I was terrified when I first arrived in Naples. All I could manage to do was hold my belongings as close to my body as possible, check behind me every five minutes and stare. Stare at the honking cars, the yelling women, the signs on every corner, the car that almost hit me, the motorcycle that almost hit the car or the pizza steaming out of the store fronts. I was so scared of everything around me. The impression I had prior to arriving was that I would be coming to the Compton of Italy. That every move I made had to be calculated, well thought-out and monitored. My purse was always zipped and my hands would constantly graze the back of my bag to make sure no one else's hands managed to come near it. I was aware, maybe to aware.
Two days later I loved Naples, I would walk the streets buying horned necklaces and not think twice about my bag. I would talk to the man behind the counter at the bakery because I simply COULD. I would tell him about Seattle, my family and anything else he was willing to know about. I was at home in a city that I had spent only days in. I felt more comfortable in Naples in two days then what took me a month to feel in Rome. The people were so willing to know me. They wanted to participate in the going-on's of my day. They were loud, but I loved it. They were nosy, but I wanted to tell them everything, it was the perfect city for me.
Naples was also the first time that I had ever felt I was seeing the truth. We are so fortunate to be living in the circumstance that we do in the incredible city that is Rome. But do we recognize this blessing at all? I don't think I realized how fortunate I was until Naples. The excursion we took with Alexander Valentino (whom I will discuss later) was the most eye opening, revolutionary moments I have had in Italy thus far. I saw something besides the life of the rich and famous in churches and museums. And please, don't misunderstand me, there is an importance in seeing what has occured in the past and learning why it happened at all but there is something so refreshing about witnessing something so honest in the present. while with Alex we were able to explore and learn about a squating zone, a temporary living space for people who don't have another option.
The space was completely obsqure, the shapes were wrong, the execution was incorrect and above all nothing really worked. Lives had even been lost because of the poor effort that had gone into this building that at one time stored 1,500 lives. This number to me is even more unbearable considering the circumstances that these people were living in. The building had never been cleaned in the nearly 10 years it had been standing. The garbage piled in the lower level for years in closed off rooms. It was disgusting, but it was honest and apparently right in the mist of what was considered the 'suburbs'.
Gianni, a man simply walking by who happened to have had knowledge on the building asked what we were studying. One thing then led to another and we had a second tour guide who knew everything there was to know about these Canadian disasters. This is just one of the many examples of the people I came across in Naples. People kindly wanting to be involved, participate in another person's life. He didn't know us, he wasn't getting paid and yet he spent the next 30 minutes of his life sharing information with a mostly interested group of students. He received no benefit to the time he spent, but we received everything! I learned about the creation of the building, it's inhabitants and the plan the city has for it's future...he only learned my name.
For a city that is to be so feared, I fell in love with it.
During our walks from one place to another I was fortunate enough to talk with Alexander (alex). He told me about what he does and his family that lived close by (his aunt who is near 80 years old but still active) and his girlfriend who lived in rome whom we visits often. He told me that Naples was his base, his true love above all else. I was lucky enough to even squeeze a little bit of information for my independent study out of him.
I had mentioned how much I loved Naples and how the people seem to be so much kinder here and much more willing to help/communicate. He immediately assumed I had heard otherwise (which I had) and explained himself in a very interesting way. He told me that often immigrants come to Naples on their way to Rome. That they learn the Neopolitian language and continue their journey to Rome claiming to be from Naples. These immigrants, he said, are the reason that Naples has such a negative stereotype. The immigrants create this Neopolitian impression that is completely false. interesting. I didn't know whether to think that was a negative dig at immigrants or whether he was defending his home and indifferent to the immigration issues. Either way, it was quite eye opening information.
Beyond this food. My opinion on food has changed completely as well, cheap, thick, delicious food. Fried potatoes, pizza, seafood and everything else was available by mass amounts and always ready for my consumption at any time of the day. Perfection.
The castle that we were able to visit on the second half of our tour was something that was well worth the wait, time, and sweat it took to arrive there. High above everything in the city you were able to see the gentle rolls of the water at the edge of town, colorful buildings drizzled over an uneven landscape. A barely visible setting sun laying behind rain clad clouds, it was incredible. I love visiting places like this, it makes me feel like I'm standing amongst history. I stood where people before me have stood and done things, accomplished things or maybe even solved problems that affected millions.
Coming back to Rome, after my short but beautiful stay in Amalfi, was bitter sweet. Besides dealing with my own personal issues I was exhausted. I recognized the feeling as what I had felt when returning from florence. It felt good to come back to a safe haven, a place of my own with my belongings and familiarity. But I noticed things that I had noticed when I first arrived in Rome but have, over time, forgotten and failed to appreciate. Rome is glorious and Rome is beautiful. While I feel that it lacks the life that flows so passionately through the people of Naples, it has such a sophistication. It has a dignified beauty that is untouched and unchangeable.
I mentioned this in my Florence entry but, it is even more obvious in my experience in Naples, how it takes being away from home or familiarity to realize how much you love, appreciate and care about a place. I love Rome, but I have learned about the country as a whole. Rome may not be my favorite place I have been to but it is the only place that I feel confident in calling home. The only place that I have had enough experience with to truly admit rightfully how I feel.
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