It's been nearly a year, but better late than never to post my recap. I have several "new favorite places in Italy" which actually rank among my new favorite places EVER.
Naples. We flew in here and spent a couple of days. I was actually delighted with Naples and I'm am glad I ignored all the warnings about how "gritty" it is. Spaccanapoli has a joyful, energetic vibe without being the least bit pretentious - and it was actually quite clean (I have the pictures to prove it) and far exceeded my expectations. We did the archeological museum, which was cool, but the highlight of Naples was Cappella Sanservo Right in the heart of the city is this small chapel with the some of the most stunning sculptures I have ever seen. It is Not To Be Missed. Trust me!
We then took the ferry to Sorrento and hired a car from there to Massa Lubrense (although there is a bus between the two towns.). My great-grandfather was born there so I wanted to spend some time there - this was my second visit. It is a quiet coastal town boasting beautiful restaurants with AMAZING views but almost no tourists. The highlight of Massa Lubrense was a small secluded beach that wasn't easy to get to, but a local we know helped us get there. I spent one of the best days of my life picking up sea glass, blissfully floating in the warm, silky water, and eating lunch at a fish shack right on the beach. Heaven.
We took a day trip to Capri, and I have to say that I've been there twice and that was about 1-1/2 times too many. I didn't enjoy visiting Capri either time and now I can absolutely check that box for good.
From Massa Lubrense we hired a private transport to Caserta. (We could have taken the train via Naples, but I wanted the personal door to door service.). We toured the massive palace and the gardens and here I found one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen which was the English Garden with the Bath of Venus. It was every bit worth the trip just for that alone.
We then had a few days left before going home and I had purposely left those unbooked so we could just pick a spot and go. We looked at the map and randomly chose the small city of Nettuno. We went there by train from Caserta and landed in a quaint seaside town where mostly Europeans seemed to be vacationing but almost no other Americans. There is a fountain of Neptune in the center of the city, and a pretty nice beach on which we spent a day sunning and relaxing. Our hidden treasure here was a couple we met at dinner one night - she was French, he was Italian. They started up a chat with us (in Franglais) and we ended up talking long into the evening and made plans to visit them this year at their hometown in France.
Our last stop was Ostia. It is much closer to FCO than Rome and we wanted to see the ruins of Ostia Antica. This was right up there with Pompeii, lacking only the drama of an active volcano. But it was shadier, cooler, and WAY less crowded. The town center was small but charming and easily walkable so we had a low key but enjoyable visit in Ostia. Our taxi ride to the airport was a mere 15 minutes and no crazy Roman traffic so we were able to conclude our trip on somewhat gentler note than usual.
Summary of Best Things on this Trip: Capella Sansevero, finding sea glass on a secluded beach in Massa Lubrense, the English Garden at Caserta, and randomly meeting new friends in Europe
The only thing I didn't enjoy: Day trip to Capri