Capri Things to Do

The Certosa di San Giacomo was a Carthusian monastery dedicated to St. James. Founded between 1363-71 by Count Giacomo Arcucci, personal advisor to Queen Joanna I of Anjou, the original structures were largely rebuilt after being sacked by the Saracens in the 16th century and have been cited as prime examples of the Caprese style of architecture.
During its useful life, the monastery was at once a prison, military barracks then a hospital, and the monks' quarters are now used as classrooms.
The church has a lovely, 14th-century fresco above the entrance of Virgin and Child with St. Bruno and Queen Johanna on one side, and St. James and Count Arcucci on the other. Other highlights include frescoes on the ceiling of the church, cloisters and a small museum containing early 20th century paintings by German artist K. W. Diefenbach.
Not to be missed are the gardens directly behind the Certosa that overlook the sea - terrific panoramas and unlikely to be as crowded as the nearby Gardens of Augustus sited just above you.

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Axel Munthe is a name to remember. This man's incredible life story is a must-read. Hailing from Sweden he became the youngest doctor to ever graduate from a Paris university, spent time in the wild with the Laps; went into the middle of Naples worst ever cholera epidemic at great risk to his own life; had a passion for animals and attracted some of the richest clients with his bedside manner.
His obsession with Capri stemmed from an earlier visit and the possibility of moving there never left him. Finally it happened and the villa you walk through is the result.
This man understood the people, understood the history and loved the island. It's not only reflected in his villa but his book that I am frightened to finish because I don't want it to ever end; such is the wonder of this man's world.
In the villa you will see Roman mosaics (pic 5), classical bas reliefs (pic 4), strange things like the mouse trap (pic 2) and the iconic Sphinx in the opening picture.
It reflects a man who treasured the past, art and the importance of a good garden, all things I can relate to. I loved it, a must-see on Capri.

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It fascinated me to learn how separate the two villages were in the early 20th century. Their inhabitants rarely mixed and expressed a dislike for each other. With today's frequent buses it seems hard to believe but call to mind that it's only in fairly recent history that the Via Provinciale connected the two.
Before that you had to walk up a stairway of innumerable steps to reach the upper parts of the island.
Having walked it gave me a great sense of what it used to be like.
Here are some pictures I took on the way down and later on my holiday, just to give you some idea of why you'll be leaning towards the cliff when you go on this road. It's definitely not for the faint of heart, but I loved it.

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There's a walk called the Way of the Forts. Sadly, for me, I didn't have time to walk the whole lot but it's something you might well consider if you spend a week on the island.
It is a long itinerary with some inaccessible stretches but its extraordinary beauty is worth the effort. The blockhouses and the set of paths and streets are located along the western coast of the island, between the Blue Grotto and the Punta Carena Lighthouse. The three blockhouses of Orrico, Campetiello (also called di Mesola) and Pino were built by the English in 1806 and successively enlarged by the French after they took Capri at Orrico, on October 4th 1808. Then there is an additional small blockhouse called "il cannone" (the cannon) facing the splendid Tombosiello creek. The blockhouses constituted, together with the Damecuta and la Guardia towers, a defensive system for some of the areas in Anacapri, whereas Capri was protected with continuous walls. Considerably interesting are the narrow streets and paths crossing the thick Mediterranean vegetation and skirting spectacular creeks that connect the different blockhouses. An ideal route for nature lovers, and those tourists who mean to "discover" Anacapri, and go beyond the "ritual" visits. Thanks to this itinerary, in fact, you can discover a partly unknown, wild side of the territory, paths walked only by a few people (mostly hunters and fisherman).
Pino Fort
Situated in the Anacapri district, Pino is one of the most beautiful, isolated and rugged spots on the western coast of the island, separating Cala di Mezzo from Cala Tombosiello or Cala dei Serpenti. Here too, a small fort was built on what is believed to have been an existing Medieval fortification, and like all the other forts on the island, it features a thick dry stone wall overlooking the sea, designed to protect the military quarters at the rear from enemy attack. An underground cistern collected rainwater.
Mesola Fort
This is one of Anacapri's main forts and forms part of the island's western defence system. Standing between Pino Fort and Orrico Fort, it was built in the 1800s by the English and later stormed by the French in 1808. Tufa and lava stones like those used by the Romans were found in its walls.
Orrico Fort
According to some scholars, the name of this fort dates back to an Amalfi family, while for others it derives from the many medicinal plants that grew here. Still others believe its name derives from the Greek word 'orica'. Indeed, legend has it that the island's first Greek inhabitants, the "Teleboi", actually disembarked here from Epirus. There is in fact a convenient landing stage near the fort and it is from here that, first the Aragonese and then the English and French, attacked and conquered the island.

