I Love Touring Italy - Naples

If you are looking for a European tourist destination,
consider the city of Naples in the Campania region of
southwestern Italy on the Tyrrhenian Sea. In 1995 UNESCO
declared the Historic Center of Naples a World Heritage
Site. We certainly can’t say that Naples is
undiscovered. But it is definitely less tourist infested
than many, many other Italian cites. You really should
consider visiting Naples, as you should consider visiting
other parts of Campania, described in companion articles in
this series.

My generation remembers Dean Martin singing That’s
Amore (Napoli) in his perhaps less memorable 1953 movie,
The Caddy: “When the stars make you drool just like
pasta fazool; That's amore (that's amore); When you dance
down the street with a cloud at your feet, you're in love;
When you walk in a dream but you know you're not dreaming,
signore; 'scusa me, but you see, back in old Napoli, that's
amore.” My parents’ generation remembers the
phrase See Naples and Die. Some say that the famous German
author Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe (who wrote Faust, a
charming story about a guy who made a pact with the devil)
coined this phrase on his extended visit to Italy in
1786-1788.

Greek colonists founded Neopolis (new city) between the
Seventh and Sixth Centuries B. C. The city maintained its
Greek character during the Roman occupation. Over the
centuries this sometimes beautiful, often ugly city was
dominated by nearly a dozen nationalities ranging from the
(French) Angevins to the (German) Swabians. Things were not
always quiet. For example, in 1647 Masaniello a Neapolitan
fisherman led a tax revolt against the Spanish occupiers.
He died but became a national hero, and the revolt led to a
short-lived Neapolitan republic.

At one time Naples was the third largest city in Europe and
a major cultural center. When the Bourbon kings established
the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies in 1738 they chose Naples
as its capital. After joining Italy in 1860 Naples started
to decline. The Campania regional economy ranks near the
bottom of the Italian regional economies, but these
statistics are somewhat misleading as they don’t
count the underground economy. Unlike the cities of
northern Italy Naples has few immigrants, perhaps forty
thousand, in a metropolitan population of at least three
million. Unemployment remains high. The Sicilian-based
Mafia is not very present, but the local Camorra is. Like
anywhere else, and probably more so, you should watch
yourself and your belongings in this fascinating city.

We’ll start our tour underground. Naples is home to
miles and miles of subterranean Greco-Roman reservoirs and
tunnels, some of which are available for visiting. People
who lived above these tunnels once got their drinking water
from wells in their homes. Much of Naples is constructed
from stone removed during tunnel excavation. During World
War II underground Naples served as air raid shelters whose
walls display legible graffiti more than sixty years later.
Unfortunately many tunnels are still blocked from World War
II rubble. The rest of our tour will be above ground
starting with Royal Naples.

The Castel Nuovo (New Castle) was first built by the
Angevins in the Thirteenth Century and includes a
decorative marble arch honoring a Spanish king. The castle
includes numerous frescoes from the Fourteenth and
Fifteenth Centuries. The moat surrounding the castle once
contained a crocodile that devoured prisoners. The
crocodile was killed and stuffed, and hung above a castle
doorway where it remained until the mid-19th Century. The
nearby Palatine Chapel includes the ironically named Sala
dei Baroni (Baron’s Hall) in which a king doused
boiling oil on rebellious barons who thought they were
going to a quite different kind of party. In another
version of the story, they were arrested and executed. In
any case the room is still used for city council meetings.

The Twelfth Century Castel dell’Ovo (Egg Castle) was
built upon the ruins of a Roman villa in Naples Harbor. As
they say in real estate, location, location, location.
Should you so desire, you can get a hotel room right on the
promontory.

The Palazzo Reale (Royal Palace) built in the beginning of
the Seventeenth Century was one of four Bourbon Palaces in
the Kingdom of Naples, the only one in town.
Napoleon’s youngest sister and her husband, the King
of Naples, lived there. Be sure to see the royal apartments
to get a look at real luxury. Next door to the palace is
Naples largest square, the Piazza del Plebiscito
(Plebiscite Plaza), designed for that king and named for
the plebiscite that joined Naples to Italy in 1860. The
highlight of the square is the San Francesco di Paola,
which resembles the Pantheon in Rome. There are literally
dozens of historic churches in Naples, spanning the
centuries.

If we are going to cite Dean Martin, we should give equal
time to Mario Lanza. In 1950 he produced an
English-language version of the popular Italian tune
Funiculi, Funicula featured in many movies and in the very
first episode of The Flintstones. What does all this have
to do with Naples? Take the funicular (a self-contained
cable railway in which a pair of vehicles on rails moves up
and down a very steep slope counterbalancing each other) to
the upscale Vomero neighborhood high above the Bay of
Naples.

