Sunday, April 30, 2017

A day exploring Scavi di Pompei

While Naples on its own turned out to be a delight, the key reason for me to visit Naples was to explore the neighbouring ruins of Pompeii. Pompeii was lost in the 79 AD volcanic eruption of Mt Vesuvius, that claimed not just Pompeii but also the settlements of Herculaneum, Oplontis and Stabiae.

This vibrant city was lost for 1500 years and was unearthed in 1599 when digging of an underground channel to divert the river Sarno ran into ancient walls covered with paintings and inscriptions. However, intentional excavations only began in 1748 and honestly haven't ended. It has been a popular tourist destination for over 250 years now and attracts millions of visitors every year.

Scavi di Pompei lie just 45 minutes from the modern city of Naples. The metro took us back to Garbaldi station where we walked over to the Circumvesuviana platforms to board the train for Pompeii. Circumvesuviana trains are not part of the national Trenitalia network, so they have their own ticketing system. Tickets are inexpensive on this line and don’t require advance purchase or reservations, and the trains are all slow, regional trains.

The train to Sorrento, that would take us to Pompeii, runs every 30 minutes, so if you  miss one - there would be a long wait for  the next. The ride to Pompei Scavi-Villa dei Misteri was about 40 minutes long and since we had started after peak hour, we didn't find the train too crowded or uncomfortable.

It is a very short walk from the station to the entrance of the Pompeii site. There are two platforms at the Pompeii station, one for each direction of trains. The Pompei Scavi station is very small, though there is a bar and an information desk as well as restrooms available. There are a number of sit-down restaurants nearby to cater to the Pompeii tourists, though most are rather overpriced.

As soon as we got off the train, we came across a tour agency that runs guided tours in English (and other languages) for the excavation site. I decided to sign us up for same as I was advised by a friend to take a guided tour if possible. Luckily for us, the tour was about to commence in 5 minutes - so we quickly paid up 12 Euros per head and joined the group. The guide led us to the ticketing counter of the ruins where we paid another 13 Euros to gain access to the site. Within minutes, we were at the site.

The tour lasted for 2 hours and in that window, our guide could only take us through handful of the excavated structures. The ruins are spread over a huge area, there is a lot to look at and it can take all day to see everything. This is a walking site only and walking the old Roman stone roads can be quite exhausting. Even with cool weather, we were always looking for shade, not sure how bad it would be to see in summer. The old roads are uneven and have grooves in them where the carts ran, and the rocks are smooth and may be covered with fine sand. One needs good comfortable, footwear, sunscreen and hats.

After the tour, the group was left at the Forum - the exit closest to Forum leads to the train station. However, we chose to spend a few more hours at the site instead of heading back to Naples or visit Mt. Vesuvius. It was too early for the former and there simply wasn't enough time to do justice to the volcanic mountain that day. So we took out the map provided to us at the time of buying the ticket and continued to enjoy the ruins. In hindsight, I should have planned the visit better by doing some research online - it is just not possible to see everything in one day even if one has the energy to walk that much. It would have been better to select the sights upfront and map them out before landing at the archaeological site.

Below are some pictures that would provide some flavour of what to expect at Pompeii:

Quadrangle as we enter the site. The face is modern art and not a relic.

Small Theatre. Some of us stood in the middle and voiced a few words. Acoustics are amazing 

Larger Theatre -Theatre built in the hollow of a hill for acoustic advantage; it seated 5,000

A street in Pompeii. This runs north to south and would carry all waste water to river.  The sidewalks are higher than the modern sidewalk because the streets had water and waste flowing through them - they didn't have drains apparently

The big stones were used to cross the streets filled with waste water. The track marks show that one needed to use special local transport for goods. They would need to leave their own wagons outside the city

Thermopolium - literally "a place where (something) hot is sold. They could be simply take-away places or could have rooms in the back for service.

A large house. This one is Casa del Menandro

The two portions show that there was an existing city over which Naples was built. Which presumably had also vanished due to a former eruption of Mt Vesuvius

The wall below the brick is original, above is restored. One can find it happen vertically as well 

A common bath. Two levels- lower level for hot water

One of the 46 fountains used by regular folks for drinking water. Richer folks had water in their homes 

Mosaic on the streets.

