Everyone who stays in this spacious and beautifully furnished apartment agrees that it is a wonderful place to stay. It is indeed a palace with two large bedrooms, a lounge with seating for eight people, and a separate dining room. All the crockery, cutlery and kitchen utensils you need are on hand. The furniture is best described as opulent, with magnificent wardrobes, sideboards, lounges and side tables of great quality.
Francesca supplied a steam iron and ironing board when requested.
The neighbourhood, the Spanish Quarter, comes as a surprise at first, because it is a distinctly unique environment, with its narrow laneways which still manage to accommodate small trucks, cars, and the ever present Italian plague of motor scooters. The latter are a constant feature of the Neapolitan streetscape, most often with two riders (but up to four, with mum and dad and two small kids sandwiched in). They zip about like noisy wasps late into the night, but they didn’t disturb our sleep too much, but they did make walking down any street quite an adventure.
What also made walking around very interesting was the fantastic array of small shops scattered around our apartment. Butchers, bakers, fruit and veg, small supermarkets, restaurants and bars only metres away from the apartment! Our favourite shop was a fromagerie/charcuterie where you could get wonderful bread, cheese, ham and salami, olives and stuff, plus beer. One supermarket had a range of wine where the most expensive was €3, and we tried a Sicilian Nero D’Avolo, which was excellent!
It was a seven minute brisk walk to the nearest Metro (Toledo) which is only three stops from Napoli Central. The trains are incredibly cheap, and we went on separate excursions to Pompeii and Sorrento using them.
We only stayed four nights, but wished it was longer, because there is so much to see in and around Naples.
Francesca and Fabry were most gracious hosts, and made us feel right at home. While the neighbourhood was initially and briefly a bit of a culture shock, we quickly began to appreciate its unique Neapolitan vibe.