Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Trip Report Ischia, Naples, Rome...and Limoncello!

I have been around Fodor’s since around 1999 but haven’t been very active in recent years, just answered a few questions here and there. I’m afraid I’ve been a bit lax about doing trip reports, so I thought it was about time I did one and included “Limoncello” in the title for those of you who may remember that I always had that in my titles. (Limoncello is required for after dinner. ��) I hadn’t been to Italy in six years (been to Paris, Thailand, Greece, Aruba, South Africa & Swaziland), and a return trip was overdue. I love Italy, and in particular Rome. Rome has been either the whole trip in the past, or if not, it was still part of all trips. This is my tenth trip to Italy. I had four nights Ischia, five nights Naples and six nights Rome. I’m not going to give a minute-by-minute report, but there’s not as much here about Ischia and Naples, so wanted to add some info about those. In general, I am a slow walker and don’t cover as much territory as a lot of people (although I had a knee replacement two years ago and that helps a lot), but on this trip it is also very hot.

Getting to Ischia proved to be a challenge. Ten years ago, my trip started in Capri, where you walked out of the Naples airport, hopped on the Alibus (which was right there outside the door), and were taken down to the ferry docks, being dropped off across the street. This system has changed! The Alibus is no longer right outside the airport door, it is several blocks away. Doesn’t seem like it should be a problem, but it’s about 85 degrees and of course I’m pulling my luggage. No matter, I get to the bus. It doesn’t drop you off as close to the docks as before, probably an additional big block away. There’s still the heat/luggage.When I get to the ticket office, there is a ferry leaving in about ten minutes, which is great. I’m staying in Forio, but I take the ferry even though it’s going to Ischia Porto, because the next one to Forio is too long of a wait. I had checked out the bus schedules ahead of time and plan to take the bus from Ischia Porto to Forio. I get off the boat, walk around and up the incline to the bus stop and get on the bus. Fortunately, I knew the street name I needed and was watching for it. I had read that the hotel was a few steps to the bus stop. This is totally not true! We pass the street I need and the bus keeps going. It is probably four long blocks from the hotel. It’s still 85 degrees and I’m still dragging my luggage. Of course, all this is made much worse by the fact that I’ve been travelling for 23 hours and got very little sleep on the flight.

When I turn up the street for the hotel and go to the end, the street number is directly in front of me. There is no hotel in sight, plus there is a large, high fence that is not only locked but has wire twisted around the spokes of the fence! ☹ Fortunately, there is a lady in the garden, and when I ask her about the hotel, she points around a curve to my right. Once you get around the curve, then there is a sign pointing to the hotel. I’ve finally made it!The good news is that the hotel, Hotel Villa Melodie, is terrific. The room is white, so light and airy, there’s a small balcony, nice bathroom with a really good-sized shower and beautiful tilework around the sink. Beautiful, lush grounds, beautiful pool. Nice buffet breakfast. Nice people at the desk. Only 53 Euro for a single room. If you have a car, it would be a lot easier to get there, and they have parking available. Just don’t eat dinner there. I did the first night because I was too exhausted to go back out to the bus and go into Forio to eat (no restaurants within walking distance, and note that when you take the bus back to the hotel after dinner, it’s dark and there are no street lights – I was not worried about safety, more about tripping, as it’s not a nice smooth sidewalk back to the hotel, not that you find many of those anywhere in Italy!). The food, other than the pasta course, seemed to be frozen stuff just heated up. Not good. When I eat a meal in Italy, I want to swoon! They did have Limoncello that I could get when I came back from dinner each night. ��

I’m afraid I was still tired over the next couple of days and didn’t do a whole lot. I didn’t get to any of Ischia’s famous spas. I did go into Forio and explore the town and on another day took the bus to see Castello Aragonese, although I didn’t go inside. Ischia is beautiful! The bus system is great and goes all around the island.

Restaurants (all along the water just to the left of the entrance to the dock for the ferry in Forio):
La Sciantsca, for lunch they have bruschetta and a glass of wine for 4 Euro. A great deal. The three slices of bread are perfectly toasted, it’s piled high with the cherry tomatoes that Ischia is known for, so good, a little fresh garlic in there and of course basil. Delicious! I did this twice. Also had a dinner here, Stuffed Squash Blossoms followed by Grilled Prawns and ½ liter of wine. 33.50 Euro.

My new favorite dry white wine is Falanghina, a Calabrian wine. I normally have more red wine than white in Italy, but this was so good, and was often the house wine in Ischia and Naples.