Mosaic in the houses

The Amphitheatre of Pompeii is the oldest surviving Roman amphitheater and yes it's older than the Colosseum.  It was completed in 80 BC, measures 135 x 104 metres and could hold about 20,000 people. It was used for gladiator battles, other sports and spectacles involving wild animals.






Saturday, April 29, 2017

Naples - Italy's most unlikely masterpiece

Naples is Italy in the extreme - it's the birthplace of pizza & Sophia Loren and its the home of the Camorra (Naples' "family" of organized crime). It is brash and vibrant, it has graffiti and it has breathtaking frescoes, sculptures and panoramas, it has grime and it has vainglorious palaces, castles and churches.
 
But when it comes to food - there is no contradictory extremes - everything it offers is beyond words. It serves up the country's best pizza, pasta and coffee, and many of its most celebrated seafood dishes, street snacks and sweet treats.
 
Its proximity to Pompeii and Amalfi coast makes it even more attractive. This third largest city of Italy is one of its oldest, most artistic and most delicious. And undoubtedly I am in love with it!
 
When I planned this trip, I knew that Naples is a long distance from Venice and I also knew that it is going to be a complete opposite of Venice. And I am glad that I combined the two cities in one trip - the differences actually made for a very fun holiday.
 
From Venice, we took a 5  hours train (Frecciarossa) to Naples. It was an early morning departure that got us into Naples at 12:45 pm. The hotel was couple of stops by metro and we checked in around 1:30 pm. We were hungry so we asked hotel staff for pizza place recommendation and they suggested Sorbillo.
 
Somewhere on way to that place, we found ourselves in a square with many pizza serving places and we decided to just try one at random. And we weren't disappointed. We ordered a Margherita pizza with some inexpensive wine - both turned out to be great.
 
The pizza in Naples is prepared with simple and fresh ingredients: a basic dough, raw tomatoes, fresh mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, and olive oil - no fancy toppings. One of its defining characteristics is that there is often more sauce than cheese, leaving the middle of the pie wet or soggy and not conducive to being served by the slice. The sides of the pie are as thick as normal pizza but at the center its very thin. It's like a bowl for holding the soupy tomato and cheese. While most people eat one pizza by themselves, we ordered one pizza between two of us - and it was quite filling. The stomach was full but the taste buds wanted more :) 
Sweets on display
 
After this amazing lunch, we walked down the Spaccanapoli - a straight and narrow main street that traverses the old, historic center of the city. The name means "Naples splitter" - it is very long and from above it seems to divide that part of the city. This was like walking down the lanes of Bara Bazaar in Kolkata.  
Seven Works of Mercy by Caravaggio
 
 
 
 
 
 
The street also provides access to a number of important sights of the city and while walking along the street we reached Pio Monte della Misericordia - a church that is famous for its artworks including Caravaggio's The Seven Works of Mercy. The paintings are really good and are accompanied by a good audio guide. We really enjoyed the 90 minutes that we spent here. 
Naples Cathedral - Exterior
 
 
 
Less than 200 m was Naples cathedral and we decided to drop in even though after St Peter's Basilica, I am not easily impressed by churches any more :) However Naples Cathedral surprised me - it is a beautiful cathedral built in French Gothic style.
  
Royal Chapel of the Treasure of San Gennaro
Naples Cathedral is also home to the Crypt and the Chapel of Naples Patron Saint, San Gennaro and it is where the famous blood liquefaction ceremony takes place three times a year. The miracle is not approved by the Church, but neither has it condemned it. 
 
Altar of the Naples Cathedral
 
Having woken up at 5 am to catch the 7:30 train, we were fairly tired by now, so we decided to walk back to the hotel but we didn't want to end the day just yet...we just sat down at a bar near the hotel and enjoyed a nice ale in the cool evening breeze.  




 

Thursday, April 6, 2017

Murano and Burano


On suggestion from a friend, we decided to visit these islands on our own instead of choosing a half day tour. I located the boarding point for the Vaperatto while on my morning run along the Grand Canal. Yes...I went out for a run again but today was much colder (around 8 degrees in Celsius) so I decided to wear pants and a fleece. But today being Monday, the crowds were much higher so I skipped the narrow lanes and stuck to the wider  streets along the Grand Canal

Around 10 am, we reached the Vaperatto station at Piazzale Roma but we just missed the boat/ferry to Murano. The next one was after 20 minutes and it was a slow one with various stops along the way (Line 4.2). However, we later discovered that the one that takes 17 minutes is extremely crowded (Line 3).

