Accomodation - Welcome Inn Via Broggia, 3, 80135 Napoli (Campania), fyi, it is 2 train stations away from the Centrale.
I can't believe my backpack is LIGHT for almost close to 3 weeks of travelling...this time, I didn't do much research nor any plan as what to expect in Italy and Germany trip.
This time my travel partner is Chee Mun and Yanto will join us from Venice.
Well it doesn't mean any better to take afternoon flight eg my flight is at 1230, gate close at 12pm, it takes us 3 hours to get to the airport which mean we are squeezing in the peak hours train/bus! phew! both our backpack were struck together until someone from behind push us in! Thank to whoever you are.
We make it in Airport at 11am but to find out that our Flight was delayed till 1330!
We loitered around and ate my homebaked banana cupcake for lunch....yummy!
From London to Naples, takes around 2hr25min. The weather in Naples is warm just like Sg, Msia. Oh I was stung by MOSQUITOES...on my FACE again. There are mosquitoes in Italy. What is so special in Naples is everywhere you go, you will see Balcony at all the apartment. Even the hostel we're staying now has a Balcony. Is like a MUST have in every household! It is so interesting that we witnessed a lady using a basket to get stuff from the lower level.
It is a chaotic traffic! We are always following the Neapolitan to cross the street, most of the time with the help of an elderly lady. Even with a traffic light, the cars or motor bike will not stop at RED Light!
When we set off to Pompeii in the morning, our first challenge was to get train ticket. The old lady at the ticket counter doesn't speak any Inglese at all, she jus babbled away in Italian....until a young lady behind the queue came up to help us. It took us 30min to settled and board the train. The train from Centrale station to Pompeii Scavi took around 30min. Oh the ruins of Pompeii is within walking distance from the train station, however, they do not have sufficient Inglese map and explanation booklets to be distributed so we were like LOST ｉｎ POMPEII city. I guess not only us but the rest of the tourists without a guide felt the same way too. There are guide touting around for 10euro per pax to bring you around. We spent around 2.5hr in there but still we missed out one of the most important ruins site - Plaster cast human body. You got to use alot of imagination to create picture of the ruins area. ^_^ The entrance fee cost 11euro per pax.
From Pompeii train station, we boarded the free shuttle to Mt Vesuvius which is an active volcano in Europe. Even though is FREE shuttle to the Mt Vesuvius but highly lightly you will join in the tour cause the place where they drop you is still a LONG LONG way from Mt Vesuvius! So we pay €17.50 per person to get near to Mt Vesuvius. The last eruption was in 1944 but wasn't as destructive as AD79 that led to the destruction of the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum and the death of 10,000 to 25,000 people.
Well Naples is the birthplace of PIZZA and yes we had PIZZAs almost every other day. =) With recommendation from the hostel, we managed to try out a cheap yet delicious pizza. It cost us €3.50 for one whole Marinara pizza and shared among the 2 of us while other table u see each of them will have 1 pizza for 1 person. The Pizzeria Sorbillo Gino is located at Via Tribunali 32. There is a long queue but the service is swift so is just a 10minutes wait. Beside the Pizzeria, there is a wine shop, hop in if you are still waiting in the queue.
After hearing stories from other travellers in Naples Hostel, pretty worry about Rome trip. We'll be setting off to Rome on 24th Sept taking their Regionale train which is cheaper guess because there won't be any seat reservation. Well will keep all of you posted again. The train depart on the dot!
To Rome 24 - 27Sept
Rome isn't as SCARY as what I was told about. I did saw gypsy but not witness any of them stealing, maybe I m not too alert to take notice of it. The traffic is still chaotic but they will stop at red light! Guess I had gotten used to the traffic, you need to move out to the road and the vehicles will actually slow down and give way to you.
I had booked a hostel(Fiesta Terrace) which is near to the Train Centrale. The hostel isn't that too bad, we had a female dorm meant for 4 persons even though we booked a mixed dorm for 10. Phew else we will be lodging with smelly, snoring man!!! We shared a room with 2 friendly Croatia girls.
Around Rome - there are alot of ruins wall, ruins structure and excavation is going on for some spot like the Roman Forum. I think we are more interested in Gelato! Rome is known for its Gelato cause for every few 10metres away, you will see a Gelateria.
We tried out the gelato recommended by Frommer 2009 - Italy. We managed to find 3 of the Gelateria mentioned. It was full of surprises.
