Greetings from Naples! I spent the weekend of September 13th through 15th with Naples as a homebase, exploring Naples, Capri, and Pompeii with my new abroad friend Dylan. I thought Lake Como was an absolute dream and somehow the Amalfi Coast exceeded that high bar. Friday: Our day started early on Friday, traveling from Milano Centrale to Napoli Centrale at 9:35. The train ride there was nice since we traveled through all the major cities on the way to southern Italy (Bologna, Florence, Rome, and other stops along the way). We arrived in Naples at 2:30. We stayed in a nice Airbnb right off of Via Toledo across from Galleria Umberto I. After checking in, we walked around the city, taking in all the sights. We stumbled upon churches and got lost among the old city center. As a snack we got gelato at a lovely, possible chain, called Casa Infante. My first gelato was a cono piccolo (small cone) with a scoop of nutella and a scoop of caramel gelato. Easily the best gelato I have had thus far, but I hope that distinction continues to change:) After gelato, we continued walking around and headed towards the Castel Nuovo and the water. For dinner, we walked to one of the most famous pizzerias in Naples, L'Antica Pizzeria Da Michele. The pizzeria has been around since 1870, is recognized by Michelin, and was featured as the pizzeria where Julia Roberts eats in Eat, Pray, Love. The place was packed when we walked up and we waited around 20 minutes for our number to be called to sit. The experience and pizza was definitely worth the wait since we were sitting right next to where the pizza oven was so we got watch the chefs turn out no exaggeration 100+ pizzas while we were there. Dylan and I both had margherita pizzas and I could barely finish mine by the end. I don't know if I would go as far as to say it was the best pizza that I have ever eaten in my life (I'm honestly not the largest pizza person) but it was extremely good and the experience of watching the pizza oven was amazing. After pizza, we walked back over to via Toledo and had wine and dessert at Caffe Gambrinus. The interior was beautiful and the place had a super rich history. A nice atmosphere to sit and enjoy our glasses of wine. Our night ended on the earlier side since we wanted to be up early Saturday for a full day in Capri. Saturday: Our day started early with coffee and sfogliatella for a walking breakfast. Sfogliatella is the pastry that Naples is known for. I chose a classic with pistachio filling. After we walked down to the marina and caught the hydrofoil to Capri. The boat was enclosed and stuffy so I got slightly nauseous on the way over, but as soon as I smelt the fresh air I was completely fine. Once on Capri, we immediately found a tour service that offered a private 2 hour boat tour around the entire island. Taking the private tour was important to us because we wanted to be able to swim and jump off the boat into the water. We also got to buy a bottle of wine and drink it on the boat. Our tour was with an older Italian couple and a wonderful guide who split his time between talking in English and Italian about all the sights. Lounging on the boat, sailing and swimming was one of the most wonderful experiences ever. Capri is so unbelievably beautiful. I could have spent the entire day on the boat. Once the boat ride was over, we took the funincular (a tram sort of public transport) from the marina to the main town of Capri. The town was small with a luxurious vibe and designer stores on every street. Unfortunately, my college budget did not allow for more than window shopping. We stopped for lunch in Capri at a wonderful little restaurant called Michel'angelo. I found the restaurant through google and cross checked with trip adviser. Honestly, it stood out online because it had a mozzarella bar. The restaurant was adorable and felt like we were sitting in an Italian garden even though it was indoors. It was also the first time a restaurant played only Italian music while we ate which I loved. I find it so crazy that the rest of the world listens to American music, but I never get exposed to music from other countries. For lunch, Dylan and I shared a charcuterie board from the mozzarella board and fried calamari. Both were delicious. After lunch, we experienced a few hiccups since we planned on seeing the blue grotto and taking a chairlift ride in Anacapri and both were no longer options by the time we managed to maneuver around the island. Guess I will just have to go back to Capri and spend more time there (~how difficult~). We spent some more time walking around Capri and Anacapri before deciding that we wanted to stay on the island for dinner. Again, I googled and cross checked with trip advisor to find Giorgio al Cucciolo. The restaurant was in Anacapri along a cliff in