Day 7 - Capri Island Boating

Today we got up bright and early at 5:45am! We made our way to the metro which took us to the port so we could get the 7:00 ferry from Naples to Capri. Pat and Sarah were supposed to do the same but being typical if Patryk, the were late and missed the ferry so they had to get the 8:00 ferry. 

Once we arrived we made our way to the meeting point which was a restaurant right next to the dock. We had ourselves a quick breakfast and then met our the guy in charge of the boat tours. He showed us to our boat and introduced us to our guide enrico. We left the dock on the boat around 9:30 to begin our tour around the island. 

The boat and the tour were awesome! We stopped to do some cliff jumping and got to go inside of the famous blue grotto and also got to snorkel in some of the other small grottos. It was a blast and all the while our tour guide was telling us the history of the island and pointing out fun and interesting facts. We also picked up champagne before we left which was delicious to drink as we cruised around. 

Entering the blue grotto

Inside the blue grotto

On the boat

I forgot to mention that I wore my speedo (which I originally got back when I studied abroad in Spain)....when in Italy! I'm happy to say 5 years later it still fits haha. 

Kissing under the arch

The tour lasted around 3 hours and the let us back off at the main port of the island. I noticed that the police cars on the island were little smart cars so I had to get a picture.

Once back we took the funicular (a cable car) up to the main city in Capri which is on top of one of the mountains of the island. We walked around the city and ate at a nice restaurant with a great view of the island and sea. I had the mixed seafood place and it was delicious. After eating we walked to the Arco naturale so we could see it from land. 

View from Capri city 

The Arco naturale 

After visiting the arch we walked around the city a little longer and then went back down the funicular. Our next stop was the local "beach" if you can call it that. It's really a bunch of rocks not sand, but according to our boat guide it's the closest thing they have to a beach. After hanging around for another couple hours we took the ferry back to Naples. Once back we went to our hostel and got our bags to take to our new place we were staying which was an airbnb just a few blocks away. Since we loved Gino Sorbillos soo much we decided to go again! Except this time instead of waiting forever to get a table we ordered what the Italians call "take away" which is the same as our to-go or take out. Again the pizza was amazing, you literally can't go wrong there. After eating we went to bed. 

Day 6 - Erculano, Mt Vesuvious, and Pompeii

Today we woke up around 6:45 and got ready for a day trip out to Pompeii. On the way to the metro we stopped and grabbed some tasty pastries at the local shop. We took the metro to the train station where we met up with pat and Sarah to catch the 8:13 train which took us to our first stop, Erculano. 

Erculano is another town that was destroyed when Vesuvious erupted in 79 AD. The town was pretty small and we walked around the outskirts of it for a couple of minutes. Next we went to catch a bus that was going to drive us most of the way up Mount Vesuvious. The drive itself took about 30 minutes and had some great views of Naples. Once we arrived we were able to hike some more around the rim of the volcano which was really cool. We stopped at one of the shops and tried some of the local "mount Vesuvious" wine. We hung out at the top of the mountain for a while enjoying the view and finishing up the last plans for the trip. Then we made our way back to the bus which took us to the train station which took us to our next stop, Pompeii. 

Hiking mt Vesuvious 

At the top 

Vesuvious wine

When we arrived we stopped for a quick lunch at the train station and then made our way into the city. The Pompeii ruins were much larger than the Erculano ruins. Since the ash and lava covered everything the city was really well preserved for many years. They actually have bodies that were found preserved by the ash from the eruption. It was all very interesting. We spent about 2.5 hours walking around the ruins and exploring all of the different buildings. Afterwards we made our way back to the train to go to Naples. 

Pompeii amphitheater ruins

Once back at Naples we took the metro to our hostel to shower (we were so dirty and dusty from hiking around the ruins we visited). After cleaning up we met back with pat and Sarah at Gino Sorbillos (yes we ate there again!). This time the wait wasn't as long but the pizza was just as good! The other nice thing is the pizza is super cheap! After eating we hung out a little longer and then made our way back to the hostel to sleep and get ready for another early morning tomorrow. 

Day 5 - Naples - The Best Pizza Ever

Today we slept in until 8:45 and then checked out of our hostel and went to eat at the hostels restaurant for breakfast. When we checked in to the hostel they made a mistake overcharging us (which they fixed right away) but for the hassle they gave us a 10 euro voucher for their bar/restaurant. This was by far the largest meal we had so far in the trip. I had 2 pancakes, 2 huge sausages, bacon and eggs, toast, and potatoes! I was barely able to finish it all. After breakfast we met up with pat and Sarah at the train station to make our way down to Naples! The ride to Naples took about two hours. When we arrived we took the metro which dropped us off around 2 blocks from our hostel. 

Huge breakfast

Our host Giovanni was there to greet us when we arrived. When we got there the first thing he did was show us how to make pasta which he was making us for lunch! The pasta had shrimp and  zucchini and tasted great. After our meal Giovanni sat us down and gave us a crash course on the history of Italy and Naples and all of the stuff to make sure to see and do in the city. Giovanni, is probably in his late 60s and he has been running his hostel for 17 years! He was so passionate about his city it was inspiring and really gave us some context into the significance of everything we were going to see. 

Giovanni showing us how to cook!

After our crash course we got settled and met back up with pat and Sarah at a nearby church called sansovera. This was a small church in the middle of the city that was filled with many important statues and paintings, The most famous being a statue of Jesus laying down draped in a cloth. 

Next we walked through the Christmas market, which as you might guess was filled with various Italian Christmas trinkets. Right next to the market was a small limoncello factory (limoncello is a lemon flavored liqueur made in Italy) we were able to get a quick tour of how it was made and even some free samples. 

Next we stopped to get an underground tour of Naples. In my opinion this was one of the coolest things we've done so far! We were able to go beneath the city into the underground aqueduct that was originally made by the Greeks and then used by the Romans and later used in WWII as a bomb shelter! It was like a cat underground maze with some passages you needed to squeeze through to get by and others that were huge openings. All of this was underneath the city. The city of Naples is literally built on top of the Ancient Greek and roman cities and you c an actually see remnants of it as you walk around. 

Down into the underground!

After the tour we walked around the city and stopped at a few unique churches and castles and ending along the coast. After all this walking we were starving so we made our way back to a pizza place called Gino Sorbillo, which was highly recommended by Giovanni. The wait was about an hour so we waited outside. Rachel had the great idea to order limoncello at the nearby store. She thought it was a mixed drink but it ended up being shots of limoncello, gross! Haha. Once we finally got seated our pizzas came out in less than 5 minutes. They were amazing!! Seriously THE best tasting pizza I've ever had in my life. After dinner we walked back to our hostel and went to sleep

Naples coast

Gino Sorbillos line

Amazing margarita pizza