Naples revisited

It was a joy to revisit Naples for a couple of days en route to Puglia. This time it was around 6 weeks later in the year, with finer weather and the scent of Spring in the air....

An early morning flight from Luton was straightforward. The €10 euro per head (30 minute) Alibus journey from outside the airport to the port – not only had us feeling like old hands, it saved us the extra €30 euros we had spent on a taxi last time.

We decided against the more upmarket neighbourhood of Chiaia where we had stayed last time. Instead, choosing a B&B super close to the ferry port, as I had booked us on to an early crossing to Procida the next day. (This location also turned out to be very accessible to Spaccanapoli; the unmissable beating heart of the city, which was a real bonus).

Our host was charming and helpful, explaining that the B&Bs cool, grey stone stairs were made from Vesuvius’ volcanic rock. The room itself was just fine with a great balcony view of criss crossing ferries. But best of all, was the tiny Gran Caffe bar at ground level, where the coffee was unparalleled and the bonhomie of the cheery staff a joy to behold first thing in the morning.

We did return several times to the Chiaia neighbourhood to visit the low key Bar Chiaia when we needed a pitstop (aka Campari Spritz). We also made a point of going back to another favourite bar, Bar Vittoria where the coffee is sublime and bar man bears way more than just a passing resemblance to James Gandolfini (Sopranos)...

We found some great new haunts including the Spaccanapoli based Bar Nilo, a veritable shrine to the legendary Maradona , where we were intrigued to see a “lock" of Maradona’s hair. Here we also learnt more about (and contributed to) the popular Naples based “sospendido caffe” (suspended coffee) scheme to serve free coffees to those in need – after all, coffee is so much more than just a drink in Naples.

Talking of coffee, kudos to B's Bedford based barber, Enzo for the recommendation to sample “Caffe del Professore" ; difficult to describe; more of an event than a coffee! I opted for the pistachio version; a whipped, creamy, unctuous espresso based delight. I didn't really expect to like it, but in fact I loved it and would highly recommend!

Of course, we ate many pizzas (far more than is probably recommended in 2 days). Pizzeria Surace was a great find; the Vera Pizza Napoletana signage a sure indication that something good was going on here. We were not disappointed; my margherita (the true test, right?) was perfection. We really liked the friendly staff, pavement vibes and low key quality/authenticity (no big gold scissors to cut the pizza here....)

Pizza portfolio, available late at night from an on street vendor for €2.50 a pop, was a joy; a full pizza, reheated then folded into a wallet shape to be consumed whilst walking home of an evening. Street food perfection!

The charming, tiny island of Procida is not to be missed. There are several ferry options; fast/slow. Also slightly confusing as there are 2 different embarkation points. Top marks for the handsome Molo Beverello fast ferry port with its excavated ruins and excellent coffee bar. (Slight downside having to pay to go to the loo, but quite common in Italy, it seems). I suspect I may have paid slightly over the odds for the tickets as I used a 3rd party, but I wasn't taking any chances this time. Excellent views of Vesuvius abound on both legs of this journey.

Procida is not only a slow paced, pastel coloured dream of a place (seemingly untouched by tourism, from what we could see); we had the best pastries we'd ever tasted at harbour side independent bakery Paname.

Striding out and happily a little lost, we stumbled across the heartwarming Salumeria (our new favourite genre of shop) a Puteca, where we were served ice cold beers with tomato topped foccacia under a rustic shade, in the company of locally grown fruit and veg. We could happily have stayed for hours nibbling our way through all the beautiful homecooked produce, but had to keep moving as we were short of time.

After a short walk to the deserted Pozzo Vecchio bay with its black sand; location of the classic movie “Il Postino”, we headed back to the harbour for a joyful seafood lunch at harbourside restaurant CN45. Here we enjoyed spaghetti vongole, pasta with swordfish, simply grilled tuna and the famous Procida lemon salad; a tantalising salty, bitter, chilli topped delight. If a dish can said to be invigorating, then this is the one!

We would have loved to have spent more time in Procida, circumnavigating the full 4kms and taking in one of the famed sunsets, whilst sipping something lemony.... However, along with so many of the other Naples highlights we have yet to see , this is one for another visit – for there will be (many) more....