7. Naples

I have to say that I have mixed feelings about Naples. On the one hand, the city is choked with traffic, there is litter on every street corner, much of the centre resembles a building site and there is barely a building either ancient or modern that has not been sprayed with graffiti and covered in advertising flyers. On the other hand, the view across the bay of Naples is second to none, there are some fascinating buildings and architecture, the main drag is safely pedestrianised, there are ample "you are here" tourist information maps and any city that can give the world pizza and combine chocolate, vanilla and strawberry icecream has to have something going for it.

We spent the morning and early afternoon travelling on the hop on hop off bus. The first loop took us  along the coastal suburbs and up into the hills overlooking the northern part of the Bay and then back so that we could see Sorento and Mt. Vesuvius to the south. Unfortunately, the cone of the volcano was hidden for much of the day by cloud. Or smoke. One or the other. Or both.

The second loop took us through the more central part of the city, passing numerous churches and cathedrals, statues, government buildings and the university. All nice to see, but not the sorts of places that have a particular pull for us.

Lunch consisted of a rather tasty panini and a rather expensive cappuccino, but it was enough to help recharge our batteries before starting a meander through some of the streets and making the most of the photo opportunities afforded from the harbour area across the bay.

Thus we are now safely back on board the ship after a tiring, but interesting day. As I write awaiting our sailaway, there are some very black clouds overhead and an intense rainbow is arcing over the pierhead. Thankfully however, the wind is calm and we should have a smooth journey overnight to our next port of call.