It still astounds me to wake up in a new city! To step out and behold Napoli at my feet! It has been a long time but I still remember the taste of the pizza, the chill of the cobbled streets under the weight of the grey sky and drizzling rain, not to mention the noise from the morning markets in the piazza below from my last visit. Today is nothing like that and I almost skip up the path with Castel Nuovo flanking my left side, so excited am I to be here.
Coffee is the first order of the day and where better to find it. I set my sights on the perfect little espresso bar on the Piazza Municipio, overlooking Fontana del Nettuno (another). This is the kind of bar that you could you become a regular at. Three men stand at the bar bantering with the barman, clearly the owner. If I had to bet I’d say they’d been doing the same thing every day for years. Our coffee is hot and strong, just the way it should be. From here we head up Via Miguel Cervantes de Seavedro. It doesn’t take long before I am utterly in love.
Of the Italian cities that I have had the fortune to visit, Napoli has a vibe, an energy, all its own. The streets are cobbled, there are oodles of flowers in overflowing flower pots hanging from balconies and apartment windows and people on mopeds dart in & out of the wandering pedestrians. A large proportion of these pedestrians are walking small dogs that are utterly unphased by the zipping and whizzing of the scooters.
We’re looking for a church, of course, the Basilica di Santa Chiara (church & belltower) but perhaps more importantly, the Monestary attached and located behind the church. The church we approach from the side and come around past the belltower, which sits off to the side like an afterthought, to the front. It’s not an attractive approach, the street front is at an awkward angle perched on a piazza, Piazza del Gesu Nuovo, and not a very big or particularly lovely one at that. The Church itself is as big and impressive enough. After some investigations, it appears that the Monastery is now open. Jason isn’t interested today and we agree to part ways and meet up later.
The Complesso Monumentale di Santa Chiara is incredible. Like a little walled world of its own, it must have been even more so, a haven from the outside world during periods of Napoli’s unsettled past. There is a small museum exhibiting interesting artifacts but the real attrachtion here is the exquisite courtyard with its covered arches and tiled garden columns.
I love monasteries. I think its something about the idea of such a quiet, predictable life but perhaps also the secrets that must have taken place – personal, political, religious behind closed walls that I find particularly fascinating. I am taken in by the garden and the columns of course, I love the symmetry of the porticoes and the half hidden frescoes that they shelter.
Back out on the street I follow my nose to our meeting point on Via de Sanctus Franchesco to Museo Capella Sansavero, the home of the Veiled Christ. I remember this vividly. The cold chapel, the incredible sculpture, the urge to reach out and touch the face under the veil, knowing that it should be solid, unyielding marble, yet my eyes can only comprehend a body with fabric softly draped. It is somehow other worldly and I feel moved in its presence. It is exactly how I remember it – both visually and emotionally – both slightly unnerving.
From here we wander along Via dei Tribunali and stop for a coffee and pastry. I have a risotto ball from a street window and we eventually find Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta (Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary – sounds way better in Italian!), also known as Naples Cathedral.
Originally commissioned in the 11th Century by King Charles I of Anjou, the interior is filled with frescoes and art treasures. The church houses a vial of the blood of Saint Januarius and is known for the Miracle of The Blood. Twice a year, the vial of blood is brought out, during which time the blood usually liquifies, if it fails to do so, it is seen as a bad omen for the city. There is also a crypt where St Januarius, Charles I of Anjou as well as a pope, another saint or two and various other notables are buried.
Then we able back along Via dei Tribunali and stop in Piazza San Gaetano for some lunch, accompanied by a vin rosso, because perche non?
Past Piazza Bellini and on to the Statzione Napoli Montesanto we navigate our way onto the funicular and ride it to the top, follow our noses to another Monestary.
This one, Certosa Museo di San Martino is a former monestary complex situated on Vomero hill alongside Castel Sant’Elmo. It was dedicated to St. Martin of Tours in 1368 during the reign of Queen Joan I. Today it is a museum as well as housing some very exquisitely detailed nativity scenes.
Wrought iron gates looking into the Monumental Courtyard (Il Cortile Monumentale) of the Certosa di San MartinoIn particular there is a lovely church and several chapels with some spectacular 17th and 18th Century paintings and frescoes. A choir conversi and the Chapel of the Treasure with artfully displayed relics are both incredible and slightly morbid. Perhaps this is just because I am not used to seeing human remains on display, for worship, study or any other reason for that matter, young nation as Australia is. The floor tiles on one of the steps also catch my eye. such a delightful detail yet so badly worn, the stories they could tell!
On the way back I am so tempted by Castel Sant’ Elmo and am torn between it and Castel Nuovo as we don’t have enough time left for both. In the end Castel Nuovo wins and although I’m tired and my feet are sore, we walk the couple of kilometers back from the funicular station because it seems both easier and quicker than trying to navigate the metro or a taxi for that matter.
Castel Nuovo is an impressive building. Originally dating from 1279 it is a landmark of the city and home to Kings of Naples, Aragon and Spain over centuries until as recently as 1815. One of the main features of the Castel is its Triumphal Arch, integrated into the Gate House and built to celebrate Alfonso V entrance into Naples around 1442.
Another feature is the Baron’s Hall with its great vaulted ceiling. It’s call the Baron’s Hall because one of the Kings of Naples, King Ferdinand I, having invited his barons for a feast, trapped them in the hall, arrested them and later had them executed for conspiracy against him.
After a bit more of a wander round, there are some Roman ruins downstairs and a collection of Neapolitan paintings on one of the floors. We also wander through a room of sculptures and busts although some of them appear to be reproductions. The building itself is the real feature though. That and perhaps some more great views, this time of the port and harbor. As we make our way back through maritime customs and onto the ship I reflect on this ‘new’ city and how it has managed to reinvent itself through the centuries. Everything that’s old feels new again.
Would I Return?
Yes. It is incredible to wake up with a new city on your doorstep. Being able to step off a ship and be in Castel Nuovo within 5 minutes with the old town all within walking distance is pretty special. Whether you consider it old or new, incredible awaits.
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