Anyways, we boarded the Line 4.2 for Murano and it took us about 45 minutes to reach Murano Museo - the last stop in Murano. For tourists it is the best stop as there is a wonderful glass museum just couple of hundred meters away.

Since we hadn't had breakfast, we first got some coffee and then paid 10 euros to gain entry into the glass museum. The museum turned out to be a very pleasant surprise. We first watched the silent video that showed various kind of techniques used to produce the amazing glass products. After that we spent over an hour admiring the collections. Below are some of the pictures I clicked in the museum.

A glass centerpiece designed like an Italian garden with fountains, arches, pots with flowers, flowerbeds.




 
After the museum visit, we chose to have lunch before taking the Vaperatto for Burano as that was another 35 minutes ride. The colder morning had given way to a warm and sunny afternoon. We sat by the water, sipped on some spritzer (apparently that's almost a religion in Venice!)  and had some lasagna. Such afternoons are the best part of visiting Europe...small cafes...sitting out in the open, enjoying the breeze & sun (and in this case water as well) and watching the world go by.  
 
Post this long leisurely lunch we took the Line 4.2 to Murano Faro as that's the stop for boarding the Line 12 for Burano. The crowd waiting for Burano was huge and we wondered if we would even get to board the ferry. Our fears were unfounded as this was a much larger boat and could fit all of us in - but we had to stand for the entire journey of 35 minutes.
View of Murano as we left for Burano

A canal in Burano

A quirky window display in Burano
 
Burano turned out to be another beautiful and sleepy island...so sleepy that the lace museum was closed :). So we simply walked around, enjoyed a gelato, had some Prosecco & calamari and after about an hour or so, boarded the Line 12 back for Murano Faro.
 
Line 12 also goes to Venice but not to Piazzale Roma, so we decided to change to Line 3 at Faro. Line 3 turned out to be like a Mumbai local in peak time...but it did get us to Venice in less than 20 minutes.
 
We wanted to retire early today as we had spent more than 2.5 hours standing (waiting for ferries and then on the ferry). And I always feel more tired when standing vs while walking. But before that we wanted to pick up some venetian masks and a coffee maker that can be used on regular gas stove.
So we again walked down Strada Nova, picked up some beautiful masks but couldn't find the coffee maker. The mask vendor suggested the COOP store at Piazzale Roma for same and since it was on way back to apartment, we decided to check it out. And yes, we did find it at the COOP store :)
 
So, here is how it works...there are three parts to it - the top part can be unscrewed, middle part is to add the coffee powder, and you add the water in the bottom chamber till the steam vent. When you heat it on stove, the water comes through the coffee filter, rises up the central column and fills the top chamber. Pretty cool!
 
With the shopping done, we picked up some dinner and Bellini to enjoy the last evening in Venice in the comfort of the beautiful apartment with lovely views, as next morning we had an early start to catch 7:35 am Frecciarossa to Naples.



Monday, April 3, 2017

Venice

I had my heart set on Venice for a long time, even though there were many not-so-great reviews of the place. I, however, wanted to visit it before it vanishes due to the rising sea levels. Hence, despite all warnings, I planned a short (3 night) trip to Venice. And I wasn't disappointed!

We had a flight via Paris and we landed at Venice Marco Polo airport at 2:30 pm. I had arranged a taxi pick-up through my Airbnb host and we were in her beautiful apartment by 4 pm. The apartment overlooked a canal and was just 5 minutes walking distance from Piazzale Roma - the principal arrival point in Venice. The square acts as the main bus station for Venice and is close to the main Santa Lucia (Ferrovia) railway station.

We both had only one medium sized wheeled bag and one backpack each, so it wasn't difficult to traverse the three bridges to the apartment. One must keep that in mind when visiting Venice - the transport will not reach your doorstep and hence big luggage or more than one wheeled bag per head isn't easy to handle.

Since it was already 4 pm, we decided to just walk around the area and get a feel of the place. Only item on the agenda was to procure a local sim card because we couldn't find any outlet at the airport. Our driver had suggested that we might find outlets for TIM, Wind and Vodafone (3 key mobile operators) on Strada Nova (new street). So we went past Piazzale Roma, climbed over the Ponte della Costituzione (a modern footbridge over the western end of the Grand Canal) and started our hunt.


