22. Napoli - round and about (including one Caravaggio)

To be honest, the whole prospect of Naples has always intimidated me somewhat, and we have skirted around its edges on each visit to Italy - visiting the ancient site of Pompeil, staying in Salerno, visiting the Amalfi coast, travelling through on trains between points further south and Rome...

This time we decided to set aside some time to explore at least part of Naples, with an eye on the national Archaeological Museum and Caravaggio paintings in particular.

We decided to rest our heads in much calmer Pompei, and travel to Naples as a day trip. I think our decision was justified, and although we got a lot from our toe-dipping in Naples, it's still a bit too frenetic and noisy and chaotic for my taste (people pushing and in close proximity in very narrow streets are never my idea of fun, especially with THREE people together, one of them young. You can never walk together and usually end up on a group-march, single file).

Still, I'd now like to return to Naples and discover more.

The pictures are a bit diappointing. It was a grey and drizzly day to start with, and it was hard to get good light in the narrow streets....

Below: Piazza near the central railway station.
Below: Via Tribunali, a main shopping street, in the Spaccanapoli section of the city
Below: In the same area. I don't know what this building is.
Below: A smaller street off via Tribunali
Below: The small octagonal chapel of Pio Monte di Misericordia houses one of Caravaggio's masterpieces, The Seven Acts of Mercy. The chapel is a lovely haven free of the noise and chaos outside. We were there alone for most of our visit and able to sit and contemplate the painting before us for a long time.
Below: The Caravaggio painting, Seven Acts of Mercy.
Below: Piazza Riario Sforza with the Guglia di San Gennaro (Spire of San Gennaro), dedicated to the patron saint of Naples in 1636, to thank San Genaro for saving the city from an eruption of Vesuvius in 1631. The yellow building on the right is the Hotel Caravaggio. It looks nice.
Below: A view of rooftops from the Museo Archeologico Nazionale
Below: Pizza at a local pizzeria near Capodimonte
Below: The Bay of Naples from the park at Capodimonte
Below: Advertising within the central railway station. "Vesuvius and Etna...Never So Close As Now."

Below: A decent reproduction of The Seven Acts of Mercy c 1607