Bay of Naples | The Daily Norm

Aug 23

From Napoli to Capri, Part 14: A photo folio to end it all

There are many very good reasons why Capri has long been known one of Europe’s most elegant holiday destinations. Right from the time of the Emperors, when Augustus chose Capri as his favoured holiday isle, and Tiberius moved his entire court there for the final years of his tyrannical rein, through to the heady golden age of Hollywood, when the streets of Capri were peppered with flash bulbs and paparazzi encircling the magnetic draw of superstars such as Brigitte Bardot and Sophia Loren…Capri has long been known as the land of the rich, the famous and the altogether chic. While today’s island feels far less exclusive in the true sense of the word – after all, thousands of visitors pour onto the island every day – Capri retains its place at the pinnacle of the high-end. Dare to join them?

Around the bustling Piazzetta and down the famous Via Camerelle, there is so much posing and pouting that Dominik and I felt pressurised into changing our outfits at least 4 times as day (and even then we felt thoroughly self-conscious that passers-by might notice a Zara label rather than the obligatory D&G). And while countless visitors may pour in for the day, to stay on Capri is something of an investment. The prices are so high that one week could bankrupt even the better off. This is serious wallet-busting territory where only the mighty-rich can feel truly comfortable.

Yet beyond the pouting and the Botox, the eye-watering add-ons and the obligatory ego-mania, Capri is a place which exudes beauty. Its natural surroundings are simply stunning. There is no other way to describe them. Whether you turn to face the silhouette of Ischia to the north, the mighty Vesuvius to the East, or the Sorrento Peninsula to the south, Capri’s views are astonishing. But so too are the sights as you turn inwards, as beautiful white washed streets cling onto sloping streets, their shops polished and preened to perfection, everything boutique, floral, and highly manicured. And even those self-obsessed posers, with their haute-couture, and perfectly coiffed hair… well they are just beautiful, and a perfect addition to the scenery.

So all in all, in a post unapologetically embracing the beauty of Capri, I finish my recollections of our Naples trip with an explosion of the colour, the light, the lines and the landscapes of Capri. From the passionate, gritty streets of Naples, through to the tranquil haven of Ischia and finally onto the millionaire’s playground of Capri, it was quite a trip, one which exposed us to such a rich depth of incredible sights that I left aching from the assault upon my eyes. These places are at once historically magnificent, enshrouded in a kind of mystical enigma from the time of Odysseus, as well as utterly relevant in an age of consumption, self-obsession, and above all things, beauty. We’ve been before, and we returned in glory. It won’t be the last time.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2019. Unauthorised use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.

Aug 19

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From Napoli to Capri, Part 13: Villa Jovis and the Casa Malaparte

Capri is full of the grand houses and spectacular villas of the rich and the famous, and that is nothing new. Some 2000 years ago, the earliest protagonists of the Julio-Claudian dynasty of Roman emperors were setting up resplendent palaces on the paradise Isle, from Emperor Augustus, who took frequent holidays in his Capri villa, to Emperor Tiberius who loved the place so much that he spent the last 13 years of his rule on the island, effectively moving the centre of the Roman Empire to this small but stunning Mediterranean island.

It can be said that Tiberius made as much of an impression on Capri as the island did on him. He spread himself far and wide across its rocky scenery, and the remains of many Tiberian palazzi have been found across Capri, including the ruins which were integral to the construction of Axel Munthe’s Villa San Michele. However, it is widely assumed that of all those palaces constructed for Tiberius’ pleasure on Capri, his main residence was the Villa Jovis, perched on one of the island’s highest peaks with a spectacular view over the Bay of Naples.

The Villa Jovis

The ruins of the Villa Jovis (aka Jupiter’s Villa) can still be seen today, albeit in such a poor state of repair that they resemble the kind of idyllic pastiche of antiquity which came to romanticise the ancient world in the paintings of the Renaissance and later Roccoco periods. Yet the remains are in such a spectacular location that we found our hot and sweaty up hill struggle worth all the effort, not least because next to the palace, you can wander for free around the Parco Astarita which, built into terraces on a largely steep cliff, enjoys the most incredible views of Capri’s famous coastal scenery, not to mention Vesuvius and the Sorrento peninsula beyond.

