The best of Naples - think birthplace of pizza and home of Sophia Loren. And its worst - home of the Camorra family of organised crime. It is brash, vibrant, gritty and abrasive, but there is a raw beauty amongst the chaos. It is wonderfully unpretentious, full of energy and safer than you think. Look beyond the pollution and the graffiti and open yourself up to having possibly one of your best Italian experiences ever.

The third largest city in Italy after Rome and Milan, Naples was once the wealthiest and most industrialised centre in the country. The historic centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the largest historic centre in Europe. It dates back to 470 BC and is made up of layers upon layers of civilisations.

The most densely populated part of the historic centre and the most characteristic neighbourhood is the Spanish Quarter. The streets were laid out in the 1600s when the Spanish ruled the Kingdom of Naples. It was the district where the troops were quartered.

Scooters speed crazily up and down the tight grid of streets; shopkeepers yell animatedly at each other; walls are covered in graffiti; washing is strung out across the streets and music drifts down from the small balconies. Everyone knows everyone’s business.

Pictures of Maradona, considered one of the greatest players in the history of the sport, are everywhere. He is an icon of Naples and a symbol of pride and unification of an entire city. To wander the Spanish Quarter is to feel the heart and soul of Naples.

Spaccanapoli is one of the most vibrant and historic streets in Naples. Located in the heart of the city’s old quarter, the name means “Naples splitter”, as it divides the city in two when viewed from above.

In beween countless pasticcerie (pastry shops), tacky tourist shops and artisan shops, there are many shops hundreds of years old with the date they opened above the door. I found a tiny lingerie shop that opened in 1904 and couldn’t resist purchasing something. Sexy and silky, mind you, not dating back to the early 20th century!

Just off Spaccanapoli, there is a very special place known as the Hospital of the Dolls, located in the Marigliano Palace. It is a renowned museum with a collection of vintage toys and dolls, but it is also a real hospital and the most famous doll repair centre in Italy.

Today I took a tour and it was fascinating!

People from all over Italy and Europe send their broken dolls here. In fact, on average 700 dolls a year arrive at the hospital to be repaired. This is a fifth generation family business. As soon as I entered I met Luca, the great, great, great grandson of Luigi Grassi. Luigi was a set designer of Neapolitan Court theatres and puppet theatres. In 1895 he founded a small workshop for the construction of his stage sets and for the repair and restoration of equipment used during theatrical performances.

One day a lady walked in and asked Luigi to fix her doll. The word spread through the alleys of Naples. The hospital became a reference point for every artist in the city. Luigi’s grandson introduced new materials and scalpels to fix eyes and broken limbs. It was the only place where children were not afraid of the doctor.

This doll, from 1940, arrived with a hole in her forehead and her insides spilling out. Now she has a shiny new forehead and her body intact.

There are many departments in the Doll Hospital with all the operations carried out by two doctors, including Luca’s Mum. There is the ‘Beauty Spa’ which includes make-up, hair and tailoring. Repairs, however, are carried out in departments such as Opthalmology, where the mechanics that allow eyes to open and close are repaired. There are also rooms dedicated to Orthopedics, Decorating, Plastering and Mechanics. No doll hospital would be complete without an Emergency Room, Veterinary Outpatient Clinic for plush toys, Recovery Room and the Sacred Restoration Room.

As soon as a broken doll arrives, an appraisal is carried out and full details including cost sent to the owner, awaiting approval for the operation. It’s a serious business and I love it!

In Italy more than 85% of businesses are owned and run by families. Not only that, of the 100 oldest businesses anywhere in the world, 15 are Italian and five of them are in the top ten oldest businesses still active today. The Doll Hospital is a wonderful example of this, a family business that has been handed down through five generations. So far!

Ci vediamo la prossima settimana.

Deb