July 29, Friday - Naples, Italy 

Here we are in Naples again. It seems like we were just here yesterday but it was the day before yesterday at the end of the last cruise. 

We are going shopping today. MapMe shows a shopping mall, The Galleria, nearby. The crew have also told us of shops along the way with good prices. If they shop there we know there must be bargains. 

We set out early and passed by the “crew” store, saving it for last. We made good progress stopping for pictures along the way. We were having trouble finding Galleria. 

While taking pictures of a building across the street we saw the Bies a bit away headed back to the ship. They are a couple from Germany who dine at the table next to ours. Last night they told us that they would visit the opera house today. It is supposed to be the third largest in the world. We thought they must have finished seeing it and were returning to Oosterdam. 

We crossed the street at a traffic circle with a nice fountain in the center. There ahead of us was the huge opera house. It faced a large square with a large church on the other side.

 

After walking around and talking pictures we found an information kiosk. Alice got directions to Galleria and some other shopping areas. When we found Galleria we discovered that we had been standing very near its entrance when we noticed the Bies. We had been looking for a new mall when we should have been looking for a a classic old building with a large court or mall in the middle. It was much nicer inside than outside. 

The shops were all upscale and expensive. This was not what we had in mind. We went around the traffic circle with the fountain again and set off in another direction. I did not mention it to Alice but that circle seemed familiar. 

We found an area with many shops lining the street. This was what we wanted. Alice had been told of a Christmas shop on one of the side streets. As we looked down the streets I noticed a sign. Barber Shop - Old School. We had already been led to a barbershop by a clerk in a cafe. He was by appointment only. His next available was in 2 days. Not good for cruisers. 

We walked down the street a short way to Old School. This was a 2 chair shop with a small couch for waiting. It reminded both of us of the shop we used in Colombo, Sri Lanka.  We went in and asked if they took walk ins. Both barbers, one old, the owner, and one younger spoke little English. We did learn that I could be next for Armando, the young barber. We asked if Alice could get a haircut. Once he understood Armando said no and directed her to a salon up the street. The owner jumped in and with much chatter and gesturing convinced Armando that he would do it. The price would be 13 euros each with a shampoo. That is versus $50 plus for each on the ship. We sat down to wait. 

 

As we waited a man walked in and greeted Giuseppe, the owner. After some small talk he used the small toilet and left. Giuseppe completed his man’s haircut and shampooed Alice’s hair. As he started cutting I took few pictures. Then I turned my attention to Armando since he would cut my hair. He was working on an artful cut for a young boy. I was holding my breath. See the pictures. 

It was my turn. Armando was wicked with his clippers. This turned out to be the shortest haircut I have ever had. But that was OK. My hair will grow out. Alice got a great haircut. We were both very happy with our haircuts. We left smiling and commenting about how much like Colombo this was. And getting our hair cut was an unexpected bonus for the day. It may sound ridiculous but this made our day. We left grinning from ear to ear. 

Alice Wins!

When we left the barbershop, we noticed a building across the street that looked like it might be a shopping mall. Upon entering it we found that it was the archeological museum. The lightbulb went off. When we were here in 2010 after visiting Pompeii we joined 2 ladies on a taxi ride to this museum. In addition we were stuck in traffic in the circle around the fountain I thought I recognized. Amazing. We left the building and continued our walk. 

Before returning to the ship we did stop at the shop the crew had told us about. The prices were very good and I did find a double hinge corkscrew for just 2 euros.  When we went to pay for it we met Carlton. He is a member of the photo team who has worked with us. He was buying new earbuds. 

Later, on the ship, he told us that another passenger had his wallet stolen out in front  of the shop just after we left. He tried to trip the thief but he was too fast and got away. As he fled he did throw down the wallet. Credit cards and license were still there, but $400 cash was gone. 

We returned to Oosterdam safely, delighted with all that we had accomplished.