Views from the Parco Astarita

Most notable of all the sights comprising the Parco Astarita views is the Casa Malaparte. Audaciously built onto the rocky outcrop of the Punta Massullo, the Casa Malaparte is without a doubt the most famous house on Capri, not least because it featured prominently in Jean-Luc Godard’s 1963 film, Contempt (Le Mépris) starring one sultry Brigitte Bardot.

Globally renowned as a masterpiece of Italian modern and contemporary architecture, it was conceived in 1937 by Italian architect Adalberto Libera. The construction is audacious because it dominates the local scenery, with its reverse pyramidal staircase and freestanding curving terrace wall visible from far and wide. Yet despite this, its striking Pompeian red masonry, together with the pine trees which surround it, tend also to ingratiate the house with the local environment. The overall effect is beautiful to look at, even though the best view of this privately owned masterpiece is still, necessarily, from afar.

The Casa Malaparte

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Aug 16

From Napoli to Capri, Part 12: Ascending Mount Solaro

On our previous trip to Capri, we gasped in wonder at the heady heights of the island’s mountainous landscape. However we had very little time to explore it to the full. Now, with time on our hands, we took the opportunity to explore beyond the Marina Grande and the super-chic centre of Capri Town, extending our reach to the island’s second town, Anacapri, and the vast mountain which extends up behind it, Mount Solaro.

With an elevation of 589m above sea level, the peak of Mount Solaro is the highest point of Capri, and as such the views are understandably ravishing. With a statue of Emperor Augustus – the first Roman emperor to favour the island – presiding over all, the area around the peak is truly photogenic, with wide swathes of wild flowers rolling down across the steep mountain sides making even the foreground of these impressive vistas a treat on the eye.

But best of all things was the journey up to the peak. No hiking for those swanky visitors to Capri… rather the ascent can be enjoyed in a chair life which enjoys spectacular views from the starting point in Anacapri, to the final mountain peak. Sitting in individual chairs, one lined up behind another, one doesn’t really have the opportunity to chat with fellow travelers. The result is a ride of some 13 minutes one-way spent in near silence, with only the sounds of nature to accompany the journey. It surely made for a welcome contrast to the bustle of Capri’s much visited twin towns.

Back down from the heights of Mount Solaro, we also had the opportunity to explore the centre of Anacapri, finding a town much lacking in the notorious glamour of Capri Town, but which felt altogether more authentic. I fully suspect that when the tourists go away, this, rather than Capri Town, is the urban centre most frequented by locals unwilling to pay the exorbitant prices elsewhere. It’s accordingly a place which feels like another kind of Capri. Not necessarily better, but certainly not worse for showing something of the local spirit which must pervade the island during the quieter months of the year.

A glimpse of Anacapri

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Aug 12

From Napoli to Capri, Part 11: The Villa San Michele

After many blissful days exploring the passionate streets of Naples and the ruins of Pompeii, and moving onto the tranquil haven of Ischia and its many paradise gardens and seafront villages, we arrived at last in Capri. We have been to Capri before, albeit only on a day trip from Positano. But so enamoured were we by those few hours on the legendary island that we vowed to return. 5 years later, we rolled our suitcases off the Ischia ferry onto the famous docks of Capri’s Marina Grande.

We were back in those scenes from It Started in Naples again, since the port really hasn’t changed all that much since Clark Gable disembarked from a ferry on the very same dock in the 1960 movie. He was there to track down Sophia Loren in her home in the Villa Palazzo Reale. However, as we ventured forth in Capri for the second time, we had a different villa in mind. The Villa San Michele.

The Villa San Michele has been in my mind for some time this year. It all began when I read an enticing book, The Unfinished Palazzo by Judith Mackrell, in the early weeks of 2019. That book introduced me to the flamboyant Marchesa Luisa Casati whose eccentric homes hosted infamous parties included one villa on the island of Capri. A few months later, coincidence took me to the book, The Story of the Villa San Michele by Axel Munthe, which I picked up purely because of the picture of Capri on its cover. However, once I started reading, I realised that the Villa described was one and the same as the Capri house of Luisa Casati, and a broader picture began to form in my mind. Hooked, I read on, and knew that once in Capri, I would have to make a beeline for the place.

Axel Munthe is a complex character, who can essentially be described as Swedish doctor and psychiatrist, collector of antiquities, animal lover and aesthete. His famous novel does far more than tell the story of his villa. It also tells of his long and complex medical career, treating some of Europe’s most notable aristocrats, and providing medical care to the victims of some of recent history’s most disastrous epidemics. Yet it is the pages when Munthe describes his discovery of the land around San Michele, and his gradual construction of the Villa, which are the most enticing.