We happened to bump into this Popular Gelato - San Crispino located at Via Della Panetteria 42 near to the Fontana Trevi. I paid €2.50 for the smallest cup of nocciola aka Hazelnut. BTW, gelato is only served in cup here for they believe the cone will spoil the taste of the gelato.
Well, it is the most costly gelato so if compare among the 3, I will pay more for Chocolate sorbet which has a bigger portion.
Especially the Chocolate sorbet with whipped cream at Cremeria, it is smooth and you doesn't feel solid ice in it, it just melt in your mouth.
Address to Cremeria Monteforte, Via Della Rotonda 22, Rome. I really love this. I paid €4 for the chocolate sorbet which is only served in a plastic cup with whipped cream & waffle biscuit. I guess because the sorbet melt faster than gelato hence it is served in a plastic cup.
Giolitti. Via Uffici dei Vicario 40. Near the Pantheon. Excellent gelato but the place was so crowded with mostly adults instead of KIDs. This time I paid €2.70 for 2 flavours - Ciocolatto fondente(Dark Chocolate) & pistacchi(pistachios). It was really nice and terribly smooth and you would crave for more.
Most of the nice Gelateria are located near to Fontana trevi or Pantheon.
If you are a gelato craze and crave for more but budget, there is a rather cheap that serve generous portion with whipped cream and taste as good as those best gelateria.
This is it - Il Palazzo del Freddo di Giovanni Fassi. Via Prinicipe Eugenio 65, Piazza Vittorio Emanule. It opens till 12mn, for 3 flavours, you pay only €1.50.
ENOUGH of Gelato, another highlight in Rome as I mentioned earlier is the ruins.
We decided to pay €23 for the Rome pass which allowed us 3 days of unlimited trip on their public transport & free entry to 2 museums. However when we visited Colosseo & Roman Forum was FREE ENTRANCE! We were puzzled but who care when it is FREE.
Beautiful Tuscany Landscapes - Firenze(Fiesole), Pisa, Lucca - 27 - 30Sept
Tuscany has beautiful landscapes & artistic legacy. We stayed at Emeraldhostel which is just 10min walk from the train centrale cost per night est€15-€17. It is very convenient and again we booked for mixed dorm which is cheaper but we get a 3 bedroom dorm, on our 1st night we shared with a girl from Sweden and the following 2 nights was with a US guy. The hostel provide free WIFI and there are 2 laptops available in the kitchen but the kitchen stove is not working, you can only prepare food using the microwave and boil water with kettle.
Upon arriving, we explore around our hostel and walked along the shopping district. We were both anticipating about our own trip out of Firenze - Volterra and Cinque Terre. However, both trip will incurred more cost on Hostel and train ticket, we decided to drop the idea and explore somewhere near together without having to look for new hostel . We settled for Fiesole, Pisa and Lucca. Firenza has alot of Bell Towers, just right beside a church, you will see one Bell towers.
On the very next morning, we headed to Fiesole by bus number 7 from the train centrale. The bus ticket cost €1.20 is valid for 70minutes right after you validate it. It was a hilly ride up Fiesole. Fiesole is a town in Firenze which allows you to catch a great scenic of Firenze. From Fiesole bus station, we walked for an hour to Monte Ceceri where you can see Firenze from above. At Monte Ceceri, we discovered Tuscan gray stone quarries, ok is already there but we didn't expect to see it.
After Fiesole, we headed to another side across the Fiune Arno to Piazzale Michelangelo. From Piazzale Michelangelo, we can also oversee Firenze but it is not as high as at Fiesole. It was really hot and warm that day, guess I was almost burnt if I never apply my sunblock.
On our 2nd day in Firenze, we ventured out to Pisa and Lucca. Ok I was told not to expect much from Pisa because it wasn't as magnificient as it seem to be. As expected it was really crowded with tourists as usual. We did the SIGNIFICANT pose pushing the Pisa. It is so funny when I tried to capture the Pisa because I will have the tendency to tilt my camera to make sure the Pisa is straight. What an irony! And what I really like about this small town might be the small church - Santa Maria della Spina which is still standing close to the edge of a road.
From Pisa, we choose to head to Lucca which is less than an hour of train journey.
