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    Smart Guide Italy: Naples and Campania: Smart Guide Italy, #5
    Smart Guide Italy: Naples and Campania: Smart Guide Italy, #5
    Smart Guide Italy: Naples and Campania: Smart Guide Italy, #5
    Ebook163 pages1 hour

    Smart Guide Italy: Naples and Campania: Smart Guide Italy, #5

    By Alexei Cohen

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    About this ebook

    Smart Guide Italy: Naples and Campania is the perfect digital traveling companion. Now all the information needed for experiencing Naples, Pompeii, Mount Vesuvius, Capri, the Gulf Islands, Amalfi Coast, Positano, Sorrento, Paestum and other sights is at your fingertips.

    Smart Guide is the first independent travel publisher to offer digital guides to all of Italy's regions. We also operate a convenient online accommodation service which helps travelers get an insider's perspective on Italy, lower their CO2 impact and save substantially.

    Other titles in the Smart Guide series:
    Rome & Lazio
    Florence & Tuscany
    Milan & Lombardy
    Venice & Veneto
    Turin, Piedmont & Aosta Valley
    Grand Tour: Rome, Florence, Venice & Naples

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAlexei Cohen
    Release dateJan 18, 2012
    ISBN9781465890610
    Smart Guide Italy: Naples and Campania: Smart Guide Italy, #5
    Author

    Alexei Cohen

    I fell in love with Italy while watching the movie La Strada in the basement of my university library. Since then I have met and married an Italian, written and edited several guides and enjoyed a lot of pasta, wine and gelato. I live with my family on the outskirts of Rome and cultivate my passion for Italy a little more everyday. Moon Rome, Florence & Venice is my latest book and a result of months of exploration. I look forward to sharing what I have discovered and meeting travelers in Rome to swap stories over a cappuccino.

    Read more from Alexei Cohen

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      Book preview

      Smart Guide Italy - Alexei Cohen

      Smart Guide Italy: Naples and Campania

      Published by Smart Guides

      Smashwords Edition

      Copyright 2012 Alexei Cohen

      Discover other titles in the Smart Guide series:

      Rome & Lazio

      Florence & Tuscany

      Venice & Veneto

      Milan & Lombardy

      Turin, Piedmont & Aosta Valley

      Genova & Liguria

      Trentino-Alto Adige

      Umbria

      Le Marche

      Northern Italy

      Northern Italian Cities

      Grand Tour: Rome, Florence, Venice & Naples

      Smashwords Edition, License Notes

      This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

      Smart Accommodation:

      Smart Guide has teamed up with over 5,000 bed & breakfasts, self-catering apartments and small hotels in order to provide travelers with convenient, reasonably priced accommodation in the best locations throughout Italy. To view all our accommodation options visit our website and choose the one that’s right for you. Enjoy the journey!

      Smart Answers:

      Travel requires making choices. If you have any questions regarding your trip to Italy write to us and we will get back to you within 24 hours. If you have any comments or suggestions that will help improve future editions we’d love to hear them.

      CONTENTS

      FOREWORD

      INTRODUCTIONG NAPLES AND CAMPANIA

      TOP STOPS

      PLANNING YOUR TIME

      NAPLES

      Sights

      Entertainment and Events

      Sports and Recreation

      Shopping

      Food

      Accommodations

      Information and Services

      Getting There

      Getting Around

      NEAR NAPLES

      Campi Flegrei

      Herculaneum

      Mount Vesuvius

      Pompeii

      Benevento

      Caserta

      Casertavecchia

      Capua

      ISLANDS IN THE GULF OF NAPLES

      Procida

      Ischia

      Capri

      AMALFI COAST

      Sorrento

      Sant’Agata Sui due Golfi

      Positano

      Amalfi

      Ravello

      GULF OF SALERNO

      Salerno

      Paestum

      FOREWORD

      Naples has a reputation and a lot of it isn’t good. Even Italians have come to associate the city with trash, crime and counterfeiting but to assume Naples is all bad would be selling it short and overlooking a lot worth seeing and experiencing. First of all there are the Neapolitans who are a breed apart and live life differently than everyone else. Sure they don’t always stop at traffic lights or stand in lines but they do tend to smile a lot and if GDP were measured in laughter the city would be a financial superpower. Then there is pizza. Any city that can claim to have invented pizza can’t be all bad. Add to that a magnificent position overlooking a bay and backed by a volcano and it soon becomes evident how damaging stereotypes can be. Once you’ve explored the historic streets and sampled the pastries you may start to think everything you heard about the city was just hearsay. Naples certainly isn’t perfect, it’s a city of contradictions, but you have to see it to understand those contradictions.

      Of course there’s more to Campania than Naples and any traveler with the time and gumption should attempt to experience as much of this unique region as possible. Those looking for antiquities will find them in Herculaneum, Pompeii and Paestum. The first two were nearly perfectly preserved by the eruption of Vesuvius and provide an idea of what life was like 2,000 years ago. The third sight is even older, more remote and a reminder that before their were Romans their were Greeks. Now, if history isn’t you’re thing don’t worry. Campania has a wonderful coastline and enough picturesque islands to please both romantics and naturalists. South of Naples you’ll find a succession of small villages and larger towns that each have their own particularities and have yet to surrender to the onslaught of globalization.

      Accommodation of course is always a big issue for travelers and that’s why we recently launched Smart Guide Italy B&B. Smart Guide travelers can now stay in the comfort of an Italian home, get unique local perspective and save. Enjoy the journey!

