Our final day of orientation was a trip to downtown Napoli with our ICR (Intercultural Relations) instructor.  The goal was to give us a brief tour of the main sites downtown, hold our hands as we navigated the public transport, take us to a market and assist us in learning the cultural ideologies of the Napoli cultural-one all it's own.  I do have to say that our instructor was amazing.  She told us exactly how it was going to be and encouraged us to not be afraid to just get out there and try.  Her final words to us as we finished the classroom portion  were "DON'T SIT!  GO!  GET OUT THERE AND SOAR!"  She admitted she was a life coach as well and poked holes in our excuses on how it was hard to learn the language.  She pushed me, she pushed me to not be afraid of driving amongst the Neapolitans, to not be afraid to use the little bit of Italian I had learned, to just get out there and do it!  She assured us that if they chuckle when we try to speak Italian, they aren't laughing at us, they are just happy we try.  (True or not, I'll take it.  I need all the encouragement I can get!!)  

So, we all piled on our bus and drove into il centro (downtown).  The plan was to get off close to Galleria Umberto, grab a cappuccino, catch the cable car to Vomero for the market, come back down to Galleria Umberto for lunch then wander around downtown Naples to check out the palaces, church, and famous cafe's.  

Galleria Umberto (built 1887-90) is nothing short of gorgeous, amazing, truly decadent.  Then to sit outside of the cafe to sip my cappuccino and experience this wondrous pastry, the sfogliatelle, and stare at this beautiful structure, I only wish Sean could have been there with me.  I know I broke a cultural rule in that when you sit at a table at a coffee shop, you do so like it would be a restaurant and they come to take your order.  We had little time, I did what I needed to do and I needed to soak in that atmosphere.  It was the best cappuccino I've ever tasted...EVER!!

(I'm not sure what happened there with my font color and I can't figure out how to fix it....booo!)

Afterwards we walked a short bit, bought "due biglietti, per favore" (two tickets, please) and took a ride uptown to the Vomero market.  Vomero is the most recently built part of Naples and is considered the central district.  It has the biggest open air market in the area with almost everything you need from shoes and clothing for adults and children to the freshest fruits, vegetables and live octopus in the food market, I'm not even kidding.  It was amazing.

After about 2 hours of wandering around the market (buying a new dress then a purse for 2 Euro, trying raw coconut for the first time, practicing some Italian)  we met our group to make our way back downtown.  She gave a us tiny bit of time to venture down to the water front before lunch.  Along the way we crossed the Piazza Trieste e Trento right in front of the Teatro di San Carlo which is the largest opera house in Italy.  It was built in 1737 for King Charles' birthday, and interestingly enough it is known to attract some of the "noisiest and worst behaved audiences in Italy."  (source)

Across from the opera house you find Gambrinus, a cafe and meeting place for the culturally elite in Italy and Europe, past and present.  Writers, poets, politicians would grace this restaurant.  We didn't have time to go inside, but I am anxious to check it out.

  Lastly, just across the street from Gambrinus is Piazza del Plesbiscito, one of the largest piazzas in Naples.  Initially, it was to be a tribute to the emperor Napolean, as history would have it, this never came to fruition.  After Napolean was removed from power, Ferdinand I completed the building of the piazza and dedicated it to Saint Francis of Paola.  It has been used as a venue for open-air concerts for artists like Elton John, Maroon 5, Muse and Bruce Springsteen.

  Our final stop right before meeting the bus to head back was just to walk down to the Castle Nuovo.  Our guide told us a story about a queen who once lived there, and how she fed her lovers to the alligators that inhabited the moat!  Then she quipped, "The alligators were fat."    

Well, that was our quick trip to downtown Napoli.  Here's a few more lovelies of Galleria Umberto and random city streets/alleys and Royal Palace walkways.

Grazie e arrivederci amiche!!

Mackenzie