pastry known to humankind. It’s best eaten warm, and inevitably followed by the need to order another one.
Can you tell I’m a fan? Street vendors sell them, or even better, grab one of the tables at Caffe Leopoldo Infante on Via Toledo, which will also tempt you with impeccable coffee, gelato to die for, and big wedges of cake. To walk off all those carbs, and make sense of Naples’ phenomenally compressed and exquisitely chaotic topography - dictated by sitting between a volcano and the sea - you have to see the city from above. So climb up from the Spanish Quarter to Corso Vittorio Emanuele. The views from here are stupendous, taking in the whole sweep of the city, with Vesuvius rising on one side, and the Sorrento peninsula and Capri out across the Bay of Naples. Centro Storico is another atmosphere-laden part of Naples, where kids can’t resist the marvellous “To make sense of Naples you have to see the city from above” maze of narrow alleys and cobbled squares. It’s also here that you’ll find the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, as well as the famous statue of Pulcinella - rub his nose for good luck. Although, our particular Centro Storico recommendation is Chiesa del Gesù Nuovo. If you only visit one church in Naples, make it this one and don’t be put off by the austere facade. The interior is a vast, soaring, hushed and genuinely breathtaking Baroque wonder, and it was undoubtedly a highlight of our visit. Street art flourishes in the historic quarter too, along with a host of vendors selling street food and Naples-inspired kitsch. And if you’re looking for the entrance to the Underground Naples tours, it’s in this district as well. I have to admit, the fun of these tours came as a complete surprise to me. Set about 40m below street level, they follow a small part of the estimated 450km of abandoned tunnels which are carved out of soft volcanic rock under the city - an astonishing 2 million square metres in total. The experience isn’t really suited to younger kids, but older ones will be fascinated to hear about 2,400 years of Naples’ history from the time of the ancient Greeks - who originally quarried the tunnels to build their newly founded city above - through subterranean Roman aqueducts to their most recent incarnation as air raid shelters during WWII. The tours last around two hours and my advice is to book online, this is one of the most popular things to do in the city and slots sell out fast, especially during summer. It’s a given that the biggest archaeological draw in and around Naples is Pompeii, but before you
head out of the city to the remarkable site itself, visit the National Archaeological Museum of Naples to gaze on some of Pompeii’s rescued treasures. Among other wonders here, are the dazzling mosaics from the Casa del Fauno – one of Pompeii’s grandest palaces – along with other mosaics from Herculanuem, and sculptures the size of giants from the celebrated Farnese Collection: some of the finest examples of Greco-Roman art in the world. We visited Pompeii for half-a-day, but you could easily spend a lot longer, as the site is vast. How
STREET LIFE From top: back streets of Naples; street art, Naples
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