"When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie...that's amore"

There is one thing I really love about Naples; the FOOD... If you love to eat (a lot) like me, Napoli is certainly the place to be. Personally, if I lived there,I would eat all day long. The food is always great, even a simple panino at the train station is tasty. You just can’t turn down all the delicious food the city has to offer. And if you find yourself in Naples the one thing you MUST try there is pizza. I never had a soft spot for pizza’s but after a visit to pizza paradise it became one of my weaknesses...   
The Neapolitans "discovered" la pizza. In 2009 the pizza margherita celebrated its 120th birthday. This famous pizza was born in 1889 at Pizzeria Brandi(this is what I've heard). Because of king Umberto and queen Margherita's official visit to Naples, Brandi's pizzaiolo (pizza baker) made a pizza with the colors of the italian flag. Basil green, mozzarella white and tomato red. The royal family appreciated the pizza so much that they named it after the queen.
One slice of a true margherita will change your life (good bye Domino's and Pizzahut)... The secret lies in the freshness and quality of the ingredients and the genuine recipe of the dough, which is really hard to copy. In fact, in order to maintain and preserve the high  quality of one of Italy’s most important export products, “l’Academia della Vera Pizza Napolitana”(the Academy of the real Neapolitan Pizza)judges if a pizza is a real pizza. It wouldn’t be a good idea to let them judge the pizza’s in Holland – I guess I know what their verdict will be after they tasted our "genuine" pizza hawai or pizza shoarma... 

PS: Good pizzerie in Naples: Brandi, Da Michele and 

Donna Margherita 
PPS: Try the margherita with mozzarella di bufala(buffalo mozzarella)...absolutely delicious!

Behind my dad a painting of Napoli's lovable mascot Pulcinella 

as pizzaiolo at Brandi. 
Like Pulcinella we also need very little to be happy; A slice of pizza and a jug of wine!

A genuine margherita:thick soft borders and a tender middle

Check out my crib

When you think Capri is a no-go during the winter you're wrong... Actually, it was december when I went there for the first time. And it was great!
My trip started in Naples where I got off the plane from Amsterdam. The ride from the airport to the port takes about 20 minutes by taxi from where it takes about 45 minutes by aliscafo (fast boat) to the island.  Of course this doesn't apply to Mariah and Gwyneth, they travel by helicopter. For ordinary people like myself it's a bit of a hustle, but one way or the other you'll get there...
Anyway, being in Naples for the first time - my first time - instead of taking the boat immediately, we decided to act like tourists and went sightseeing. Everybody should do the same, especially during the holiday season. The city is a-ma-zing! Naples is so christmasy and cosy .... I just love it!
Especially the old centre, in Via San Gregorio Armeno. For Neapolitans Christmas is not complete without a visit to this area, "il cuore di Natale" as they say. It's famous for its Christmas cribs, "presepi" in neapolitan dialect. More than half a million people come to see the countless shops selling cribs in all sizes, every color and price range. Besides presepi you can find tons of homeless religious figures which are waiting to move into your crib, like Jesus, holy mary, Padre Pio and Maradona. But also thousands and thousands of accessories to pimp your crib. Like little houses, wells, waterfalls and even miniature pizza ovens... you never know, one of the 3 kings might get hungry. These tiny pieces of art are all hand-made, can you imagine the work? Santa's elfs must be working hard in downtown Napoli. 
The figures that made me laugh the hardest were the miniature Berlusconi's. Imagine him under your tree, standing next to virgin mary. How ironic is that...


Buon Natale a tutti!


P.S. If you can't get enough of Christmas cribs,  visit the Museo Nazionale di San Martino where you can admire an antique presepi collection including the largest one "Il Presepe Cuciniello". It consists of 162 human figures, 80 animals, angels and about 450 miniature objects.