Buon Giorno! Today was a fabulous morning/afternoon. I slept in until 9:30 (who would have known I would have ever thought 9:30 was sleeping in?). I got ready for a morning adventure in Naples. I like to have some alone time to explore places because then I can do exactly what I want on my own time. I realized my phone was dead (which I had been using to tell time), and so the only solution I could think of was to bring my roommate's alarm clock with me. I thought it was pretty hilarious that I was lugging an alarm clock around all day, and it was clearly something only I would do. I walked around the streets, down the main business area, and also into the more residential areas, taking everything in. Naples is so rich in culture. The city is dirty, but the life is beautiful. I really do love Naples. I don't care what anybody else has to say about it. It has captured me for the second time.
I treated myself to a fabulous shopping adventure. I found so many wonderfully Italian clothes, and as always, managed to find lots of great deals. I'm so happy with everything I found. European fashion is so funny. A lot of the stores had clothes with American writing on it (some of it not even grammatically correct). I found one of the shirts to be particularly funny because it had a bunch of English words on it, saying things like, "glamorous," "classy," "original," and then it said, "existential." I was a little puzzled about where that one fit into the picture. In a different store, they were playing an Italian techno version of Cher's Life After Love. It made my day. Got to love Europe.
Life felt so good as I walked the streets of Naples, my bags in my hands, the sun on my face, and my hair blowing in the wind. After I was done shopping, I stopped at a cafe for a famous Napolitano pastry (I forget what it was called...but I had it last year when I was in Naples with AU) and a lemon soda (my favorite). I love the lemon soda because it is not fake sweet, it tastes very natural...crisp and tangy.
I came back to the ship to relax and eat some dinner, then I headed back out into the city with my friend Lindsay. We explored some more. It was nice. Now I'm once again back on the good ol' MV Explorer. I came home to several nice surprises. 1. Edwin (my steward) had cleaned the room (I actually always feel SO guilty when he cleans the room, which is every couple days, because there are three of us in this tiny cabin. Both of them are just as messy as I am, so essentially our cabin is in a perpetual state of disaster). 2. There was a present on my pillow! My SAS Grandma, Dottie, had given me a little 4th of July gift! There was a bag with a red, white, and blue star shaped picture frame and some candy! She is so cute, I can't stand it!
Tonight we are departing Naples and heading toward Civitavecchia (the port city for Rome). There is also going to be a 4th of July cookout! Later tonight they are doing a sleep-out on the deck, and turning off all the lights so we have a clear view of the stars! Sounds like so much fun, doesn't it? I think I'm going to go to the cookout and to see the stars, but I will definitely be sleeping in my bed. I can already feel myself getting sick. My throat has been hurting really badly all day. Rumor has it that strep is going around the ship...uh oh. I don't think I have strep, but I think my exhaustion is catching up to me. I need a good night's sleep. It is really hard to maintain this lifestyle. There's never a chance to come down. We're always going. I really don't want to get sick and miss out on anything. Although...as madly in love with Italy as I am, if I had to get sick I would rather it be now because I've already been to Italy and I'm not missing out on something completely new. Both of my roommates are gone for the remainder of our time in Italy, so I'll definitely be able to get some good sleep without any disruptions.
Time for a nap? I think so.
Arrivederci, Napoli!
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