We always unexpectedly bumped into some places with long queue or rather we were always attracted by FOODs. We came across a small alley and saw a crowd standing there munching on their bread with fillings inside, is not only the local but a Japanese tourist and of cause, we squeezed through the crowd and made it to the hole in the wall to order our sandwiches. Oh the Sandwich cost €2.50 - €3 only. I had Ham, soft goat cheese, wild lettuce sandwich and a small glass of Chanti Classic(forget the exact name) recommended by the staff. Oh there is only 2 persons tending the BAR, one manage the sandwich, the other manage the wine and cashier. Wah the history of this small hole begin in 1875. Check out this little hole here at least their website is in English. While we were standing outside the holes, savouring on our sandwich, another group of tourists came along. I'm not a sommeliers but I find the wine smooth and doesn't leave a trace on your tongue, instead it goes down well with the sandwich.
We skipped the Galleria dell' Accademia hence we didn't catch the real David statue, there was such a LONG QUEUE and oh we need to pay entrance. I know I won't regret giving it a miss since I don't really appreciate fine art and we are not allow to take photo in there.
Venice a magical mystery- 1-2 Oct
From Highland to lowland, to a city of water...we are heading to Venice on one of the earliest train - 5am.
Well as expected, we arrived on time and even earlier than expected. Venice is beautiful, magical & mystery. If you have alot of time to spare, get lost in this city but when you have only a day to spare, you might fear of getting lost. Too bad it is way too crowded with TOURISTs. The hostel we stayed was a university hostel in Venice w/o having the hassle to take the water bus aka vaporetti to other part of the islands. I confessed I never take any of their means of transport - Gondola & vaporetti. Unless you have a group of 6 else it is not worth spending 80euro per gondola ok if you r loaded, why not?
If you are observant like ME, the many tower clocks in Venice are NOT working at all or rather none of the clocks is working in Italy! better wear your watch if you don't want to miss your train.
This is not the 2nd time I missed train and is a costly lesson learnt. The 1st time was in Paris and because of that, we need to make another arrangement to catch the other train else we will miss another train to Munich. Still it was a great experience, have you ever brushed teeth, washed up at a train station? oh forget to mention there are alot of water fountain in Italy which is safe for drinking well i drank alot during my 10days in Italy and was tried, tested! I still remembered it was Mid-Autumn festival with full moon, it makes one missed home even more.
Germany 3-8Oct - Munich , Baden-Baden & Berlin
I really enjoy Germany partly because I had my 1st Couchsurfing experience and get the insight of 3 different German families at 3 different cities.
Count myself lucky, we had a rather good Germany trip. Thank to Yanto who made all the arrangement from Venice to Germany no doubts, we MISSED the train from Venice to Munich & spent more money still it was a great experience.
From Venice to Munich - we took an overnight train and managed to have a cabin to ourselves suppose to accommodate 6 passengers per cabin. We made ourselves comfy by sliding all the chairs to makeshift as beds. We were quite excited at first with all the beautiful mountain, the farming, the sun rise but after a while, we were fast asleep. We transferred at Salzburg where we waited for few hours before the next train to Munich arrived. Due to Oktoberfest, all the lockers are full, ended up carrying our huge backpacks to Oktoberfest, we ate, drink & immersed into the festival. We get to understand about the festival from our couchsurfing host who were really nice to share with us. They are my 1st couchsurfing host and a good one.
Conclusion
Napoli has alot of Balcony while Roma has alot of ruins, Firenze has lotsa of hilly landscapes, Venice is a beauty. Only in Roma I realise carbonara pasta isn't suppose to be soaked in creamy sauce but dry and coated with egg yolk, cheese and bacon. Let see if I can master Carbonara =). Well I really love Napoli with lotsa of Balcony and it is full of colour and less crowded with Tourists. I enjoy Roma because within a city of ruins it has alot of gelateria. If you are into Rome culture, Roma is a must visit city.
We also concluded that the most willing to splurge on good food and wine are the Japanese. We dined at this ristorante 34 which we didn't know it is so popular until we saw a few Japanese customers who come and go, some even booked a cab to return to of cos HOTEL.
Munich is a modern city while Berlin is a city full of History which I quite like it. At least I could relate to it cause it doesn't happen few hundreds years back. =)
Baden-Baden (Black forest) is a HUGE Nature Park where you need weeks and weeks of trekking.
Total cost to the 18days trip including air tickets, train tickets, hostels & foods - £900
Stay tuned for photo... at the end of the trip..
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