      Alexei Cohen

      Series Editor

      INTRODUCING NAPLES AND CAMPANIA

      The energy of Naples is palpable, more like that of New York than any other Italian city. Its streets may be crisscrossed with clotheslines strung with laundry, but Naples it is still a major metropolis and the largest city in Southern Italy. Summer heightens the theater of life here, when three million Neapolitans seem to simultaneously live outdoors.

      Naples is wealthy in artistic creativity. Artisans and manufacturers have been major players on the world stage since the Etruscans. Even the black market economy, where those skills have periodically been employed in major counterfeiting operations, is an ancient tradition. Upon arrival by train, the city exudes a certain lawlessness. Modern Naples remains choked by political corruption and organized crime that deprive its citizens of basic services. Garbage can go uncollected for weeks, a scandal that repeatedly plagues the city in neighborhoods that are less dependent on tourism and leads to improvised bonfires. Despite these obstacles, artistic life flourishes, perhaps propelled by the same fatalistic energy that life next to an active volcano like Vesuvius generates.

      The region of Campania possesses incredible variety. Getting out of Naples is easy and generally great fun. Emperors did it for centuries. Nearby Capua was home to the world’s largest amphitheater until the Coliseum was built in Rome. Today trains, buses, and boats take you easily and efficiently to some of the world’s most spectacular scenery. Caserta has its royal palace gardens designed to match Versailles in glory and size. Palace architect Vanvitelli took good note of the ancients. His soaring triple-tiered aqueduct still powers the Reggia gardens’ gushing waterfall. It spans roads that lead to enchanting small towns, wineries, forests, and fresh mozzarella.

      Benevento, its dark green forested hills full of mysteries and legends, has Roman ruins that include Emperor Trajan’s triumphal arch and ancient and contemporary theaters; after Naples, it is the region’s most important center for contemporary art. The ruins of Pompeii open an eerie window on everyday Roman life more completely and dramatically than any other site in the world. Yet, it’s only one of many archeological parks in Campania that reveals ancient temples, villas, mosaics, wall paintings, and other treasures. Recreation abounds for anyone who enjoys hiking, sailing, swimming, and just about any other sport. You may also find prices in most of Campania more reasonable than in wealthier regions in the north.

      The islands and Campania’s dramatic coast have attracted the rich and famous for centuries. Capri was Emperor Tiberius’ island playground long before the Hollywood jet set, European intellectuals, and writers like Graham Greene arrived. Ischia and Procida on the other hand have clung to their low-key island ways. Russian ballet legend Rudolph Nureyev even managed to buy his own island here. Ravello was author Gore Vidal’s beloved base for decades. The breathtaking views along the Amalfi Coast are are perfect for finding inspiration.

      A carefree and happy-go-lucky attitude reigns in Campania, so jump in and enjoy it. The right attitude allows you to escape intact and enjoy the mirth while you’re here.

      TOP STOPS

      Museo Archeologico

      The Museo Archeologico in Naples is one of the world’s best archeological museums featuring one of the most comprehensive collections of Greco-Roman artifacts in the world. Spend an afternoon exploring the vast collection of gems, mosaics, frescoes, and ancient Egyptian artifacts.

      Mount Vesuvius

      Vesuvius, a mountain within a mountain, has generated fear and awe since Naples was settled. The volcano’s most famous eruption in a.d. 79 covered Pompeii and nearby towns with ash and debris. Creator and destroyer, its fertile slopes are ideal for grapes and other crops. This ominous, ever present phenomenon has left an imprint on the inhabitants below who sometimes live as if there’s no tomorrow.

      Pompeii

      Pompeii, the site of the remains of a port city in ancient Rome, is one of Italy’s most visited attractions. The site is vast, but make sure to save some time to view the beautiful frescoes in the Villa dei Misteri.

      Benevento

      Land of legends and ancient battles, Benevento is Campania’s hidden gem. The breezy hill town has a magnificent triumphal Arch of Trajan, theaters in ruin, and seven modern ones. Its forests and mountainsides are stitched with vineyards, a reminder that this is the heart of Campania winemaking country.

      Reggia di Caserta

      Designed to match the glory of Versailles, Caserta’s royal palace is a regal sight. Its lavishly decorated interior is fit for a king. The expanse of gardens enchants visitors with grand paths to the dramatic waterfall that cascades into pools and finely manicured grounds ruled by mythical gods and goddesses.

      Grotta Azzurra

      Although it seems to be illuminated by its own light source, the intensely bright Grotta Azzurra in Capri is a dazzling phenomenon of refracted light. The entrance to the cave is tricky, so part of the fun is flattening out on a rowboat in order to enter the grotto.

      Ravello

      Ravello’s location on the Amalfi Coast provides both seclusion and spectacular views. The picturesque town has Moorish influences, charming cobblestone streets, and an exciting performing arts scene. The summer music festival should not to be missed if you’re in town.

      Paestum

      The ancient Magna Grecia town of Paestum dedicated to Poseidon, god of the sea, is a reminder that some of the best Greek ruins are in Italy. Three temples impress with their size and near-perfect condition. They offer intimacy too with curious wall paintings that show divers in fine Olympic form.

      PLANNING YOUR TIME

      The first thing to keep in mind is not to skip over Naples. Tour groups ignore it as they pile in to

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