John: Goodbye Naples.

As I am writing this the train has just pulled into Rome's main station on the way to Florence. I really like these fast trains. Because of the pouring rain on the way up the train had to slow down to a crawl at a mere 220km per hour!

So Naples has come and gone. Originally I wasn't to sure about visiting the place,

       "The place is piled high with rubbish" Most of the time it was. 

       "The place is covered by graffiti" It is.

       "As soon as you go into the street you'll have your pockets picked or be mugged." We weren't. 

       "The city's run by The Mafia,"

Maybe, I don't know for sure. I had read somewhere that The Mafia had the contract for the (non) collection of rubbish. Also the only time I felt some presence of the above mentioned organisation was when a gentleman with silver hair dressed smart casual gave me the death ray stare (which was a bit scary) when I took a photo the view from the restaurant. 

I had failed to notice the partly obscured African man sitting behind him who was built like a couple of mountains put together. But probably my interpretation of the scene came from watching too many Italian movies.

It's the people that make Naples. They are quick to smile, and as you have seen from the photos they are not backward in coming forward. They are also generous and warm hearted.

I was told by someone from Southern Italy that the place is a little crazy. I was told not to worry if I thought I was going a liitle crazy because the next step was the last one. It's when you know that you  are going crazy but you don't care ... That's when you fit right in!

Would I go back? Although I wrote this in Rome's station, I am typing it in our hotel room in the clean, green, quiet, more refined, more restrained atmosphere of Florence. Literally just round the corner is the Arno river, the Uffizi gallery, and the Ponte Vecchio. So would I go back? Perhaps it's too soon to tell. But I'm certainly glad that I went the first time.