Spanish Quarter, Naples

Naples was under Spanish rule in the 16th century.

High density housing for the troops was built on the hills west of Via Toledo. Expect steep stairs.

Expect also a feast of texture and visual incident.

Expect shrines,

shrines of a delirious idiosyncrasy.

It is a wonderful neighbourhood for aimless wandering. Bill and I returned there many times in our month long visit.

We were frankly dazzled

by the textures of everyday life

and charmed by evocative juxtapositions of detail.

We've been showing you empty streets,

but nearby the streets are crowded with cars,

and Neapolitan motorbikes. Watch your toes!

Bill noticed two murals by the same artist.

In the absence of any information we are calling him or her The Master of the Black Figure.

Before lunch we found shrines framed in blue neon.

And a moving evocation of Christ on the cross.

We proceeded to lunch under the eye of this life-sized cardboard soccer player.

University of Naples Botanical Garden

Italians call it the Orto Botanico.

Bill and I passed through the gate and found ourselves in a thicket of primeval tree ferns.

Bill's instincts drew him deeper

into the lush vegetation.

A Jurassic Park dinosaur raising its head on a long neck would not have surprised me as I set off after Bill.

What we found surprised us both: the Old Man of the Mountain addressing a group of local schoolchildren.

Some kind of curious Garden Spirit seemed to be manifesting itself in order to listen in.

A few steps away the vegation changed.

Suddenly we were in a desert,

surrounded on every side by a splendid variety of plant life.

With so much to take in I fell back on subtraction

and tried to isolate a few individuals for a group portrait.

I was impressed that this elderly tree had been given the support it obviously needs to remain upright.

Another top-heavy desert tree with enabling supports.

Domenico Cirillo, physician and botanist, was killed in 1799 for his participation in a short-lived Neapolitan Republic. The Botanical garden opened eleven years later in 1810.

On our way out of the garden Bill and I passed voluptuously elderly palm trees set in a well-maintained lawn.

We bid the gardens goodbye and walked back into the centre of Naples for lunch.

A Walk Along Via dei Tribunali

Via dei Tribunali was our main street in Naples.

Laid out by the Greeks 3,000 years ago, it was an immediate success and is still thronged daily with visitors.

Bill and I needed apartment basics: scissors, sponges, cutting board. The friendly staff of the Euro Casa Casalinghi (household items shop) had it all.

I liked to put my hand on the skull outside the church of Santa Maria delle Anime del Purgatorio (St Mary of the Souls in Purgatory).

This memento mori reminds us that we must die.

The skull is steps away from this exuberant portrait of Sophia Loren. Naples makes room for both.

Across the street, under a line of arcades, we passed a handsome octopus. On the card is written Pozzuoli Polpo (octopus from Pozzuoli).

We shopped regularly for dairy and canned beer at Quari Qualità and Risparmio (quality and savings), happy to have this shop 15 minutes from our apartment.

This shrine to what I would call the Queen of Heaven was been mounted on a pillar in front of the shop.

Trattoria da Carmine is a favourite restaurant for Bill and me from previous trips. It was nice to see again the family that run the place.

Via Tribunali ends at the gate of Via Port'Alba. Beyond this arch is a warren of new and second hand bookstores. They were often an evening destination for us.

We always had a browse in the Libreria Antiquaria Colonnese. Great book jacket designs for "Brief History of How I Became Normal" and this Italian translation of the "Thousand Nights and a Night."

We entered Enoteca Scagliola looking for some wine for Bill. We were greeted by the wineshop dog and we left with an excellent Primitivo.

At the eastern end of Via dei Tribunali we found Caravaggio's "Seven Acts of Mercy" in Pio Monte della Miseracordia. Ticket includes an art museum upstairs.

The Basilica San Paolo Maggiore stands near the agora of the original Greek Naples. The pillar on the right is 3,000 years old, displayed for all to see.

We're looking down from San Paolo at San Lorenzo Maggiore and the heart of the Greek agora. Someone has dressed up for his Roman Catholic First Communion.

We bought so many household goods from the Cassalinga that the proprietors became friends. Neapolitans love their city and they want you to love it too. 

Lunch in Pignasecca Market

Our grocery shopping in Naples often took John and me to the Pignasecca Market,

where we were often charmed by the look and details of the market stalls,

and the abundance of meat and vegetables.

We quickly chose the lady in black on the right as our source for tomatoes and fruit. In this way we became that most Italian thing: her loyal customers.

Our morning's shopping in hand we passed another visually splendid vendor

and his army of acciughe (anchovies) -- any one of which could add depth to someone's lunch or dinner.

We frequented two restaurants in the market. Trattoria Pignasecca sited on a hill in the Spanish quarter was little more than a plastic tent attached to a kitchen. 

The slope of the hill made sitting awkward, but the food was great. Our friend Theresa and I tucked into our pastas.

She led us, another day, to the nearby Trattoria del Sole: a larger venue with an even better menu.

As we entered someone took away this stunning fish fry.

For my starter I ordered these heaven-sent stewed peppers.

and their Pasta Siciliana: roasted eggplant and tomatoes with basil and penne rigate pasta. A keeper!

John had a generous shellfish spaghetti.

We watched a waiter pour a mezzo litro (half litre) carafe of house white wine from a plastic jug.

Two shop-proud butchers posed for John.

Our favourite vendor also posed for him. She told us she hoped we would return soon. May her words come true!