The land once hosted one of several villas owned by Emperor Tiberius. Munthe’s discovery of multiple pieces of antiquity both inspired the villa which resulted and became part of its construction. However the land is also unique for having unparalleled views not only over the Bay of Naples but also over towards Capri Town and the Marina Grande.

Having squeezed into a tiny local bus in order to climb the hair-pin bends of the main road up to Anacapri, we arrived at the Villa San Michele and found it to be every bit the paradise Munthe describes in his novel. Among the relics is a ravishing cafe set upon a rooftop and enjoying those same stunning Vesuvius views. The original little chapel, after which the main Villa is named, features the magnificent and mysterious ancient granite sphinx, whose acquisition Munthe describes in an almost dream-like state. And best of all things, the gardens offer visitors a lush Elysium of cypress trees and flowering fauna, covered porticoes and citrus-lined avenues.

We were lucky. We not only got to enjoy the Villa San Michele in the full worship of the day’s sunshine, but also at night. There, as part of the Villa’s annual programme of classical music events, we sat down to watch a performance of the Naples Teatro San Carlo string quartet, as all around us the sun set over a silhouette of Ischia to the West, and Vesuvius just south of it. At that moment, all the year’s reflections on this legendary villa seemed to settle into a wholly satisfactory conclusion. I felt somehow rounded and complete, as though one of the main objectives of 2019 had been satisfied. What a way to commence our return to the exquisite island of Capri.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2019. Unauthorised use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.

Aug 9

From Napoli to Capri, Part 10: Forio post-Festa

When finally we made it down to the port town of Forio, having ventured through the extensive succulents and prickles of the Giardini Ravino cacti collection, we found a town in the swathes of a calm but subdued hangover.

In the days before our visit, Forio had been celebrating the Festa di San Vito, a rather spectacular annual festival comprising parades, market stalls, musical celebrations, street parties and culminating in a massive firework display which we could enjoy from our hotel. But today’s visit was a far calmer affair. The only signs of the celebration were in the multitude of street lights spanning across roads like the set from a Bollywood movie, those plentiful arches, formed from lattice designs and multiple light bulbs, adding a feeling of fiesta to what is otherwise a sleepy town on the far West coast of Ischia.

Walking through a town in the midst of its post-festival siesta, we encountered a Forio which was characterised by gently sloping streets, soft pastel houses, simple fishermen-style cottages and a very understated elegance. The streets were full of colour, which, when offset by the dazzling blue sky, gave Forio an enticing sense of happiness.

It was in that reflected positivity that we strolled contented through Forio, stopping by the town’s main fountain to eat bowls of spaghetti and prawns with a glass of limoncello and another of white wine, sad that this would be our last day in Ischia, but excited about the Capri adventure to come… only one day away.

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Aug 2

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From Napoli to Capri, Part 8: Sant’Angelo

Not content with wowing its visitors with its rolling volcanic landscape, lush Mediterranean scenery and ravishing blue seas, Ischia throws a few more treats into the mix by extending its landmass further out into the sea at various points along its shoreline. These little islets, or rocky promontories, have subsequently characterised the coast of Ischia, acting as nuclei for the development of quaint fishermen’s villages, the historical setting for imposing fortresses or places of worship, and providing visitors with truly awe-inspiring landscapes quite unique to this part of the world.

On Tuesday, I shared our experience of what is undoubtedly the most famous of these rocky outcrops, atop of which the Castello Aragonese sits in all its glory. Today is the turn of Sant’Angelo which, complete with its very own islet and impossibly quaint sprawling village, has to be declared one of the prettiest, if not the most beautiful town in all of Ischia.

We headed to Sant’Angelo on the recommendation of our friend Sarah, whose fine taste and vivacity for life cannot be challenged. We proceeded to follow her recommendations to the letter, from strolling up through quaint, ceramic laden narrow white-washed lanes through the village, and along to the rather handsome stretch of Fumarole Beach, to quenching our thirst on the scintillating mix of lemon granita and freshly squeezed orange and lemon juice at Enzo la Bomba. His juice, served up near the town’s bus stop, was a bomb indeed, as that icy, sweet, citrus freshness exploded in our mouths and left us begging for more. All this we enjoyed, and more, although sadly Sarah’s challenge to find a rather hunky waiter at a nearby hotel passed us by – we’re leaving him for next time.

