Visiting the San Michele Museum and riding the chairlift in Capri

This post is a continuation of : A beautiful day boating in Capri

It was our last day in Capri and as always, we woke up to another beautiful morning. I was already feeling a little sad at the thought of leaving this beautiful place, but there was still quite an adventure in store for us for the day.

After having our breakfast and on our way out, there was a huge basket of freshly plucked tomatoes in the vegetable garden in our villa. Wow, look at how ripe they are! I was very tempted to take some and eat it like that.

To get to our destination, the centre of Anacapri, we had to walk back towards the square. Unlike yesterday, this time round there were many shops which were already opened. Like this shoe shop here. There’s a pair of shoe here for less than 10 euro.

Cart and I also stumbled upon a little alimentari that looked a lot like a mom and pop shop. It has been over 20 years, but it reminds me of my grandparent’s shop somewhat when they still lived in Tekong before the government took over it.

And there were plentiful of other shops opened. Like food shops :

I noticed this sign … CRT now doesn’t mean Cathode Ray Tube anymore. And instead it’s Cappucino, Real English, Tea.

If you are in Capri, you’ll see a lot of these shops around – Here you can make your own customised sandals. Just choose the type of strap you want and tell your shoe size and the cobbler will make your sandal right in front of you!

And this is so old school. It’s been a while since I’ve seen anyone shaving or be shaved with these type of knives. It takes a really steady hand to be able to do that.

And there were also ceramic shops. It was so interesting to see all the colourful and cheerful items all made from ceramics.

As Mount Vesuvius is quite near, you could also find these decorated volcanic rocks easily. These can also made into beautiful jewellery. They are black because of the rapid cooling of the lava.

We also walked past a mini museum which we visited last night. This was done by a talented lady, Tiziana Ferraro. I really liked her artwork – it was colourful and cheerful.

I asked if she had a website or anywhere to show off her portfolio, unfortunately she didn’t have one.

Toilets costs 50 cents to release yourself here.

A little expensive, but it was probably the cleanest toilet that I’ve ever seen. There’s only one lady looking after the stations and once you’re done with your business, she’d immediately cleans it up.

I saw a number of cats roaming around.

The first place that we visited that day was the Villa San Michele. This is an interesting place, originally built by the Swedish physican, Dr Axel Munthe, reconstructed to make it look like as when he was living there.

It costs 6 euro to enter.

And here are the opening times depending on the month you are there.

When you first enter the area, you’ll be first greeted by this skeleton mosaic – The skeleton is holding a food basket and a carafe on the other hand to represent that we should enjoy life before we die. Something that Dr Munthe was already aware of.

We walked through each of the rooms, looking at the different relics and works of art. Here was the dining room.

This was the kitchen. It was interesting to read that Dr Munthe had two house assistants who were very loyal to him. He didn’t pay them, but he gave them everything they asked for.

The Atrium.

The bedroom.

Here is Claudio and Beatrice laughing at a private joke.

This was where Dr Munthe entertains his guests.

He entertained all sorts of people here, even kings and queens. But they all got to eat very simple and rustic food as Dr Munthe didn’t believe in feeding the body overly rich food. He didn’t even recommend meat for those over a certain age!

By the way, while living here, Dr Munthe wrote “The story of San Michele” mainly about the experiences that revolved around his life. This book has been a best-seller since published and translated in over 40 languages.

After touring the house, it was time to explore the courtyard. Oh my gosh, it was such a dream here.

It wasn’t the statues that did it.

It wasn’t so much the architecture.

It was seeing the magnificent and glorious view from there. It was so peaceful and so beautiful. My heart just sighed at the immense beauty.

And there was a curious Sphinx statue at the end of the courtyard, looking out at the sea.

This place was like a dream with the lush greenery and the beautiful garden here.

It was understandable why Dr Munthe would fall in love with this place. I do too!

In fact, when Axel Munthe died, he had a ticket to Capri in his pocket. Isn’t that the saddest thing?

After leaving the Villa San Michele, the second place that we visited was the Monte Solaro. This is the highest peak in Capri, 589 m above sea level and I think that this is another must place to visit.

To get up there, you could hike up there or take a seggiovia. Seggiovia means chairlift by the way.

And there are two type of tickets here. Two way which is 10 euro, while the one way is 7 euro.

When you enter the area, the way you ride the chairlift, is to stand on the green square and as soon as the seat arrives, quickly sit down and let the attendant close the safety clamp on you … and off you go!

It can get a little nerve wrecking. Especially for those taking it for the first time. You’ve only a metal wire to keep you up. I can be quite daunting.

Cart, Beatrice and Giovanni behind me looked extremely comfortable. Cart especially looked as cool as a cat. He’s done this a lot of times as he used to go skiing.

Nevertheless, despite it all, the ride was completely worth it. Because once you’ve reached the top, the view was so spectacular!

It was so beautiful that I felt emotional. I feel so blessed to be able to see such beauty.

That’s the arch and the stack by the way, seen up close the day we went boating.

I could just stay here forever.

After packing up, we said goodbye to our beautiful villa and reluctantly left and headed towards Marina Grande, the main port.

And I enviously looked upon the other people who were frolicking around.

We stopped for a bit of a bite, while waiting for the ferry.

And soon after, we boarded our ferry to go back to the main port Napoli.

And then took the tram to head back to the Napoli Centrale train station

And back on the train again for our 2 and a half hour train ride.

And then finally back home in Rome!

After 4 days having such a wonderful time, in the most gorgeous place, it’s so unkind to be back!

Anyway, that’s it! That’s the last of the instalments. I hope you enjoyed my blog posts. If you like, come and read the entire series here 🙂

• Our trip to Napoli! (Day 1)
• A wedding in Capri (Day 2)
• A beautiful day boating in Capri (Day 3)