Naples: Are You Well Armed?

The power went out during that last email (lightening storm), and I am very surprised it went through... (I hit send the second the lights went out).

I’m just sending my entire email list this time because I missed a bunch of people on my contact list last time (I’m not entirely certain who I emailed and who I didn’t before the lightening struck).

Anyway, since the last email I’ve traveled to Naples with two girls I met in Rome. The city of Naples is pretty gross; garbage is littered through the streets and graffiti is everywhere. The banisters on the stairs, the door handles, and well pretty much everything looks and feels if it were caked with an inch of grime and grease. When we first entered Naples with our packs the girls and I were convinced we were going to be jumped and mugged. The girls I was traveling with were depressed and disappointed by the appearance of the dirty, gross, and busy city.

My tour book informs me that I should get the hell out of Naples on the ASAP and go to Capri Island... I think it’s funny how pushy my book really is. The author writes her opinions as God given truths instead of suggestions, and the restaurants she recommends are not really on a backpacker budget.

There a lot of scary looking Italians populating Naples, and the girls wanted to leave with so much desperation that they booked a ticket to Florence for the following morning, minutes after arriving. I however, found Naples hilarious (so I booked another couple nights).

Naples is a time warp to what I imagine 1988 New York City might have looked during the height of the rising murder and crime plaguing the USA’s inner cities (it lasted from the 80’s and into early 90’s). The streets of Naples were littered with bottles, graffiti, smog, and leather jackets with gangs of Italian men inside of the leather jackets. Sometimes I felt very self-conscious knowing that I dressed looked and dressed different from the people on the streets. I was always expecting some leather jacket with an Italian inside of it to shank me and steal my wallet. My only comfort that lingered in my mind as I walked around the streets of Naples was the knowledge that if at any moment one of these leather jackets with an Italian man inside of it attempted to jump me I would have an entire arsenal of broken bottles and wooden sticks at arms length at any given moment, and in fact, I just armed myself in this cafe just to prove my case. The best part of my arsenal is that most of the bottles are pre-broken, which means that I would not have to waste time smashing them to arm myself with a shank.

All joking aside I like Naples; last night was the night before ash Wednesday and all the children were about silly stringing everything and throwing confetti into the air. Later, we went to a pretty stellar pizza restaurant, (one that was a must go in our lonely planet book) and with all of the excitement going and the excellent and cheap food, the girls decided they actually enjoyed their stay in Naples. It was truly an Italian experience. All the streets are winding and most of

the shops are in back alleys where the employees and shopkeepers wait outside waiting for someone to enter their store, a friend to pass by, or for anything at all. The shops are not rustic but classical in their appearance fresh fruit and vegetables cover the walls so that nothing else can be seen. The men and women look like characters out of a novel, and I feel as if I’m walking through a scene from The Godfather. The people of Naples are dark featured with intense and jovial expressions on their faces. My favorite part of Naples was when some little kid was horsing around on a fire hydrant and some random Italian guy smiled and tickled him. If this moment had taken place in America the tickler would have been thrown in jail with a pedophile charge slapped upon him. I thought it was cool. I love how everyone in Naples knows everyone and they actually seem as if they don’t mind taking time out of their day to speak to anyone or everyone.

Anyway I saw the ruins of Pompeii today. Pompeii was magnificent and it so large I found myself lost amongst the many tiny streets. Stating that I was lost in Pompeii isn’t much of a statement because I typically couldn’t find my way out of a cubical, but Pompeii was large and confusing. I spent 4 hours in the town and felt as if I had seen only a fraction of what this excavation site had to offer. Everything was perfectly preserved as if it had been abandoned 100 years ago. I would say more but I really must depart this cafe and get back to naples... tomorrow I’m going to Florence. (i had wanted to go to capri, but all that they seem to have are hotels... next time gadget next time)...

P.S. its like plus 15 right now brwahahahaha... but if your jealous of the temperate climate rest assured ill prolly get shanked on the way home. hah.