointing to Spaccanapoli -
which, when viewed from above, does seem to split two sections of the city...
Yeap that's how I point hahaha
Spaccanapoli
"Helmet" sculpture by Mimmo Paladino
What a view - simply fantastic!
Taking the funicular up ^^
At Piazza del Plebisito
Galleria Umberto I, Naples
Posing at Castel Nuovo a.k.a. Maschio Angioino
This is an SNAV hydrofoil, known in Italian as an "aliscafi"
View of Marina Corricella - the fisherman village!
The seafood sampler - at Ristorante Bar Graziella
Limoncello - an Italian lemon liqueur :)
With a Piaggio Ape ("Ape" is Italian for "bee")
- a three-wheeler based on a vespa scooter
Postcard perfect picture!
At the Palazzo d'Avalos
Q: Hmmmm... where to next?
A: All of them, of course!
Marina Grande, the main port of Naples
Breakfast at Lavazza, before boarding the Caremar ferry to Procida! :)
Amaretti cookie, ham and cheese pastry, and Cannoli Siciliani
Look closely and you will see the absurd waterslide!! <3 <3 <3
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