Here’s the view from our hotel room this morning. Charlotte and I are back in Italy for what I believe is the 8th or 9th time. We’ve were in Sorento and along the Amalfi Coast a few years ago, but this is our very first visit to Napoli.

We spent about half of yesterday exploring the city’s colorful, gritty and surprisingly hilly streets. It took only a few minutes to realize how much more alive and kicking Napoli is when compared to Florence where there seem to be only tourists and no locals.

We then took a local train to Pompeii, the fascinating, 2000 year old Roman city that was buried under ashes when Mount Vesuvius erupted, killing approximately 1150 people.

Before heading back to the hotel to rest our tired feet and legs (after 30k steps), we enjoyed an absolutely terrific dinner at a whimsical ristorante called Signora Bettola on via Medina.