gosh, gotta start somewhere with this backlog of posts! haha. all the way from easter i haven't blogged here at all :p i've got south of france, vienna, switzerland and italy! shall work backwards and do italy first while it's fresh in my mind (: will try not to procrastinate!
our first stop in italy was Naples, where we took an overnight train there. *warning: not a good idea to do this if you're in italy cos the trains suck. unless you can get the couchette seats (which are MAYBE better, but don't take my word for it because i didn't try them), but you need a group of exactly 4 people to book it. reached in the morning and went off to Pompeii immediately after checking into our hostel! didn't really have much time to explore Naples itself actually, but i've got some shots here to share with you (: anyways, be really careful in Naples! we just had the feeling like we were going to be robbed anytime >.< although we didnt, but ALWAYS be careful.
What to see in Naples
Centro Storico is probably one of the prettiest squares you can find in Naples. apparently Naples is more of a roman city than Rome (i have no idea why), but that's why it had two structures like these which is a cross between st peter's basilica & the pantheon (pics of the real thing will be coming up real soon in my Rome post! ^^)
Castel Nuovo is a huge castle just along the coast where you board the ferry to Capri (: we walked past it and couldn't resist a picture! you can go in too, but seems like reviews on tripadvisor weren't great, so it's up to you! anyway, i really didn't spend that much time in Naples itself because i was so busy travelling out, but i do think that places like Capri and Amalfi Coast were wayyyyy nicer :D
of course, Pompeii is a must visit when you go to Naples. at least go there for a look because of its significance!
My advice: get a walking tour or at least an audioguide for Pompeii! i didn't really enjoy my trip there much because we didn't get either and it was a real pity because i think there is a lot of history behind these ruins, which would be much better explained through a guide. we ended up trying to guess what the ruins were about, just to amuse ourselves. but after awhile, it's just ruins, ruins and more ruins. if you're really interested in these kind of things though, and you have some sort of a guide with you, it is possible to spend the entire day there because the place is HUGE! for a whole day trip, you can also check out Mount Vesuvius, which is the volcano that erupted and destroyed Pompeii, along with Ercolano, which is a Roman city that is even more well-preserved than Pompeii (: remember to bring lots of water and sunblock!! not kidding, it's super hot there!
Getting to Pompeii: take the train, Stazione Circumvesuviana, at Napoli Centrale station. the journey costs €2.80 and takes approximately 35min.
Capri
and now...for my favourite part of this leg of the trip ^^ CAPRI :)))))) the moment i stepped off the ferry into this sparkling blue paradise, i was just squealing in delight and instagramming like crazy! hahaha. the amazing weather just totally accentuated the beauty of this place, and i'm so thankful for the sun for the most part of my trip :') (the weather forecast was terrible, but thank goodness the skies held up pretty well!)
Capri is pretty small, with quite a bit of climbing involved, so wear good walking shoes! there are furniculars which bring you up from the Marina Grande port to the central area of Capri (€1.80) so that it's easier to get around. trust me, there is more climbing from there, so it is a pretty good idea to take the furnicular up. i didn't want to initially, but after that i decided it was the right decision haha.
we had lunch at Port Marina Grande, at a random restaurant called Ristorante Da Peppino (: not too shabby! although the portions were a little small, but i guess for Capri, it was quite reasonably priced. Piazza Umberto, the central area of Capri, is known to be expensive! anyway, when you're in Capri, you've got to try their specialty insalata Caprese ^^ mine at this restaurant was €9 and sam's seafood pasta cost just €10! (that was their main selling point - the €10 seafood pasta haha everyone was ordering it). caprese cheese is a mix between ricotta and mozzarella cheese ^^ love it!
Capri is expensive to get to (more about that later), and all the attractions have a small fee. but it's pretty affordable for the attractions, so don't worry about it (: plenty of free panoramic areas for you to visit too! our first stop was Giadini di Augusto, a pretty garden (€1) with a breath-taking view of Isole Faraglioni :')))) this is the MOST BEAUTIFUL place in Capri and you have to go there!!!! one of the most easily accessible places and the entry fee is peanuts, so please visit it! (: you might think it's just three limestone pinnacles sticking out of the water but i guarantee you the photos will be totally worth it hehe ^^
see!!!!! ♥.♥ i love this place hehe
you can walk down this winding path from the gardens for a nice view of the coast again (: but we didn't walk there haha.
we trekked all the way up to the north-eastern point of Capri for Villa Jovis (the walk is crazyyyyy long. and there is no other way to get up there. seriously testing your patience & perseverance -.-) but were kinda disappointed upon finding that it was ruins. at least i was. haha i really thought i'll find a pretty villa!!!! -.- it's supposed to be the largest and most magnificent one. oh well. haha. i would say, save the €2 and all the walking and visit other places. there are plenty of places to go by walking and do try to get to Capri early so that you can visit as many places as you can! (: each place takes 30-45min to get to so yeahhh, it takes awhile.
we intended to visit Grotto Azzura which is supposed to be the biggest sea cave in Capri! (: it sounds like a beautiful place :) but expensive to go to! :/ especially considering how much you already have to pay to get to Capri. but i guess since you're there already, might as well go right? haha. i didn't, but i think it's definitely a nice place to go! the easiest way to visit is to take one of the tours from Port Marina Grande (where you alight from the ferry from Naples).
How to get to Capri
Check out this website for the ferry schedule: http://www.capri.com/en/ferry-schedule. the prices vary quite a bit from hour to hour (depending on the type of ferry/hydrofoil and its speed).
will continue about food in the next post! (:
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