The Fourteenth Century Castel Sant’Elmo (Saint Elmo
Castle) was built to honor Saint Erasmoso. Perhaps Erasmo
was too hard to pronounce. The Spaniards rebuilt this
castle in the Sixteenth Century to deal with artillery
fire. The castle is so well built that it still serves for
military exercises as well as the site of art exhibitions.
When you admire it, you should remember that it served as a
prison for many years. The Certosa di San Martino (Saint
Martino Charterhouse) is an ancient monastery transformed
in the Seventeenth Century into one of Naples finest
Baroque buildings with beautiful garden terraces. It houses
the National Museum. Among its many treasures be sure to
see the presepi (Christmas creches) and Tavola Strozzi
(Strozzi's Board), a depiction of Fourteenth Century
Naples. The Villa Floridiana was built by King Ferdinand I
of Bourbon for his second wife, the Duchess of Floridia.
Not a bad gift; the grounds contain over one hundred
species of trees, flowers, and plants as well as statues,
fountains, temples, and even a fake ruin or two. The villa
does honor to the site, and its view of Naples is
spectacular.

Spaccanapoli (Split Naples) street is what the Neapolitans
call it. You’ll find it on the map if you look for
Via Benedetto Croce, Via San Biagio dei Librai, and Via San
Gregorio Armeno depending on the neighborhood. Sights to
see on the street or near it include the Gesu Nuovo (New
Jesus) Church, originally built as a palace in the
Fifteenth Century, the Fourteenth Century Santa Chiara
Church and religious complex, the Sixteenth Century
Cappella Sansevero (Sansevero Chapel) with multiple tombs
and three quite distinctive sculptures, the Thirteenth
Century San Lorenzo Maggiore Church complex built over
Greek and Roman excavations, the Sixteenth Century
Girolamini Church and monastery, and the Thirteenth Century
Duomo (Cathedral) just across Via Duomo. The Cathedral
includes the Sixth Century Santa Restitua Church. In
addition to these historic churches, Spaccanapoli street is
definitely worth the walk, whatever its official name.

Last but not least, make sure to visit Naple’s
excellent museums. The Museo Archeologico Nazionale
(National Archaeological Museum) has a great collection of
Greek and Roman antiquities. The Museo di Capodimonte
includes an extensive collection of paintings by Italian
and other European masters and Bourbon royal apartments.
The Palazzo delle Art Napoli (Palace of Neapolitan Art),
known as PAN, and Museo d’Arte di Donna Regina (Donna
Regina Art Museum), known as MADRE, are devoted to
contemporary art.

What about food? Naples is the home of pizza of which three
varieties are most famous: Pizza alla Napoletana (with
Tomatoes, Garlic, and Oregano), Pizza Margherita (with
Tomatoes, Mozzarrella, and Basil), and Pizza Marinara (with
Garlic, Tomatoes, Oregano, Basil, and Anchovies). I love
them all.

Let’s suggest a sample menu, one of many. Start with
Alici in Tortiera (Baked Anchovies with Pecorino Cheese).
Then try Ragu Napoletana (Veal Shank and Short Rib Stew).
For dessert indulge yourself with Pasteria Napoletana
(Cheese and Grain Pie). Be sure to increase your dining
pleasure by including local wines with your meal.

We conclude with a quick look at Campania wine. Campania
ranks 9th among the 20 Italian regions for both acreage
devoted to wine grapes and for total annual wine
production. The region produces about 64% red and and close
to 36% white wine, as there is little rose. There are 17
DOC wines. DOC stands for Denominazione di Origine
Controllata, which may be translated as Denomination of
Controlled Origin, presumably a high-quality wine. The G in
DOCG stands for Garantita, but there is in fact no
guarantee that such wines are truly superior. Only 2.8% of
Campania wine carries the DOC designation. Add a G for
Guarantita, and you’ll find three, the red Taurasi,
the white Greco di Tufo, and the white Fiano di Avellino. I
have tasted the Fiano and found it to be top of the line.
The white Campi Flegri DOC and the red or white Aversa DOC
are produced not far west of Naples. Both whites are also
available in sparkling version. Frankly, I’d go with
the Fiano di Avellino.

Levi Reiss has authored or co-authored ten books on
computers and the Internet, but he prefers drinking fine
Italian or other wine, accompanied by the right foods and
people. He knows about dieting but now eats and drinks what
he wants, in moderation. He teaches classes in computers at
an Ontario French-language community college. His new wine,
diet, health, and nutrition website
http://www.wineinyourdiet.com links to his other sites.

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