Masks on display
We were tired due to lack of sleep the previous night and 4 hour layover, but the street was fun and we were enjoying our walk. There were shops and vendors of all kinds. After about a mile of walking, we found a big TIM outlet but the queue wasn't moving (there were 3 women with a dog who weren't interested in leaving the counter), so we went ahead to Vodafone store & found them to be too expensive. On way back to TIM store, we ran into Wind store and discovered that they cant promise activation soon as their systems are down. With heavy heart, we went back to  TIM store and guess what - those 3 women were still there!!! Though thanks to them, rest of the waiting customers had left.

A gondola along the way

Finally we acquired a local sim, picked up some milk (for my morning coffee) from a COOP store near by and sat down just next door for an early dinner. We ordered Prosecco (Italian sparkling wine), Lasagna Bolognese and Mushroom Risotto. While wine and Risotto were good, Lasagna was just amazing. It turned out to be a really lovely meal. After the meal, we slowly walked back to the apartment while enjoying a gelato :) 


Sunset view from our bedroom window


The apartment was simply wonderful with lots of space - bedroom, living room, kitchen and decent sized bathroom. Our host had provided us all kinds of tea and coffee, fruits, breakfast snacks, some yoghurt and even a bottle of Prosecco. The bathroom had everything we needed including a hair dryer. The view of the canal from the bedroom was as promised - overall the place was actually better than as seen in the photos. We were quite tired by now and hence we retired by 8:30 pm

Next day I woke up at 7 am, and after coffee, went out for a run. Long ago, I had watched a Woody Allen movie in which Julia Roberts runs by the canals of Venice (Everyone Says I Love You). Ever since, I had wanted to run in Venice. Since the temperature was around 13 degrees in Celsius, it was perfect for a morning run. It was a Sunday and there were hardly any people in the streets. It was fun to run along the Grand Canal, the smaller canals, through bridges and narrow lanes...I was happy!!!


View of Grand Canal from Rialto Bridge
Late morning, we decided to walk to Piazza San Marco (St Mark Square). It took us about 45 minutes to get there through Ponte di Rialto (Rialto Bridge). It is the oldest bridge among the four bridges that span across the Grand canal, and was the dividing line for the districts of San Marco and San Polo. Earlier it was made of timber and the present stone bridge was completed in 1591 and is similar to the wooden bridge it succeeded.


Basilica Di San Marco as viewed from St Mark Square


By the time we reached the Basilica Di San Marco, it was 11:30 am and almost the time for Sunday mass. Since the Basilica would open again at 2 pm, we decided to grab some wine & snacks in a nearby restaurant.

There was live music, throngs of crowds, pigeons and seagulls...a very lively scene. The weather was sunny but not hot - a perfect noon to sit and relax!


Bridge of Sighs





After a while, we walked along the Grand Canal and saw Ponte dei Sospiri (Bridge of Sighs). The enclosed bridge is made of white limestone, has windows with stone bars, and passes over the Rio di Palazzo and connects the Prigioni Nuove (New Prison) to the interrogation rooms in the Doge's Palace. The name comes from the suggestion that prisoners would sigh at their final view of beautiful Venice through the window before being taken down to their cells









The Pala d’Oro–an incredible gem-encrusted gold altar piece


It was almost 2 pm, so we walked back to the Basilica, deposited our backpack nearby and finally entered the building. Photography is not allowed but I did manage to click a picture of the Pala d’Oro–an incredible gem-encrusted gold altar piece.

I decided against climbing the Campanile bell tower next to Basilica- because actually there is no climb - an elevator takes you all the way to the top - no fun!!!



After the visit to Basilica we continued our walk along the Riva degli Schiavoni (waterfront) for a while. We enquired about the Gondola ride (costs 80 euros for 30 minutes) but decided against it.

Instead we picked up a 20 euro 24 hour Vaperatto pass for visiting Murano & Burano next day. Soon after, the gathering clouds forced us to make our way back to our apartment - though we chose a bit longer but different path to get back. It did start to rain on the way back but our rain jackets helped. Thus ended a beautiful sunny day in the lovely city of Venice