Joan and Lothar Euro 2013: Day 36 07-10-2013 Mon Naples

After making our way by the now-standard unintentional indirect route to our destination - the train station - to catch the Circumvesuviano to Herculaneum, we discovered at the ticket counter that there was a strike on today, so no outing there today. A nearby cabby capitalising on the situation offered to take us to Pompeii or Herculaneum but we respectfully declined.

Plan B was to bring forward the late afternoon destination of the Duomo, but we had to find our way there first. Navigation is made difficult by the frequent absence of street names on corners and my struggling to make sense of the schematic maps they make available to tourists. We got there in the end, but it had taken one and a quarter hours from setting out from the B&B. We note that our reserves of energy are declining and our endurance is flagging. Walking on Naples' cobbled streets gives new meaning to the term uneven surface.

The Duomo is interesting in that one of its large side chapels is from the 3^rd or 4^th century. Another was elaborately decorated with good large paintings and an abundance of heavy metal (silvered - presumably metal - statues and candle holders). The main nave was rather muted by comparison.

Continuing homeward bound on the Via dei Tribunali we encountered three churches within 100m of each other. What was amusing for me was their different approach to tourists photographing. Many have signs indicating you should not. People often just ignore this and I do too when see others snapping away. One of the churches was particularly devoid of fellow travellers when I was accosted by an attendant and advised in hushed tones that I should not use the camera. I complied at once, and as a reward we were offered to be let into the roped-off area behind the altar. Now in the next church it was quite different. No signs, and one of the attendants, eliciting our language, directed us to the sacristy - “very beautiful” - and it was indeed.

San Lorenzo Maggiore

San Paolo Maggiore

It takes all kinds

After lunch we visited the convent (monastery) of Santa Chiara next door to our B&B. Its main feature is a large quadrangle with vaulted walkways (cloister?) around the perimeter. The quad is quartered into four parts by a pillared cross of paths. The pillars are covered in floral tiles. The vertical perimeter of the raised quadrangle is also tiled, but with bucolic and romantic scenes. The exterior walls of the quad are covered in frescoes sadly somewhat weathered.

Church
The church itself was largely destroyed by incendiary bombs on August 4, 1943, explaining why it seems rather plain. It was originally a Baroque church, but the reconstruction finished ten years later left it in a Gothic style.

Convento

Frescoes

Whose dog did that?!

Hmmmm

Pillars and Walkways

Tiles

Walkways

It’s a small world here in Naples. While in the church we encountered we encountered the blond lady from NY for the fourth time. The first time was when we both arrived at the B&B at the same time, she by taxi with luggage. We advised her she needed a 10 cent coin to operate the lift up to the B&B. So to save her fumbling we magnanimously donated one. We saw her the second time at an enoteca while we were both buying wine, and the third time in the street.

The day started off badly with the strike, but came good with nice weather and some good churches. We are told that the trains will be running tomorrow for our transfer to Sorrento. We will see n the morning if we can go by ferry/hydrofoil if they are running.

As I write this I can hear our muso playing again.

Some shots of our B&B