Martinarosa for dinner, Peppered Mussels (another delicious popular local dish) followed by Frito Misto Shrimp and Squid and ½ litre of wine. 34 Euro.
La Bussola for dinner, Rocket/Prawns/Parmesan appetizer followed by Peppered Mussels and ½ litre of wine. 29.50 Euro.
Another lunch was at Ristorante al Pontile Dal 1991, on the street leading up to Castello Aragonese in Ischia Ponte, Prosciutto/Mozzarella/Olives and a glass of wine. 10 Euro.

I splurge on a taxi to the ferry dock (14 Euro) and move on to Naples. I stayed at Hotel Piazza Bellini, at the northern end of the piazza. A great central location, great place, nice good-size room and larger-than-normal shower. Good buffet breakfast. 76.50 Euro for single use of a double. Great, helpful people at the desk. I would definitely stay here again. They have an agreement with the taxis for 10.50 Euro from the ferry dock. When you land, you call them and they send you a taxi and give you the number of the taxi. This didn’t work for me because I hadn’t wanted to pay 30 Euro for an Italian SIM for my phone when I figured this was the only call I would need to make. They told me to use the term “tarrifa fissa” and the price for that. You want to agree on the price before you start. Since there were only two taxis at the dock (I thought there would be a lot more) and one was driving off as I came out, I had one choice. I told the driver about the tarrifa fissa of 10.50 for Hotel Piazza Bellini. He offered me 13 Euro, which I quickly agreed to. He was, after all, the only taxi there! �� It was only a couple of euro more, so I didn’t think it unfair.

Naples has a bad rap for being unsafe and lots of pickpockets. I want to encourage people to go there anyway. I loved Naples! Now, I’m sure there are indeed lots of pickpockets in Naples, but just use the normal precautions. No need to be paranoid about it. I never felt unsafe, and I’m a woman travelling alone.

Things I saw (all worth seeing): Piazza Nuovo Gesu & the church, Santa Chiara, Capello San Severo (veiled Christ – don’t miss this, amazing how the sculpture shows the veil yet the features are clearly visible), Capodimonte (you can buy a combination bus/museum entrance ticket on the red City Sightseeing Napoli bus, 16 Euro – note that this is not the 24-hour hop-on, hop-off ticket, it’s just to the museum and back plus entrance), San Giovanni Carbonara, the Duomo plus 2 Euro for the Baptistry. I really wanted to see S.S. Apostoli, but it was closed when I got there.

Also took a food tour/cooking class. The tour part was a lot longer than expected, but I’m not complaining, it covered a lot of interesting information about the history of Naples. The pizza class was mainly stretching out the dough and then having the long-handled paddle to slide the pizza into the very hot pizza oven and then turning the pizza. Lots of fun! And of course, the pizza was delicious. www.foodtoursofnaples.com

Upon arrival in Naples, I made the two-minute walk for lunch to Antica Port’Alba, Via Port’Alba 18, which is supposed to be the oldest pizza restaurant in Naples. OMG, it was to die for. About half-way through the second piece, I realized I was shoveling it in as if I hadn’t eaten in a week! �� Probably the best pizza I’ve ever had. With water, 11 Euro.

Other lunches:La Cantina, Via Tito d’Angeliini 16 (take the Montesanto funicular to the Morghen stop on Vomero hill – I did this to go to San Martino Certoso but didn’t make it – it was very hot and I didn’t want to walk any further). Lunch was delicious. Pasta Scarpiello and a glass of wine, 11 Euro.
Toto e Peppino l’oro di Napoli, Via dei Tribunali 383, not far from Piazza Bellini. Pizza with prosciutto and mushrooms. I had a glass of wine, then was enjoying watching the people, and it was hot, so I had another. �� 17 Euro.
The other lunch consisted of sfogliatelle from Pasticceria Scattarchio, Piazza San Domenico Maggiore (delicious) and a little later some gelato while I did a little shopping. Very nutritious!
Dinners:
A Casa R’A Signora, Piazza Bellini, the most amazing Fried Fennel (light batter like they use in frito misto) over greens, then baked Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp with Rice, 2 glass wine, Limoncello. 27 Euro.
La Stanza del Gusto, Via Sanata Maria de Costantinopoli 100, just off Piazza Bellini and next door to my hotel. Il Sollegiatta (dried eggplant, broccoli, zucchini, peppers, olives with olive oil), delicious, then Baccala over Mixed Peppers, 2 glasses wine, 36 Euro. Complimentary Limoncello.
Caffe Letteraria Intra Moenica, Piazza Bellini, appetizer of olives, then Carpaccio Bresaola, 2 glasses of wine, time for some dessert, so had Chocolate Molten Cake, Limoncello. 33 Euro.
A Casa R’A Signora – went back here because I had to have some more of that Fried Fennel. Also had Veal Cutlets stuffed with Cacioravallo Cheese, Bacon, Garlic & Parsley that was very good. 2 glasses wine, 24 Euro.
L’Etto, next to my hotel in the other direction. They have a plan with the hotel where you give your room number and get 10% off and the meal is charged to your room. This was a buffet – a little disconcerting when a waitress took the plate to warm it up in the microwave! If I had known this ahead of time, I probably would not have gone there. As suspected, the meal was OK but far from great. With 2 glasses of wine, 18.41 Euro.

