Visit Naples Italy

The island of Capri (pronounced KA pri) is perhaps the jewel of the Naples coast. It is one of the most serene and beautiful islands I have ever visited. I could not help but be at peace on this island. When I visited it not so long ago I wanted to stay and make the place my home. It is one of the best places I have ever been in my life. But that is just my personal experience with the island.

I know I am not the only one to feel the same way after visiting the island. It is a very small island that has very few cars and only two small towns. During the day however the island is packed with tourists from the various cruise ships that are in the area. So if you are expecting a quiet get away then you will be disappointed as this island is nothing but quiet during the day. But that to me just adds to its charm. At night however it is a completely different story as most of the day trippers have left the island and the area and  you have the island to a small amount of residents and travelers that stay overnight.

This island is also an attraction to many celebrities and it is not uncommon to see some very high profile actors and actresses on this island during the film festival that takes place here. In fact when Ferrari launches a new version of their automobiles they usually have a party on the island to launch the new car.

Is this island worth visiting through? Well that depends. If you can survive an almost an hour long boat trip from Naples  then yes. Just as a tip though if you choose to go to this island the trip from Sorrento is much better as it is a far smaller distance from the port of Sorrento to the island.

Because of the clientele that frequents the island the prices are a bit steep to say the least. When you have to rub shoulders with multi-million dollar celebrities you are pretty sure that the hotel prices are going to be up there in price. The surrounding stores also represent some of the higher brand stores you would find in Beverly Hills and in the heart of the Rome shopping district. Restaurants as well are very expensive as they can cater to the higher end market. As always if you want to get the best deal always ask the locals where they shop or eat and I am sure you will receive a better deal.

Rumor has it that a full 25 percent of all restaurant in Italy are pizzerias. I am not sure of the accuracy of that statement but it would make sense as this is the country where Pizza was invented. Now Naples is the city that can claim to have invented the Pizza. The first pizzeria may very well have been Antica Pizzeria Port d’Alba which was founded in 1830.

The very first pizzas like most great foods today were the food that the poor invented. Since the poor of Venice invented this these pizzas were very simple with only garlic and olive oil as toppings made from a very hot wood fired oven. In fact the idea of a pizzeria is kind of a new concept to most natives of Italy as this food staple first started on food stands sold on street corners all throughout the city.

You would be doing yourself a great injustice if you ever find yourself in Naples and not order a Margherita pizza. This originally started from the now famous pizza maker Raffaele Esposito when he was asked to make a pizza for the then King and Queen of Italy. This pizza is very simple containing only a tomato sauce, mozzarella and basil. The reason why he used these three ingredients was that they were the three colors of the Italian flag and in its simplest form represented true Italy.

If  you want to visit the pizzeria where this pizza was invented you are in luck because it is still around and is now known as Pizzeria Brandi. At this moment you could consider that place a bit of a tourist trap but it should be worth the visit just to say that you have ate in the pizzeria where the pizza was invented. There are other well known and notable pizzerias as well such as Da Michele, Di Matteo, Trianon da Ciro as well as Cafasso.

Pizza is now a well represented dish all throughout the world but I believe that Naples truly captures what this dish is all about and does not tamper with perfection. Fortunately since this is such a popular thing to eat in Italy it should not be a problem to find some good pizza joints near your hotel. Hopefully you will be staying somewhere near the above mentioned restaurants so you will not have to travel very far.