Caserta

After many pleasant days at Camping Spartacus in Pompei, we finally broke camp and headed north, through Naples, and on to Caserta and its Royal Palace.

We've seen many royal palaces, but Caserta was among the

very best

Stark from the outside, but glorious and authentic within



Starting with the grand staircase, all pink marble, domes and

other features of which no lens can capture

Another double-barrel shotgun house, but

even larger and grander than Capodimonte

In the royal nursery

Ditto

King's bedroom

As it looked in the good old days

Queen's bath

Throne room

Not a lot of great art here--mostly original furnishings of

interest--but who can resist the flamenco cherub band?

Nice in-laid marble table

Shotgun view of second floor

Corner of library, with interesting display case

Ravello and Klingsor's Garden

After lunch we took the short bus ride up to Ravello, which is a bit further down the coast but much higher up than Positano and Amalfi. Michelin gives Ravello three stars, and there is a Wagnerian interest as well.

In Ravello and the Villa Rufolo, 1270, mentioned by Boccacio, among others...

When Wagner visited Ravello in 1880, he was so taken with 
the architecture and garden at the Villa Rufolo that he based

the stage design of the 2nd act of Parsifal--Klingsor's 
Enchanted Garden--on it

Entry to the Villa

Interior at the Villa; Wagner had never seen Moorish architecture before--I 
think--and since the evil magician/ arch-villain  Klingsor--who had taken the 
Grail from the Knights of the Grail-- had to be Moorish, Villa Rufolo suited

well

Ditto

"Mit diesem Zeichen, bann ich deinen Zauber!"



Well, it is a gorgeous setting, cliff-side, a thousand feet up
from the sea

More of the gardens and view



Looking south, not as dramatic a view as that north of Amalfi

But the gardens are pretty nice

Someone really likes pansies

Water feature

More interior

13th century outdoor BBQ

With a view



I don't think Ravello merits 3 stars, or even 1,

but I did come away with some decent wine

Amalfi Again

On our previous Amalfi coast ride, we had skipped Positano and Ravello, two of the major attractions. So, with a day left on our 3-day transportation pass, we again took the Circumvesuviana to Sorrento, then the bus to Amalfi, stopping off for a while at Positano, and then, after lunch in Amalfi, the bus up to Ravello. For lunch, we went to Il Pari again. I know it sounds pretensious, but we do have our favorite restaurant in Amalfi. Same dish and wine, too. And, for once, just as good as the first time. Plus the waiter got the recipe for us.

Near Positano

In Positano; a terraced world

Imagine carrying these 80 lb puppies up or down five or six

(or 10) levels

From the beach at Positano

Ditto

Ditto again

One of the anti-Saracen-pirate lookout towers

A typical abode; everything in bloom

Beautiful place

Looking distantly back up the coast

More Mediterranean blue

Saturday fish market at Amalfi

Tour bus portrait; note the local rascals about to join in

Fountain at Amalfi harbor

Capodimonte 2

Although it was mostly the paintings, and the great building itself, Capodimonte also holds many other items of interest. All in all an impressive collection in an impressive setting.

E. g., this sarcophogal sculpture, half-skeleton



Yes, but are they diswasher-safe? The royal family's good dishes and solid-gold 
table ornaments



Capodimonte as well as Caserta Royal Palace (which we'll 
see in a couple days) are really what I would characterize 
as double-barrel shot-gun houses: two parallel 400 foot long 
halls, between which are the main chambers/halls/etc., and 
off which are a variety of other chambers; here you can see 
down one hall at Capodimonte; there are of course three 
floors of this

Family dining room

Ball room or somesuch



We-actually-know-what-this-is department: a beautiful scale model of the Temple 
of Isis at Pompei (the one donated by the six year old), as it would have looked 
with all its marble and paint (table-top size; well, a large table)

Court-painter was actually a major industry in by-gone days, 
as each monarch would send likenesses of him/herself to all 
his/her fellow divine-righters; "Your pal always, Napoleon"

Plus this nice vase

Some of the tapestries; yes, all Flemish, 17th-18th century,

large enough each to play hand-ball on

Detail of a battle scene

And more rooms of paintings, large ones too