a fully residential area and had the most wonderful views of the ocean and the sunset. Here, we split a caprese salad (because obviously), a bottle of red wine (a cheaper one, because obviously), and I ate green fettuccine with seafood. We took the last ferry from Capri back out to Naples at 10, which was honestly pretty nervewracking since we were both stressed we would miss it and would be stuck on Capri without lodging. We didn't miss it though and made it back to Naples for more gelato. I also facetimed my family who were at Thomas' birthday party celebrating his 50th. Sunday: Sunday was another early morning with coffee and sfogliatella for breakfast, checking out from the air bnb, and storing our luggage in the air bnb's storage space. After, we took the circonvesuviana (local train) to the Ruins of Pompeii. We took a 2 hour guided walking tour (in English!) of the ruins since there is very little description or directions within the site, making it hard to guide yourself. We had also heard of people's experiences getting lost in the ruins, which we did not want to potentially risk since we were taking the train back from Naples to Milan later that afternoon. The ruins were pretty cool to see and learn more about. Seeing the remains with Mt. Vesuvius standing in the background definitely makes the experience worth it. There's just something about the volcano overlooking the ruins still active that brings the ruins and the history to life. 15,000 steps around Pompeii later we took a different exit to see one of Pompeii's colosseums and the modern town center of Pompeii. We got Mcdonalds as a quick bite since we were starved and unsure when our next meal would be and took the circonvesuviana back to Naples. In Naples we picked up our luggage, bought dinner for the train, and took the train back to Milan. The ride back felt longer since after the sun set I could no longer watch the Italian countryside go by. Best Moments:
Capri is easily the most beautiful place that I have ever visited and I definitely want to go back again (and again!) someday. I highly recommend splurging on the private boat tour since its more personal, you can drink on the boat, AND you get to swim!! I also loved the sfogliatella, gelato, and pizza I ate in Naples. I truly wish I could have spent more time in the Amalfi Coast.
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Greetings from Lake Como! I spent Friday August 30th through Sunday August 1st in Lake Como with Rachel, Tyler, and Romas (all Tulane). Our Air BnB was in a small town called Mandello del Lario and was absolutely wonderful. The owner left us a binder full of recommendations for the whole region and even baked us cookies! Friday: We took the train from Milano Centrale at 6 on Friday straight to Mandello del Lario for just 6 euros! After checking in, we walked through the town and stopped at a restaurant for dinner. I had a pizza diavolo (margherita pizza with super spicy salami) and a local blend of red wine. After dinner, we walked over to the local festival that the Air BnB owners told us was going on down by the lake. I was expecting a cute town celebration. Instead, the town hosted a music festival called Sonica. It felt like every young adult within the town was dancing to Middle Eastern EDM Music. I am not sure who was performing, but apparently he is fairly famous. During the set, we walked along the lake and around the park. There was this zip line sort of thing that we also tried. As his set ended, the entire crowd started chanting this song that is kind of like encore. It was so cool to stand in the crowd with all these people chanting, dancing, and enjoying themselves as they tried to will the performer for more. We couldn't help but smile every time we realized that we were truly in Lake Como experiencing this small music festival. Saturday: Our day started bright and early at 8:30 for breakfast at a local pastry shop. After breakfast, we went back to the Air BnB to change to swim in the Lake. In the same park with the music festival, there was a public "beach" area called Lido. I put beach in quotes because it was entirely pebbles and rocks, but the views were beautiful, the lake was perfectly clear, and to enter was free. We swam the entire morning before two of our new friends (Dylan, Boston College and Merel, from Amsterdam) arrived from Milan. They swam while we changed and planned out the rest of our day. All 6 of us took the train to Varenna where we met Gaby and explored. Varenna was absolutely beautiful and was recommended to us by the Air BnB. We ate lunch right on the lake and walked around the town for a few hours, taking in the breathtaking views. From Varenna, we took a ferry to Bellagio. Bellagio is known as the "Pearl of Lake Como" and is also where the Clooney's vacation