The hotel also has an agreement with the taxis for 10.50 Euro to the train station, which I use to catch the train to Rome.
More later on Rome…

Glad you're enjoying it. Here's Rome:
I love Rome. It has its own feeling in the air that I notice as soon as I arrive. I always feel at home there. In the past, I’ve stayed in an apartment, but this time, finding a hotel with an elevator and a roof-top terrace and in a perfect location for a good price, I decided to stay there instead. It’s Hotel Genio, Via Zanardelli, just outside the northern end of Piazza Navona. This is a good place, room not huge but big enough to be comfortable, another good-size shower, buffet breakfast served on the roof-top terrace. 91.80 Euro plus 6 more for the city tax. Just outside the hotel ½ block away is a bus stop where lots of bus numbers stop.

Piazza Navona is my favorite place. I have a good friend who is an artist in the Piazza Navona, so it’s always great to see him. I always like to go back there after dinner to my favorite café, Café Barocca, for a Limoncello, where I can watch the people, fountains and artists. One of the waiters I’ve known from previous trips, Angelo, remembers me after a minute.

Took a tour of the Domus Aurea, Nero’s Golden Palace, which of course was closed for a long time for restoration. The work is ongoing, but they now let people in on the weekend. If you like history, this is a great tour. Lots of very interesting history about Nero and how when things went sour for him, they filled in the whole house with dirt to try to erase him and his story from history. It wasn’t discovered until the 14th Century. There are some frescoes to be seen and they are in the process of restoring a lot more, and a great 3D show that shows how it would have looked. Very cool.

I took another cooking class, and this one was outstanding. I love cooking classes. They’re always a lot of fun. It was outside Rome in Mazzano Romano (they drive you there), a neat medieval town with gorgeous views. Started in the meat market and then moved on to a vegetable market in a small store to get necessary ingredients. We started with an unusual thin pizza crust (our instructor’s grandmother’s recipe) that uses carbonated water, flour, large pinch of sugar & large pinch of salt. It’s not like a dough, more the consistency of pancake batter. Very good and so easy! Then did three pastas, including gnocchi (not the potato kind) with three sauces, Saltimbocca a la Romana and panna cotta with a fresh peach sauce topping. Everything was delicious. If you like cooking classes, I highly recommend this one. www.FabiolousCookingDay.com. They also have a couple of less expensive classes held in Rome. That is not a typo, its run by Chef Fabio Bongianni, who has a restaurant not far from the Trevi Fountain, That’s Amore.

I always go to Volpetti’s, Via Marmorata 47, to get cheese to bring home, and went to a wonderful restaurant nearby afterwards. Go left out of Volpetti’s almost to the bus stop, left on Via Giovanni Bodoni, then right on Via Lucca di Robbia to find Bucatino Taverno Testaccio. Lots of locals. The Pasta a la Gricia (pancetta, pecorino, artichokes) was fantastic. I ordered a glass of wine, but what they brought was more like ½ liter! And it was Falanghina. �� 20 Euro. A lovely lunch.

I like to walk through Trastavere, even if I’m not on the way to a particular site. I take the bus to Santa Maria in Cosmedin, where the Mouth of Truth is, and then walk over the bridge and wander back through Trastavere. There’s a restaurant just over the bridge (Ponte Palatino) that I’ve gone to several times in the past, but I’m not quite ready to eat. I get some scarves at one of the street stands (they’re nice to have on hand for gifts). Later I stop at Aristo Campo, a restaurant I’ve passed before on Via d. Lungaretta. I like the sign, “We hate war and tourist menu.” I have Beef Strips with Arugula and Tomatoes, and again it’s fantastic. With a glass of wine, 20 Euro. Of course, I always stop in Santa Maria in Trastavere, it’s always worth seeing the mosaics again.