But all that Sarah described of this place we found and savoured, lingering until the sun turned golden and glittered over the gently rocking waters of the small harbour there. Sant’Angelo is the perfect Ischian town. Small and quaint, full of colour and character. Little enough to digest in mere hours, but so oozing in Italian charm that one could easily spend hours sipping cocktails by the waterside and gorging on gelato barely noticing the passage of time… how easily I could pass life in such a picture-perfect paradise of Mediterranean delight. Sarah… I think it’s time to hit the estate agents lists.

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Jul 24

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Honeymoon and Hotels: Tenuta del Poggio Antico

I have spoken much of the incredible garden and grounds of the Tenuta del Poggio Antico, a hotel in Ischia which personifies the meaning of “boutique”. But I have not really addressed the views, and more particularly the views from our bedroom which were quite frankly breathtaking. Looking westwards over the sweeping bay of Citara, across to the Punta Imperatore, and across the horizon towards the tiny islands of Ventotene, the view was quite honestly jaw-droppingly beautiful. I had already promised myself, the hotel staff, and anyone else who cared to listed that I would make the most of our terrace and paint that ravishing view. But when it came to it, I was so awe-struck that I didn’t even know where to begin. Eventually, however, I did.

Our terrace benefited from every inch of that incredible view. Given its westerly direction, we enjoyed the most incredibly sunsets by night and watched the sea mist dissipate over the sea as the morning sunshine cleared a path for its golden rays. But my favourite time to enjoy this view was around about 5 in the afternoon, when we would return from a day’s sightseeing, and I would settle down to paint this…

This view is the latest in my collection of Honeymoon and Hotels gouaches. I love it for the extent of the view it captures, but also for the creamy pinky dusky hues contrasting so starkly with that wonderful Hockney-style blue pool. It goes down in my collection as one of the favourites.

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Jul 23

From Napoli to Capri, Part 5: Ischia…our little slice of Paradise

I always knew that Ischia, our next destination after Naples, was going to be a paradise isle. How could it not be, having seen those ravishing scenes filmed in Ischia Ponte in Minghella’s The Talented Mr Ripley? Yet apart from that film, and the odd garden profiled on Monty Don’s Italian Gardens, I knew very little about the island which many refer to as Capri’s poorer sister. How wrong they are. And how right I was to suspect that Ischia would be a little slice of Paradise.

Embarkation into the little port of Forio, with its little domed churches and pastel coloured buildings jutting alongside a small harbour, gave a first scintillating taster of how pretty Ischia would be. But if Forio was the aperitif, our hotel was set to be the starter, main and dessert all rolled into one. I had laboured over hotel websites long and hard in the run-up to this holiday, uncertain whether to go for a beach side hotel for the views, to a thermal retreat to benefit from the island’s naturally hot mineral waters, or for something altogether more bucolic. In the end, the latter won the day, as the Tenuta del Poggio Antico ensnared me with its promise of olive trees and vineyards, mountainous panoramas and a sweeping cerulean blue pool.

As we took a little mini bus up perilously narrow roads, each becoming steeper and more green in its turn, and arrived up the perfectly manicured driveway of this boutique hideaway, we discovered a place that not only lived up to its promises, but multiplied on them, ten times over. Here is a hotel which benefits not just from the dramatic mountainous backdrop immediately behind it, but also from the most ravishing views of the bay of Citara and the Mediterranean horizon at sunset.

The decor was subtly chic, but not lacking authenticity – tasteful to the nth degree – its white breakfast room with white drapery wafting slowly in a gentle sea breeze being one such space where my heart melted on contact. Here, a vineyard with grapes growing in miniature made us feel like we were in the heart of Tuscany, while the thermal pool nestled alongside it provided perfect vine-views while being able to enjoy its best vintage from the comfort of Ischia’s warm waters.

But best of all things was the pool. A sweeping curved basin of perfectly blue water around which the most sumptuous flowering Mediterranean gardens spilled out in every direction. Jasmine, lavender, pomegranate blossom, geraniums and countless others I couldn’t even name – all were present to frame this hotel with a kaleidoscope of ravishing colour.

Thanks to the Tenuta del Poggio Antico, we had truly found our own little slice of Paradise. We could have stayed there in perpetuity. But of course Ischia awaited. More about that next time.

