Back in the depths of Viennese lockdown my friend Francesca chanced upon a copy of Patricia Highsmith's The Talented Mr Ripley in a telephone box library on the street. Having coincidentally been raving to me about it just that week, she passed it on with the incentive of the film being available on French Netflix. I thus had a week to finish it before moving to Aix and indulging in Jude Law and Matt Damon at their finest.
When, a few months later, I returned home to the UK, my parents said I absolutely had to watch Richard E. Grant's travel programme in which he travels to countries and explores particular places that inspired novels. In the Italian episode, he heads to Positano to discover Highsmith's 'Mongibello'... And so the trip was decided!
Arriving at Naples airport early on Monday morning, we took a series of buses right round the bay of Naples and on to the Amalfi Coast. The first one took us past Pompeii and the next, (much smaller and more rickety), wound it's way down the steep hill above Positano on teeny tiny, practically-hanging-off-the-cliff roads. Hair raising as it was, it was nothing compared to the next day's adventure..more on that later.
After dumping bags and eating a much needed slice of pizza, we went for a wander down to the sea and soon realised that the place was absolutely buzzing with Americans. In fact, other than the expected Italian voices, every other accent seemed to be American. Rather than resenting it as I thought I might, my usual aversion to hearing English abroad was replaced with a feeling of in fact being much further away from the UK than just Italy. I was also subconsciously expecting Jude Law to stroll past me at every given moment which I'm sure helped.
What a sea! Crystal clear (so much so that I found a pair of sunglasses on the first dive), refreshing yet not numbing, clean as can be and not a jellyfish in sight. Great success all round!
Our favourite beach turned out to be Spiaggia Fornillo just round the corner. Slightly more secluded and with a much larger swimming area, I think it's got to be my most favourite beach of all time!
The next day, things took a...vertical..turn as we found ourselves in another bus winding up the hill on even narrower, flimsier roads. Up so far we were literally in the clouds - ideal if you're wanting to hike a notoriously rocky cliff path....The name alone should've been enough to warn us - Sentiero degli Dei (path of the Gods)!
After declining to hike up a full on mountain to reach the signed-for Santa Croce (conveniently no distance was provided..) we bussed back to Positano for a much more serene evening overlooking the bay.
Legs recovered, another swim thoroughly enjoyed and more sea treasure found (3 euros this time), we boarded a ferry the next day to Capri and from there on to Naples!
In his programme Grant follows the tracks of four authors and their books set in Naples, one of which being Elizabeth Gilbert's Eat Pray Love. Naturally, the only logical course of action on disembarking the ferry was therefore to hunt for the iconic pizzeria where Gilbert's protagonist delights in the best food she's ever eaten. Despite being a Thursday afternoon in September, there was a queue all the way out the door of L'Antica Pizzeria da Michele. But our hunger overshadowed any disappointment so we simply walked round the corner and had the best pizza of OUR lives - a fraction of the price of Positano and eaten surrounded by rowdy Italian families!
With under 24 hours in Naples and thoroughly fortified, we set off up the hill to the Catacombs of San Gennaro. Then on up the hill to Parco di Capodimonte for a breathtaking view over the Bay of Naples.
As dusk set in we wound our way down tiny side streets and past houses literally built into the mountainside. We dodged a scooter a second, saw baby terrapins for sale in a street market (?) and generally revelled in the chaos of the place after such a tranquil few days in Positano. I'm not sure I've ever visited two so emphatically contrasting places in succession.
After a final plate of pasta, we headed home. If anyone reading this is looking for escapism, The Talented Mr Ripley comes highly recommended.
(I'm currently reading a book set in Troy so who know where the next post will be from..!)