NAPLES

Trash cans? Chaos? Weird store fronts? Birthplace of pizza?

Say less, and give me more time in Naples.

Naples is the closest major city to the Amalfi coast, however due to a gritty reputation not a lot of tourists spend time here. It’s definitely seen as a stepping stone to Sorrento or Positano, which I find tragic. This city felt real and raw and like it wasn’t out to impress anyone. Plus the taxi drivers truly not care if any of us live or die, which in its own way is kinda refreshing.

Naples pizza was so good I could cry, as was the 4 euro to-go Aperol spritz across the street. I haven’t shut up about Naples since spending an afternoon there, and I won’t shut up about it until I get back there and eat everything I can get my grubby little hands on.

My top destination dream in all of Italy thanks to a 2nd grade obsession was Pompeii. Located pretty much right off a highway near Naples, this dream was unlocked as I got to spend a day snooping through the ruins and hiking Mt. Vesuvius. It healed my inner child.

Being here in real life was intense, but also a bummer considering most of the petrified body casts weren’t on display at the moment as they were undergoing restoration. Do I fell robbed? Unbelievably so, you’ll never hear the end of it.

But refocus on the textures. of Pompeii’s remnants. It’s all I could focus on among the crowds was how intricately beautiful this was as a society.

The funniest part about hiking Mt. Vesuvius was easily the fact that our guided tour of the day had orchestrated a lunch at a winery, complete with a tasting. So getting us a little wine buzzed then dropping us off at the foot of an active volcano? Unhinged.

The hike itself was surprisingly hard considering the amount of jeans-wearing families I saw while I was fighting for my life on the loose volcanic dirt on an incline. There are also a ton of little stores along the path for all your tacky souvenir needs (I have many), a drink, or a break from all that volcanic wind. Of course, these odd little sheds are what pulled my focus on the way up to the crater.