Castel Nuovo was one giant construction site when we were here…read more Of course, it's been under construction for nearly nine hundred years. From Charles I House of Anjou, to the Kingdom of the two Sicily's (1266), to the Kingdom of Naples. It was also used by Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor, who lived there for a short time in 1535. But no Italian history would've complete, without the involvement of de' Medici family of Florence. Seemed Alfonso V of Aragon (1443), had established a royal court here after conquered the throne of Naples and as with most little boys, he needed his to be, er um...grander. He intended for the Castel Nuovo to compete with the one in Florence by Lorenzo de' Medici. Ultimately he ended up completely rebuilding the entire fortress. A famous architect friend once observed to me, that it's important to be able to distinguish between "good" and "better." LOL The castle is very imposing. It has five huge turret like towers, that can be seen throughout Naples. Our driver couldn't figure out how to drop us off because of all traffic on Via Nuova Marina, so we settled for the nearby Galleria Umberto mall (see review) instead. LOL. See photos.

The Nuovo castle looks better from the outside and going inside, other than the second floor open…read moreview facing the harbor. The museum exhibits are lack of maintenance and all presenting in almost darkness. It's still worth the €6 entrance fee to explore.

3.5/5 stars Naples…read morereminds me a lot of NYC or Paris, minus things to do and green spaces or charm. TBH I was only here for a few days for pizza and Pompeii. Loved my Airbnb. Loved a couple cafes. The city is fun to walk around for a day, but I can't imagine spending more than a few days max. I don't believe Naples is a fair representation of Italy; it's just a dirty big city that gets incredibly crowded from huge cruise ship tourists pouring in daily.

Napoli is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city in Italy, after Rome and…read moreMilan. As of 2022 population was 909,048 within the city's administrative limits. Now it has been a while since I visited but since my maternal grandfather was born in Napoli I have to review. When I was there I saw why my grandfather loved spending the second half of his life in South Florida. I felt like I was at home. To me the food was a memorable experience. Delicious fresh pasta and seafood combination at a family owned restaurant. I have old photos that are precious to me. I'm recommending you visit and take your own!

We came in one night for dinner while staying nearby in Naples. The place is small so seating can…read moretalk a little while. But the staff was friendly and we were able to get a seat without too much of a wait. I'm giving this restaurant 5 stars primarily because the offer something very unique. A vegetarian Ragu with seitan. This place is known for great ragu, which is meat based. But they offer a vegitarian version that was very good. I got a mushroom pasta dish that was very tatsy and filling. I could only eat half due to how filling it was. My wife got an Aperol spritz and I got an italian beer. If we were back in the area we'd likely stop back in to rty other options on their large menu.

Great restaurant, especially for their pasta dishes. My waiter was also super friendly and patient…read morewith my American self when explaining to me all the different kinds of pastas they had and which ones were freshly made. He even had some sample dry pastas with him to physically show me as a little demonstration, which I thought was really nice and appreciated very much. I ended up ordering the fresh scialatielli with ragu and ricotta (€13.50), which was simple yet tasty. The fresh pasta was cooked very well with a classic preparation. They also gave a generous amount of parmesan on the side. I also tried the fresh lemonade, which was very lemony and slightly fizzy for additional refreshment. The place is somewhat small inside but I was able to get a table without any wait. The kitchen is right next to the seating area, so it's kind of cool to see the cooks right there. Overall, Tandem is a great place for pasta dishes with very friendly service.