Naples. Getting to know the city

The devil's paradise

Some cities are built for trade.

Others for religious reasons,

Some of them are due to state necessity.

Naples began with a song.

Berringer Fifield.

The legendary beauty of the bay has been sung since antiquity. The first to realize that the Bay of Naples is one of the best places to live were the Greeks. Thanks to them, the city preserves the ancient Greek road network. On its banks in terraces, as in the theater, there are palazzos, churches, palaces and monasteries, in the past surrounded by city walls. The richness of palaces and churches made the city one of the wonders of Europe.

Incredibly long, straight avenues were laid through the centre. The most famous and fashionable of them is Via Toledo. Grand rusted entrances, decorated with family coats of arms and impressive facades with barred windows glorified the high position of ancient families.

The inhabitants of this paradise on earth were always in danger of almost instantaneous destruction by the volcano Vesuvius. The combination of the extraordinary appeal and danger of Naples has shaped a culture that is defined as a mixture of cheerful hedonism and harsh holiness, paganism and piety.

It is believed that at critical moments in history, they are saved by Saint January. The liquefying blood of a Christian martyr has, for centuries, been endowed with the properties of stopping earthquakes, eruptions and preventing all threats to the city and its inhabitants.

Naples charmed Bocaccio and Stendhal, oppressed and abhorred the Marquis de Sade. Naples has penetrated into the paintings of Caravaggio and Mozart’s operas, and in places in it you can recognize the Greek city from Satyricon.

Even a cursory list of thinkers and artists who were born or lived here is awe-inspiring: Virgil, Thomas Aquinas, Giovanni Bocaccio, Francesco Petrarch, Giotto di Bondone, Caravaggio, Miguel de Cervantes, Gianbattista Basile, Tommaso Campanella, Jose di Ribera, Giambattista Vico, Gioacchino Rossini, Enrico Caruso, Pablo Neruda, Sophe Loren, Sergio Bruni, Rani and Pedro. All of them, in varying degrees, are works of joy and pathos, for which Naples is so famous.

A city that can display such a list of people and works associated with it deserves the closest attention.

Our route starts from Piazza del Plebiscito Referendum Square, one of the most beautiful squares in Italy. On the one hand, it is surrounded by a colonnade church of San Francesco di Paola, founded in honor of the end of Napoleonic rule. The building overlooks the grand and majestic Royal Palace, which was one of the four residences of the Bourbon dynasty of Naples. From the square we see the beautiful and frightening fortress of Sant Elmo, hanging over the city, visible from any part of it and constantly reminding itself. Heading to the Artichoke Fountain, making a stop in the Gran Cafe Gambrinus, here we can be inspired by the atmosphere of the Beautiful Epoch and enjoy the taste of perfectly brewed coffee.

Then we will have the opportunity to debunk stereotypes by delving into what until recently was considered the most dangerous and criminal area in Spain. Today, walking along its narrow streets, you feel its soulful flavor and the atmosphere of which is not in any Italian city.

Then from a dark alley we get to a wide avenue - Toledo Street and here is one of the entrances to the elegant and luxurious passage-galleries "Umberto I". The gallery was built in front of the magnificent San Carlo Opera House, which was the greatest of all and the largest in Europe at the time of its opening in 1737. Then our way will pass to the massive castle "Castel Nuoovo", rising in the coastal part of the city.

After admiring the castle, we will proceed to the historical center, where we will pass through the Greek decuman. It will take us to St. Gaetano-Greek agora and the Roman Forum in the past. Here on the square is the entrance to * Underground Naples. Entering the San Gregorio Armeno artisan street, we immerse ourselves in the magical atmosphere of Christmas that reigns here all year round.

Following further along Tribunal Street, we approach the Cathedral of the Assumption of St. Mary - the cathedral of Naples. It is consecrated in honor of the heavenly patron of the city - Saint Januarius.

The oldest surviving part of the cathedral is the baptismer of St. John, founded under the emperor Constantine the Great in 343.

Excursion "Underground Naples is not included in the sightseeing tour program and is stipulated in advance.

** Entrance to the Baptismal of St. John is paid - 2 euros.

Changes in the program are possible according to your wishes and preferences. It is advisable to specify them in advance. Contact me in any way convenient for you.