Naples

After yesterday's misadventures, noone was getting on any sort of vehicular device, so after breakfast Dawn and I set out on foot to explore Naples. As we passed our stateroom, Jackie & Tony were standing on our now expanded balcony, with the removal of the divider between rooms.

We stopped at the information desk inside the Cruise Terminal for a map, which first lead us around Castel Nuovo to its front entrance.

This is one impressive mediaeval castle with moat and all. All along the port there is construction work as they are unearthing the ancient port dating back 2700 years. Now that's some history!

There is generally a lot of construction in Naples with the Palace being totally wrapped in scaffolding. On the way to the main square, Piazza Plebiscito, we passed this lemon vendor.

We then headed up Via Toledo towards the historic section of Naples, now designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This was an amazing walk littered with a warren of narrow side streets.

Once we arrived at the square above, we weren't overly impressed by the architecture. We've found that some Italian churches aren't what they appear to be. This was one of them - Gesu Nuovo - as the interior was opulent, including the floors. We also found that they now do confessionals out there in the public, with no privacy or anominity.

We've already noted two castles, but off to the south there is yet another coastal fortification - Castel dell'Ovo.

Once we got back to the ship we met Tony and Jackie for lunch in the Grand Dining Room. Then it was slow time for others while I headed to the Canyon Spa for a haircut. The longer doo wasn't - excuse the expression - cutting it for anyone anymore. So after some time with Simi from South Africa, I had a new look.

We left Naples at 5:00 and had a good look at the famous Vesuvius on the way out. This volcano did its nastiness in 79AD and although it has erupted numerous times over the years up to the last one in 1944, nothing was quite like the devastation of 79AD. One of these pics was taken from inside our stateroom.

As soon as the ship clearer the port of Naples, it appeared that we were in for a rocky ride - hopefully not a repeat of the Capri trip. It was "Meet the Captain" tonight, which meant a couple hours of free booze, so it was well attended. Following that we dined in the Grand Dining Room for yet another fabulous meal. They have decided that since we're on a smaller ship, that they will give us something every evening from Jacques and Red Ginger on the larger ships. This means essentially, that we can dine from the specialty restaurants every night. BONUS! By now it was becoming apparent that some guests were not enjoying the seas. We planned on going to see Vicenzo, the flamenco guitarist this evening, but instead Dawn found some motion sickness medication, donned her sea bands and headed to bed. I did check out Vincenzo, but - and this is for Tony - "He warn't no Jesse Cook." So the boat continued on to Sicily in a rocky manner and we called it a day.