Lau On Tour Day 7: Naples

Part 7 of my new series, Lau On Tour. Catch up with yesterday's destination and find out what the series is all about before you join me in today's destination, Naples

Image: Montse Monmo/Unsplash

The itinerary

Ah, Naples. I was due to visit the Italian city with a friend in May 2020, but coronavirus brought our plans to a crashing halt. I'm using this virtual trip to get a better idea of what I'd like to see and do when we finally make the trip.

Image: Judi Smith/Unsplash

To be honest, my two main reasons for wanting to visit Naples aren't actually in Naples itself. Mount Vesuvius and its archaeological ruins at Pompeii and Herculaneum are just a short way down the coast, and are something I'd love to see. Several aspects of Pompeii, including temples, baths and an amphitheatre, can be viewed online, and an Italian-narrated YouTube video gives further insight into two houses in the city, which was buried under ash from an eruption in AD 79. It's really impressive how well the buildings have been preserved, and gives an insight into the damage Vesuvius could do again, if it was so inclined.

I haven't been able to find any official virtual tours of Vesuvius, but I have watched this tourist video of a day out, beginning at the train station and making their way up the volcano, on a coach and later on foot, the buildings of Naples reduced to mere specks in the distance, until we're finally looking down into the crater.

Image: Prowalk Tours

The second reason I'm so keen to visit Naples IRL is to see the nearby island of Procida. The Amalfi Coast towns of Positano and Sorrento are known for their Instagram perfect colourful buildings, but Procida is equally beautiful, yet not quite so well-known (so far...). It's easily accessible from Naples via ferry, and this walking and drone tour has made me even more keen to visit. The houses are beautifully vibrant, putting me in mind of Burano in Venice, and the sea is a gorgeous blue. Helpfully the video is broken into chunks, so you can watch the whole thing, or just dip in and out to see what you want to see. There's even a map of the route to accompany it.

Where I'm staying

Image: Hotel La Corricella

So enamoured am I with Procida after watching the above video, I've decided to find accommodation on the island too. Hotel La Corricella, with its seaview rooms and terrace restaurant overlooking those colourful houses, has won me over - and it's not too pricey, so I'd consider staying there for real too.

In pop culture

This virtual trip to Naples coincides with the broadcast of an episode of travel documentary The Secret Mediterranean With Trevor McDonald which features the city. The segment's central focus is the looming presence of Vesuvius, and the continuing threat it poses to the people and buildings of Naples, which has spread into its foothills. Fascinating though it is, it has made me think twice about going to Naples, and specifically to Vesuvius, knowing that it could erupt at any moment. Then again, it might not erupt for 50 years.

On the menu

Naples is the birthplace of pizza as we know it, and home to the world's best pizzeria if Eat Pray Love is to be believed, so today's dinner is of course, a homemade pizza topped with two cheeses, mushrooms and salami. Delish.

Souvenir shopping

Aside from pizza, there's not a particular object or thing I associate with Naples, so choosing a  souvenir to bring home was tricky. Research suggests that ceramics and leather goods are common in Naples along with - oddly - Christmas ornaments. I've also learnt that Naples has a whole passageway called Christmas Alley, which only strengthens my desire to visit - and yes, I'm carefully wrapping some festive tree hangers in my imaginary suitcase right now.