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View of our neighborhood from our balcony in Rome.
We did some more sightseeing in Naples the day after Pompeii. It was still raining and it was a bit messy. We went up along the northern coast with hopes of walking on the beach. It was very hard to get to and we had to turn back at one point. Google maps likes to play games sometimes and we really need to check before heading out. What looks great on maps on the phone looks much different on the laptop.
The coast just north of the city. A huge port that runs ferries to and from the city to other nearby destinations.
The view hasn't changed much since this was painted in 1472.
The Castle Nuovo was built in 1279 and sits on the port that juts out into the sea. Until the 1800s it was the home to the kings of Naples.
Interior courtyard of the castle.
It's a huge castle with many rooms that has been modified over the years.
Front iron gates hit by cannon balls.
The castle now houses art that was taken from public libraries, offices, schools and more that were being demolished or remodeled. The place in general is a mess and very dirty. The art that was "rescued" has no protection whatsoever and there is little to no information about any of the wonderful pieces that are hung there. I enjoy art museums but prefer to view a painting and then study about the artists and their lives.
Not sure what they were up to but it sure looked like they were having fun!
We had a path to follow but it turned out that our little car was barely small enough to make the turns. We saw cars go down the winding and curving road and pretty fast. Turns out they are all private compounds and you are pretty much stuck. We got to the end of the paved road and a guard said we couldn't park there. It was walkable but we had to turn back.
Several cruise ships were in the harbor waiting to take on passengers for the next cruise.
We had our first encounter with a paid parking spot on the street. As we were returning to Naples we found a small beachside town with public parking. I couldn't figure it out even with Google translation. I started asking and a guy said just enter your plate number and put in the coins. I had tried the coin slot but it was broken later turns out it opens and closes. Our plates have numbers and sometimes with letters you use the number corresponding to the three letters on the phone pad. That didn't work. After playing around for 10 minutes it was then obvious to enter only the three numbers from the plate, insert coins and out comes the ticket you put on your dashboard.
The day after it was time to return to Rome. Oh that felt good after driving in Naples and looking for parking spots. We got off lucky the first three nights and found a spot right next to our building. Parking rates are 25 to 35 Euros for 24 hours. Take out the car before that and wanting to return, you start all over or pay by the hour. The last day of beach driving and being plowed over by thousands (no exaggeration) of motorbikes I was through with looking for a spot. Near our apartment was a parking lot filled bumper to bumper. Risking a scratch or dent the attendant flagged me down. He said that they had a covered parking garage in back. 35 Euros. Forget it. Then our Mexican negociation skills kicked in. We ended up in a dry parking garage made for six cars for 25 Euros. Deal. When we drove we of course spoke in Spanish. The guy was so happy. He said he loved Mexico and we hit it off. I told him we needed the car before 8 a.m. and he said 7:50 a.m. I walked the three blocks and waited until 8:15 when his brother arrived.
I picked up Juan and the bags and off we went. Navigating Naples traffic (not bad at that hour nobody works around here) and hit the highway. Juan made a great torta for breakfast in the car and we stopped at one of the well-known auto servicio stops along the way. We got to the toll booth and confused like never before we ended up in a lane for the telepeaje and no one would let us back up. Screw it! As we got closer to Rome we had to top off the gas tank and the attendant said "no problema" in a screaming voice. Everyone here screams when they talk. That's great if you have a hearing deficit.
We drove on enjoying the scenery and exited the toll road just before Rome. The guy didn't blink an eye. He asked where we entered, calculated the price and gave us a receipt that I later showed to the car rental agent. We dropped off the car and took the shuttle to the terminal. The train back to Rome proper is every 20 minutes and we were back to the apartment before 2 p.m.
We are in the same Airbnb in Rome where we began our adventure. It's just like home and we know the routines of how to get there, where to grocery shop and so on. The weather is so nice now with the trees in bloom, 22C degrees, and sunny. We returned to the Vatican to tour the grottos underground and visit the tombs of many popes who were laid to rest there. The crowds were even bigger than before and we did catch a Vatican mass and procession in the works. Very interesting and more on that later. When I enter a cathedral I always here Gregorian chant playing in my head 😎
Today, Friday, is a free day and we will spend the morning here at the apartment writing blogs and Facebook.
Translation below from top to bottom:
TO STOP THE UNITED STATES FROM IMPOSING TARIFFS ON MEXICO, ARE YOU IN FAVOR OR AGAINST THE FOLLOWING:
Mexico makes the necessary concessions to improve relations with the U.S.
Mexico and the United States will have joined operations to combate organized crime.
Mexico will abandon the practice of Abrazos no Balazos with organized crime and begin to fight back.
Mexico will extradite narcotrafficking leaders to the U.S.
In addition, we see that the changes in the U.S. have been good for Mexico. Our president has made many of the requested changes for security, cartel activity and border reinforcement. The border with Tijuana is now empty, 29 high profile cartel members have been extridited to the U.S., and it appears unoffically that this has brought the end to "Abrazos no Balazos". We have to take the bad with the good and in a recent poll Mexicans agree.
