Elenka and I came to Napoli in search of pizza. How were we to know we’d find the best ever just around the corner from our B&B.

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It was almost five-thirty in the evening. We hadn’t eaten in more than an hour. And after spending fifteen days at the trough on our cruise from Abu Dhabi to the Port of Rome we were damn hungry. We walked from restaurant to restaurant to restaurant - nothing was open. Finally, we came upon a place where the door was wedged open with a flower pot. I poked my head in and the woman inside said that they wouldn’t be open for another half hour, but that we could wait inside if we wanted to. Once seated the waiter came with wine offerings and a peek at the menu. 

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When it came time to order we went first for the Il sole di Napoli - ricotta, pumpkin, porcini, smoked mozzarella & parmesan. The crust looked like meringue with the ricotta cheese tucked underneath. We devoured the thing in minutes and then found out it had won 3rd prize in a major pizza contest. We then ordered the Bufalina - tomato, buffalo mozzarella & basil. They were both absolutely out of this world - best pizzas ever, and well worth the trip to Napoli. The place is called O’Curn Ciello. Address: Calata Ponte di Casanova 19/21, 8014 Napoli.

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Oh, and in a recent competition in Lugano,Switzerland, Maestro Pizzaiolo (pizza maker) Pasquale Fiore and 39 other pizza crafters made 10,170 pizzas in 16 hours. I don’t know if this is good or bad, but I have a photo of the certificate of authenticity from the Guinness Book of World Records attached.    

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Taxi cab drivers are their own worst enemy:

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This morning we needed a cab to the airport. Guest relations, at our B&B said the fare wouldn’t be more than 10 Euros. The meter-less 8 minute ride was double that. The driver whipped out some “all in English form” saying the flat rate was 20 Euros. I could have thrown him a 10 spot and buggered off, but who knows where that might have led - we had a flight to catch. The sooner the world rids itself of taxi cab businesses the better we’ll all be. It’s time for Uber and their ilk to replace these dinosaur, thieving operations.