villa is located. We walked around for another few hours, exploring the different cobble stoned streets, hilled alleyways, shops, and views of the Lake before starting our trek back to Mandello del Lario. Once back in Mandello, we all took another dip in the Lake to cool off and relax before Dylan, Merel, and Gaby traveled back to Milan. Rachel, Tyler, Romas, and I went to dinner at another recommended spot, Galli & Gufi. We shared a white pizza and a burrata pizza for appetizers and each got our own main meals but tried everything. The main courses were Risotto (Mantecato di riso Carnaroli), a special Beef Tartare chopped right at the table, Pasta with squid (Calamarata con zucchine, calamaretti e pistacchio), and a traditional meat cooked on a long stick (Tzigoiner all valtellinese; manzo e pancetta (a piacere) avvolti su legno di acero e cotti alla griglia secondo tradizione valtellinese, accompagnato da patate saltate e verdure all griglia). I also enjoyed another two glasses of local house red wine. To end the night we had the chefs trio and tiramisu for dessert and a shot of limoncello. We had such a wonderful and delicious meal together, we will definitely remember it long past others. After dinner, we went back to the festival which was even more crowded the night before with a more normal performer (mixed in to the Italian songs was a rendition of "Get up, Stand up" so maybe not normal but more normal than the EDM). Sunday:
On Sunday, we slept in a little later before checking out of the Air BnB. We went back to the same breakfast place and walked around Mandello del Lario for a bit. It was so nice out that we decided to take one final dip in the lake. The lake was truly so spectacular, pictures and words can't do it justice. Best moments: This trip to Lake Como was the perfect start to a semester of weekend adventures. I would not be surprised if swimming in the lake remained one of my favorite experiences, nor if the meal Saturday night remained one of my favorites as well. Ranking the towns, I enjoyed staying in Mandello del Lario as a starting point, Varenna was the most beautiful, and Bellagio had the best views of the lake. Super excited for my next adventure! Thanks for reading:) Ciao! I've officially spent one full week in Milan and can truthfully say that each day has been better than the last. Here is a brief run down of everything I"ve done this week: I arrived from New York Sunday Morning into Malpensa airport. From the airport I took a bus to Milano Centrale (the main train station here) and a cab to my apartment. After moving in, unpacking a little, grocery shopping, and relaxing, I met up with my friends from Tulane studying in Milan as well for aperitivo in Navigli. Navigli is a young, vibrant part of Milan with canals running down the streets. On Monday, I slept in and made myself breakfast (sunny side up egg) before heading over to Bocconi for the first time. I have not explored all the buildings yet, but the building my Italian language crash course is in is pretty nice. After 4 hours of Italian (and 2 breaks!), I went to the Duomo with some people from my section and another Tulane student's section. The Duomo is right in the city center surrounded by the plaza, the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, and the rest of modern Milan. The contrast between the Duomo and the rest of the modern buildings is so extreme and makes the Duomo that much more impressive. On Tuesday, I slept in again (it took a few days to get over my jet lag) and then went to Italian for 5 hours. Post Italian, I went for aperitivo with Rachel (Tulane), Tyler (Tulane), and Gabi (from my Italian class, Northwestern) at Fonderie Milanesi. This aperitivo was extremely nice at the cutest little restaurant / bar. We all definitely want to go again. After aperitivo, I went to Navigili with Rachel and Gabi where we shared a bottle of prosecco and walked around again. On Wednesday, after some more Italian, I went with a bunch of people to ESN Erasmus' welcome aperitivo. After aperitivo, there was a party at Old Fashioned. I felt feverish at Old Fashioned so I left early but everyone who stayed enjoyed themselves. Thursday was a chill day with more Italian class and relaxation since I was heading to Lake Como on Friday with some of my friends. I hope you enjoyed reading about my first week. I have not done as much sight seeing as I would have wanted within Milan so far, but I have the whole semester ahead of me. Not quite sure if I'll do a greetings from Milan every week, it depends how much I actually do once classes start and whether I have the time. I am so excited about spending the next four months here in the city! Ciao for now! |
AuthorStill me! Danielle!! Archives
October 2019
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