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Jul 19

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From Napoli to Capri, Part 4: Catacombs, Chiara, Caravaggio

More than any other district of the city, the Spaccanapoli embodies the spirit of a city emboldened by its own insuperable energy, history and cultural superiority. In Napoli, city of dangerous extremes, crimes of passion, astonishing food and stunning geography, the Spaccanapoli feels like the ancient core of a time-battered city, like the old family grandmother ticking along besides the central hearth. It is an area whose quaint narrow streets are intermittently broken by staggering baroque palazzi; which has so many squares and churches and historical buildings that it feels like an open air museum; but whose array of shops and cafes, all overflowing with locals, demonstrates that this is no still life for the tourists: this is the living, breathing heart of a city which never stops.

But for all the life that courses through its streets, Naples is a city that is morbidly fascinated with death. Whether this obsession acts more like a memento mori – a reminder to seize the day and live to the full (which Neapolitans almost certainly do) is unclear. Whatever the reason, I have never before experienced a place quite so haunted by the ghosts of its past, and by the creepy presence of the dead.

The Catacombs of San Gaudioso

This was no more so than in the Catacombs of San Gaudioso, a dark cavernous place accessible only through a secret trap door in the Basilica of Santa Maria della Sanita. There, in the depths of this once historical burial place, the tombs of the dead were marked not only by painted images of their former selves, but by their real skulls embedded into the wall. Meanwhile, downstairs, the alcoves still remain where bodies would be propped to be drained of their liquid selves, before being buried as a decidedly reduced form.

San Gaudioso was spooky to be sure, but offered a fascinating insight into Naples’ extensive underworld. Back in the sunlight, an oozingly cheesy pumpkin and pancetta pizza in the Piazza del Gesù reinvigorated any spirits which might have been temporarily subdued in the world of the dead, and gave us nourishment and energy in sufficient doses to appreciate the magnificence of two staggering places of worship in the heart of the Spaccanapoli – the Chiesa del Gesu Nuovo, with its diamond-like facade and its staggering golden interior, and the mesmerising Cloisters of Santa Chiara.

The Chiesa del Gesu Nuovo

In Santa Chiara, in particular, we were stunned into submission by the mastery and magnificence which a garden filled with hand-painted majolica tiles embodied. Each depicting pastoral scenes, fruits and floral patterns, the overall effect was dazzling, and was to be a fitting precursor to the many beautiful majolica tiles we were to find decorating the floors of so many homes and hotels in Capri.

The Cloisters of Santa Chiara

But it was back into the gloom for the end of the day… albeit a gloom punctuated by the staggering light created by the undisputed master of light and shadow: Caravaggio. I have long wanted to see his masterpiece, The Seven Works of Mercy, in person. After all, I have traipsed across Europe admiring so much of the oeuvre of this incredible bad-boy< artist. But as is always the case with a Caravaggio painting, properly lit and embedded within the surroundings he intended, seeing this work in the Pio Monte della Misericordia was quite an experience, and once which was a fitting conclusion for this exhilarating day in the Spaccanapoli.

Caravaggio in the flesh

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Jul 16

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From Napoli to Capri, Part 3: It Continued in Naples

See Naples and die, or so they say… well I suppose we all have to die at some point, but the sight of Naples will not be the thing that finishes me off. For with its fantastic tangle of mad urban bustle, its multi-layered, jam-packed and over-constructed landscapes, its fiery hot-blooded temperament, and its mix of the baroque extravaganza with graffiti-strewn slum, Naples is to my mind a city to see, to experience and to savour.

After the historical still-life that we experienced in Pompeii, we thirsted for something more akin to modern day madness. And where better to find it than in Naples, the city that never sleeps, never tires, but bustles with all the energy of its rather unstable tectonic foundations. So on this second day of our Naples adventure, we took to the streets of the Spaccanapoli, the Vomero, the Via Toledo and the Decumano Maggiore, each regions of a city exuding more character than I did sweat in the searing heat of day.

From vast churches and convents to spooky catacombs and cocktail bars, we covered an awful lot as we continued our tour of Naples. But let us savour those characterful streets for now. This post concentrates on the fabric of the city, on those splendid baroque spectacles, on the multi-layered cityscapes constructed of palazzo upon pauper’s house, on the cramped shops selling sfogliatelli, and the cafes whose steaming hot terraces proved to be the perfect place for an extra strong negroni. See Naples… and live!

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