An Italian Rite of Passage

I'm pleased to announce that we are the proud owners of not one, but two new cars. Actually "new" is stretching it. The term "Neapolitan beater" references many of the cars weaving about the streets, and is likely the best way to describe our recent purchases. But after relying on our sponsor for rides, getting around independently on the Neapolitan streets was a high priority on our list.


Shopping in the Boot, a book put out by the NOSC (Naples Overseas Spouses Club) warns not to bring a nice vehicle to Naples, as it is likely to get "texturized". It's common for two lane roads to turn into four lanes in the blink of an eye. Perhaps you might even be lucky enough to find yourself on a road so narrow that you could reach out and touch the building next to you. Many of the city roads have potholes that are actually the size of small craters. Talk about quickly wearing out a good pair of shocks. Luckily we were warned months ago not to bring our gas guzzling SUV. Though many Americans on the Naval base drive around in air conditioned, automatic SUVs I am glad we decided to do as the Neapolitans do.

The BMW that Chief will be driving is already "texturized".

The lemon lot on the Naval Support Site proved fruitful for us, and we were able to find two decent cars. The owner of Chief's 1995 BMW let us take the car last weekend for us test drive. Most of the vehicles to be purchased over here are manual transmissions. Chief has minimal experience driving a stick, but he's not really one to turn down a challenge. The adrenaline was in full force the first few times we navigated the Neapolitan highways. I'm talking white-knuckle, hold your breath thewholetime experiences.

The Mercedes is not "texturized" (yet)!

   Chief handpicked The Tank, which is a 1997 Mercedes from the lemon lot for me. Even though it is thirteen years old, it drives like a dream. The previous owner was fastidious about its upkeep, and it really shows. It is a wonderful family car that has toured the whole of Europe, and still has some get up and go. I am much more tentative about learning to drive a stick on these crazy roads, but I refuse to be limited by my lack of past driving experiences. I'm trying hard to embrace this Italian mentality that "anything goes" on the roads, but I wonder if I am just too darn American (nothing wrong with that!) to drive with these Neapolitans.






Ciao, for now!