A couple other lunches:

Trattoria con Cucina Romano, on the eastern side of Campo dei Fiori, Salad with Arugula, Bacon, Tomato & Parm, 12.50 Euro. Sort of unusual that they used American-style bacon, not pancetta, and there was a ton of it. Is there such a thing as too much bacon? I think they reached that point!
Ristorante Pizzeria, Via Zanardelli right across from the hotel – Bruschetta Pomodoro. Very good, not as good as what I had on Ischia, 3 Euro.
Taverna del Seminario, Via d. Seminario 105, to the left of the Pantheon. Delicious Pasta al’Amitriciano, with ¼ liter of wine and a small water, 12.50 Euro.

And for dinners:
Il Fico, Piazza Fico – there is a huge change in this piazza from my last visit. I was looking for Da Francesco, a small restaurant that has been a favorite of mine, but it is nowhere to be found. I have also been to Il Fico before. It was also small. The whole piazza was older buildings. There are two new, much bigger restaurants. No Da Francesco. I go to Il Fico and while there, ask about Da Francesco. The waiter tells me that the other new restaurant was Da Francesco. I don’t make it back there, so I don’t know what the menu is like compared to what it used to be, and I can’t remember what it’s called now. Anyway, the Spaghetti Vongole at Il Fico is very good. With ½ liter of wine and water, 25 Euro. Complimentary Limoncello.
Osteria del Pegno, Vicolo Montevecchio, another repeat for me. Delicious Prosciutto & Melon and Saltimbocca a la Romano, with ½ liter of wine, 37.50 Euro. Complimentary Limoncello.
Osteria Montevecchio, also on Vicolo Montevecchio, Tuna and a Tomato Salad were good, 2 glasses wine, 41 Euro.

Santa Lucia, Largo di Febo 12. I thought it would be fun to go to the restaurants Julia Roberts as Liz went to in Eat Pray Love. I’m not crazy about the whole movie, but I do love the Rome portion. I’ve been known to watch just that section of the movie. �� One of the restaurants is no longer there and when I got there, I realized I had been to the other one in the past, so I tried Santa Lucia, the one where the whole group is eating together in Rome. I had been here the night before, but they were full, so I had made a reservation. I have never gotten around to trying Burrata, so I ordered the Friselle Burrata with Anchovies. It’s good but is a bit of a disappointment. I realized later that I should have asked for a little olive oil to drizzle on top. However, the Chef’s Risotto was with smoked salmon, cream cheese & chives and was excellent. I had ordered a glass of the house white wine, which tasted a lot like the Falanghina I had been enjoying at so many dinners. When I ordered a second glass, the waiter could see me trying to read the label, so he turned it so I could see it, and yes, that’s what it was! So good. Here was a surprise – when I got the check, it only showed one glass of wine. I pointed out to the waiter that I had two glasses. He said no, it’s not a mistake – we took the other one off because we weren’t able to give you a table last evening! So nice.

Alfredo al Ana, Via dei Banchi Nuovi 14 – some change here as well. The gentleman who used to be there, I think the son of Ana, is no longer there, and there didn’t used to be anyone who speaks English, but now there is. It’s very small, if you’re by yourself, they’ll ask you to sit in a vacant seat with other diners. I often find people next to me will talk anyway, and that’s fun; this just makes it easier! I’m seated with a local guy and a young couple from France, so we have nice conversation with the meal. During a previous visit, I had the most amazing Carbonara. Unfortunately, they were out of it. I had pasta with a spicy tomato sauce instead, which was good but not as good as the Carbonara! Also ½ liter of wine. After the young couple left, I was asking for the check, the waitress sat down next to me and said, just 10 Euro. Not sure why, but who can argue with that?

L’Orso 80, Via d Orso – they didn’t seem to have the antipasto selection they used to have. I had Veal Piccata, which was very good, and a glass of Falanghina, even though it wasn’t the house wine. �� I don’t remember noticing this wine on menus in the past, but of course I wasn’t looking for it before.

On my last evening, at Café Barocco, I wish Angelo arrivederci and remind him that I’ve been coming there for 13 years!
Can’t wait to make it 14!