Arriving in Napoli and Day 2 ::: More Rain

Since the Cinque Terre was rainy, I decided to head south to Naples, where the weather forecast said 30 degrees Celsius and sunny. Imagine my disappointment when I get here to find that it's pissing down rain.

To top it off, by the time I made it here, I had completely worked myself up to a paranoia about being out in Naples after dark.

The previous night, the bartender at Bar Centrale tried to tell me that Naples is not a good place for a woman traveling on her own. Too many Moroccans, East Europeans, and corruption. I even received a cautionary email today from Iacopo.

Of course, if I listened to everyone who has told me that traveling alone is not a good idea, then I would still be sitting in my apartment in Minneapolis. He doesn't know it, but I took the bartender's word of warning as a dare. How could I not come to Napoli.

Still, once I arrived in Naples, I felt a little more stressed than usual. So I attached myself to an Australian woman who spoke Italian, asking her if we could share a cab, since we were going to pretty much the same place.

I didn't really know what to expect from Hostel of the Sun because the tourist office lady found the bed for me. When I got there I immediately de-stressed. There would be no repeat of the Patrizia experience here. There was a very young crowd hanging out and working there. People were chilling in the living room watching movies, talking, eating, and checking out Facebook.

They didn't have a bed for me today, so I carried my heavy bags in the pouring rain to 6 Small Rooms. It's a chill hostel. Way too uptight. Lights out at midnight, and one of my dorm mates just asked if I could turn off my reading light!?! The only redeeming quality is that it has a resident cat that likes to hang out with me in my bed.

My day was spent walking around in the occasional downpours. I saw a castle. I ate a hefty lunch of pasta and calamari.

Tonight, I went out for a Neopolitan-style margherita pizza, which Naples does especially well. So delicous amazing awesome! The freshest tomato sauce, mozzarella (with a large dollop in the center), and basil.

And despite all warnings, I even went out alone at night and made it back to my hostel safe and sound.

Few things that have left an impression on me in Naples:

1) There are foreigners selling umbrellas everywhere. Granted, it's been raining off and on today... so I wonder what they do when it's not raining.

2) Naples seems to have a lot of stray dogs. :( They look well-fed and everything, but they're just really sad looking. I saw several curled up and sleeping in the middle of a square.

3) Pedestrian crossing lights here are the exception, not the rule. You just have to kind of throw yourself into traffic and hope for the best. This is infinitely more terrifying than skydiving. I'm pretty sure that if anything kills me here, it will be a car. So hold your breath and pray for me until I arrive in Rome tomorrow. Pretty sure it will be the same story there, though.

4) It's a much bigger city than Florence, and not nearly as beautiful. But it does have the weathered looking buildings that I loved in Venice. And because the city is sort of situated on a hill, everyone seems to have French doors that lead out onto a balcony overlooking the ocean. Gotta love that.