renaissance — My Blog — Girl from Naples

Rebirth. There is no more appropiate word to describe what is happening to the Sanitá district, the area between Capodimonte and the back of the Archeological Museum.

In the past, this part of the city was very dangerous and very poor. Famous to be the set of many old movies and to be the birth place of the most popular Neapolitan comedian, actor and poet of all time ‘Totó’, where today you can visit his old home.

Situated in the Stella-San Carlo quarter, Sanitá as we see it today was developed in the 16th century on land north of Napoli outside the walls of the city.

Originally, Sanita was a wooded area with springs of pure water (probably from this it took the name Sanitá, health) and it started off as a greek-roman burial area and this is where you can find the greek and early christian catacombs of San Gennaro and San Gaudioso and also the Fontanelle Cemetery, where victims of the plague were buried in 1656. This might be another theory about the origin of the name. Not only the health of the living but also of the dead. This is explained by the deep connection between Neapolitans and the after life. The Fontanelle cemetery is a typical example of this where people used to come to the cemetery and ‘adopt’ a skull or a skeleton in order to look after it and ask for a ‘miracle’. You can read more about the cemetery here.

Centuries after centuries, Sanitá became very poor and dangerous, even though royalty and aristocratic families built their palaces in the area and many religious orders settled there too. This is the reason why Sanitá has the highest number of churches in Napoli.

Only in recent years have things started to change for the better in Sanitá. Inhabitants started to tire of the increasing crime rate and decided to try and improve the area themselves. This part of Napoli, completely abandoned by institutions and politicians for so many years, is improving thanks to the courage and industry of many young Neapolitans, who instead of move abroad (like many) decided to work hard and make the area a better place to live and more pleasant for tourists to visit and see all the amazing things this zone has to offer.

Lots of things to see in Sanitá then. First of all the Fontanelle Cemetery, which is planned to reopen soon after a restyling of the entrance by the world renowned Italian architect Lorenzo Piano.

As I have already mentioned, the key of this rebirth is the younger generation which made possible the restoration and the reopening of the San Gennaro and San Gaudioso catacombs. It is called the Cooperative of the Paranza. To know more about the catacombs and this project visit their official website here: Catacombs of Naples.

This Cooperative is also responsable for the restoration of Sant' Aspreno ai Crociferi church, where the sculptor Jago based his studio and his permanent exhibition of sculptures. His art is deeply inspired by the classical sculpture of the greatest Italian sculptors such as Michelangelo. Jago is so deeply inspired by this area and and Napoli which is visible in his works of art, in particular the Veiled son, a clear reference to the Veiled Christ in the Sansevero chapel. Jago is also working on a very ambitious project for Sanitá: making a giant David statue like Michelangelo’s statue in Florence, but in the guise of a woman.

The model of Jago's statue in Sant' Aspreno ai Crociferi church.

You can visit the the Jago Museum and the catacombs with the same ticket and it is valid for one year.

There is also the restoration of the abandoned church of Santa Maria Maddalena ai Cristallini (also known as Chiesa dei Cristallini). The church reopened as an art gallery after being closed for 40 years. Locals contributed in creating their own works of art inspired by the life and people of the area. It is filled with portraits of the same residents you can see on the streets of Sanitá, who have lived here with their families all their lives.

A little hidden gem of Sanitá is the Palazzo dello Spagnolo, in via dei Vergini. The Palace was built in 1738 for an aristocratic family and is an exquisite example of Neapolitan Rococo style. Today the palace is divided into apartments although it is open to the public for guided tours.

The younger generation as well as students moving in and immigrant communities settling there as well as tourists visiting is creating a new dynamism in Sanitá then. Thanks to them many abandoned churches or convents have now been converted into bed and breakfasts and hotels in order to attract tourists. This definitely seems to be working! A big advantage of Sanitá is that is a cheaper area to stay in although at the same time it is very central. This has led to many a new opening of pizzerias and typical Neapolitan food restaurants. One pizzeria even has a Michelin star ‘Michelin da Concettina ai Tre Santi’. Enjoy!.

If you have been in Napoli these past months, you must have seen an explosion of blue & white banners, flags and pictures of Maradona around the city. Probably you must have thought ‘what’s going on here?’. It’s a very simple explanation. Napoli football club won the serie A, which is the the main football championship in Italy.

It is very hard for me to explain what this victory means for the city.

Because is NOT just a game, but it is much much more. A lot more.

Napoli is feeling like it’s a city on the up. The successful football season gave the city a new vibrant, self confident feeling. Yes, because you might think ‘It’s just a game’. Probably true, but not in Napoli. We live everything to the extreme! Including football.

We need to go back a few years to fully understand why football is so important to the citizens of Naples.

Precisely 33 years ago there was a man called Maradona. You can love him or hate him, surely as a human being he can be criticised, but as a football player (except for the English) he was a God, at least in Napoli.

I am old enough to remember what he did for the city. When he arrived in 1984 the city was in a sorry state of decline and the football team were a real disaster. But he gave Neapolitans hope. It was like David against Goliath, the hopeless Neapolitan team of the south against the big boy rich teams of the north, such as Juventus, Inter & AC Milan. No one believed in us, but Maradona took Naples to two league championships and to UEFA cup glory.

Maradona was the catalyst that initiated Naples steady ascent from the dark days of urban decay and crime to a reawakening of what Naples had to offer the world. Beauty, passion, life and vitality. Since the pandemic this renaissance has accelerated. Improvements in infrastructure and ambitious civic projects are finally unlocking the potential of the city. Today it is a safer more business friendly city. Tourism as well is growing rapidly. Once, not so long ago, tourists would only fly into Naples to use it only as a gateway to Sorrento and the Amalfi coast. But now all that is changing. People from all over the world are finally discovering what an incredible city Napoli is and it is becoming a destination city like Rome, Florence or Venice.

Going back to the football, that is why it is so important. Because it has given the city a new optimistic and joyful vibe. Even the elderly ladies at the market were talking about it like they were professional managers! Around March this year, despite the famous superstitious nature of the Neapolitan people, we started to decorate the streets with blue and white flags even before it was certain that Napoli would win the championship!. It didn't really matter, Neapolitans were happy to be doing so well anyway. We were determined to enjoy the moment we had been waiting 33 years for.

Believe me, in all my life I’ve never seen my city so beautiful and joyful, and studying art I feel proud that tourists are discovering and loving Napoli with its amazing architecture, its incredible treasures, its beautiful landmarks and traditions, and of course food.

It is safe to quote Goethe ‘See Napoli and then die’ (‘Vedi Napoli e poi muori’) because there’s no other place like it.

BLOGS.

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