The bustling southern Italian city of Naples may at first seem chaotic, but visitors quickly fall under the spell of this underappreciated gem and its rich artistic heritage. Naples is quintessential Mediterranean Italy, and as a region it’s famous for its delicious tomatoes and outstanding mozzarella cheese, so it’s not surprising that it’s also the undisputed “home of the pizza.” A sprawling city of dramatic contrasts, Naples displays its regal past in the shape of impressive castles and magnificent palaces erected by Spanish and Bourbon rulers from the 16th to the 19th centuries. But the city is best known for a more ancient event – the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79. Still visible across the waters of the Bay of Naples, the volcano submerged the neighboring Roman city of Pompeii in yards of ash and debris, wiping out its entire population.
