Christ Church in Naples all prepared for its Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols
We could have been in England – the pure voice from the shadows behind us lifted the words into the church, floated them high above the candlelit pews and on towards the altar.
“Once in Royal David’s City …”
Vesuvius from the Castell dell’Ovo
We should have known better – nothing is obvious about Vesuvius.
The volcano has sat across the bay from us all summer – big, blue and balmy. It reclines like some artist’s prop, a balance to the curve of sea and islands, a backdrop for the scuttle of life on its slopes and down to the shore.
It looks benign, the perfect place for an afternoon stroll, perhaps even a villa or two.
An unusually quiet moment in one of the large cobbled tunnels that lead in and out of the centre of Naples
Nothing is ever quite what you expect it to be …
The Phraser 