May 22, 2008...Three Days and I'm in Naples

I hope no one was too worried by my absence for a few days. Internet service is vexing to find here in Naples, especially if one is staying at a residence without the service.

A tiny recap...

Tuesday May 20...

The highlight of the day was meeting with Peter and Lesley:

They are two of the folks pioneering Totga Books with about a doze others of us from across the states and the world. A lovely, lovely time.

After our meeting, I power walked to Buckingham Palace. Not that I needed to see the place, per se, but I hate saying 'no I haven't seen that' about places that folks just assume everyone sees. Plus I needed to burn off lunch. The flag was up, so the Queen was home (guess you can't see it in this snap).

Guards walking around, but not really changing or anything. Maybe this was a pointless snap.

I boogied on back to the house to catch the car to Gatwick (and Naples) with Martina and Marco. Along the earlier part of the of the drive I saw a few interesting things.

Would you pay 47K pounds (or $90K) for a Chevy Suburban? How about if gas was $6 a gallon?

Passed over Weaks Bridge...nice little landmark.

Saw this fancy Rolls Royce...I don't really see this old school style much in the States.

A moment of bliss for the happy couple.

We made it to Naples safe and sound, and settled into Marco's parent's home. They're lovely hosts.

Wednesday May 21...Cruising Naples...

The weather was miserable when we arrived. Torrential rains, wind, and a chill in the air. The next day wasn't much better. However, time passed well with wedding prep and some touring about.

First we picked up the water bottles for the welcome bags and the reception. That wasn't the cool part the. The cool part was the wine dispensing tanks. I got to taste some of the local red. Not bad at all.


Saw some local flavors such as vegetable sellers and evidence of the trash 'strike'


Marco and his father played tour guide for me as we bustled through the town. All my pictures feature a forefront of rain, so I'll pass on talking about what I saw, for now.

After Martina had her hair and make-up samples done we went to visit the priest at the church where their wedding is to be held.

Along the way, saw this old Greek wall. For some reason this part was left exposed.

At the Piazza where the buses will drop us for the ceremony there's this really tall column/statue.


Let me just say that Naples has a terribly fascinating history. A million churches, lot's of old construction, interesting historically center of business. However, a great deal of stuff is in disrepair. Apparently much of this is due to extremely stringent and punitive laws regarding historical artifacts and the like.

Magic is waiting to happen for these two...


...at this church, San Domineco Maggiore...


Later that night, we went for pizza. Funny story...you can be certain that the wait-staff adheres to first come first served here in Naples...otherwise the night may end in a shoot out.

You don't get doggie bags in Naples, so we took the crust and ran.


Naturally we indulged in gelato treats afterwards. Martina insisted I eat extra for her. I call it pre-nup pregnancy: bridesmaids eat for two when bride starves herself.

Thursday May 22...

The pressure is building. Anyone who has been married knows what I'm talking about. Has there every been a stress free wedding? However the day greeted us with glorious sun. And from the terrace of Marco's parent's we saw Mt. Vesuvius.

Yeah it looks like little hills, but this is simply what's left of a once HUGE volcano.

This evening I took a hotel room in the city center of Naples (the tourist area basically). The room has the most lovely view of Vesuvius, plus it gives you a better idea of the base size of the volcano.

Overall thoughts on Naples so far: interesting. Oh, and the children here are thugs. I was taunted ( I swear to this) by 8 and 9 year old girls in a church restroom. Later I saw a 10 year old boy scaring people by threatening to hit them with his bike. The weird thing was there were no other kids around to see this. He was being a punk just for the sake of it. Disturbing.


Will try to touch in tomorrow, but it will likely be brief. Will definitely update once more before leaving on next Tuesday.

Peace,

A Pink American