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It's not overly historic, just a nice looking lighthouse. It's named after the shape of a keel (carena) which the rocks are shaped like apparently. However, its situation, like everything else on Capri, is so scenic you can't help but take a photograph.......or two or three.
Out behind the lighthouse is yet another jagged cliff complete with the usual grotto or two and limestone shards eking from the roof.
Our bus driver kindly stopped in the middle of the road and allowed me to get a couple of shots off. (pic 5)
We strolled around while there and Ian, being a little adventurous, climbed over some fresh brickwork and got inside the perimeter of the lighthouse. This is not allowed as I soon found out when a couple of military men accosted me in a nice way and explained the situation. "Mi scusa!" I blurted out and they let me leave.
We also wandered around above the bathing area though the people there were few in number in mid October.
The light is the second most important and powerful lighthouse in Italy. Particularly interesting are: the rocky indented coastline, the Mediterranean vegetation, the pine wood facing a small natural bay, the rocky ridge to the east with its so-called "Grotte dei Caciocavalli" and Torre della Guardia, the vast panorama admirable from the outermost point of the Carena, where the ruins of the fortifications of the Second World War are located, and finally the very Lighthouse, imposing over the surrounding landscape and expressing its major function as a point of reference for navigation.
You could take a chance to enjoy one of the reported breathtaking sunsets as well as the spectacular night views: the Lighthouse in operation, the illuminated rocks, the starry sky and the moon of Capri, the lamps of Squid fishermen shining through the water and the returning fishermen pushing their typical small boats up the rocks.

In 1957, when Malaparte was affected by a stomach cancer, he mentioned in his last will to notary Pasquale Zappone the following: Moved by feelings of gratitude toward the Chinese people and in order to strengthen cultural relations between East and West, I establish a foundation named Curzio Malaparte for the purpose of setting up a work and study residence for Chinese artist in Capri.
But the Curzio Malaparte foundation was never established and the house would remain locked for 20 years. After long court battles, the house was awarded to Malapartes heirs, who gave it to the already existing Giorgio Ronchi Foundation, a scientific organization. The foundation had been established in Memory of Malapartes nephew who died tragically during an air raid over Florence. In 1989 the Casa Malaparte Association was established in Milan, for the purpose of guaranteeing the survival, the protection and the restauration of Casa Malaparte in Capri
The house was conceived around 1937 by Italian Rationalist architect Adalberto Libera for Curzio Malaparte. Malaparte actually rejected Libera's design and built the home himself with the help of Adolfo Amitrano, a local stone mason.
Casa Malaparte is a red masonry box with reverse pyramidal stairs leading to the roof patio. On the roof is a freestanding curving white wall of increasing height. It sits on a dangerous cliff 32 meters above the sea overlooking the Gulf of Salerno. Access to this private property is either by foot from the Town of Capri or by boat and a staircase cut into the cliff.
Casa Malaparte was abandoned and neglected after the death of Curzio Malaparte in 1957. It suffered both from vandalism and natural elements for many years and was seriously damaged, including the desecration of a beautiful tiled stove, before the first serious renovation started in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Malaparte's great-nephew, Niccolò Rositani, is primarily responsible for restoring the house to a livable state. Much of the original furniture is still there, because it is too large to remove. The marble sunken tub in the bedroom of his mistress still exists and functions. His bedroom and book lined study are still intact. Many Italian industrialists have donated materials for the preservation. Casa Malaparte's interior and exterior (particularly the rooftop patio) are prominently featured in Jean-Luc Godard's 1963 film, Contempt (Le Mépris).
Today the house is used for serious study and certain cultural events in Italy and is admired (and hated) by many architecture enthusiasts worldwide.
The house can only be reached by traversing the island. The last twenty minute walk is over private property, belonging to The Ronchi Foundation. It takes an hour and a half to walk there from Capri's Piazzetta at the summit of the funiculare from the Marina Grande. The house can be reached by sea, on calm days only, as the waves are cast upon treacherous rocks and there has not been an official pier for many years. From the sea, one must climb 99 steps to reach the house. Malaparte gave his friend and boatman money to open a restaurant which is run by the boatman's son today. It is the only restaurant one would pass on the path from the Piazzetta to the promontory where Tiberius built his palace, Villa Jovis.
Several books are available on the building. Malaparte: Casa Come Me (A House Like Me) edited by Michael McDonough, includes drawings and essays by many prominent artists and architects, such as James Wines, Tom Wolfe, Robert Venturi, Emilio Ambasz, Ettore Sottsass, Michael Graves, Willem Defoe, Peter Eisenman, Wiel Arets and many other luminaries of arts and letters

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Of course, with the Faraglioni, what they don't tell you is how many different angles there are to shoot this famous attraction.
Some of the key places are Via Matromania (pic 3), Garden of Augustus (pic 2), Punta Cannone, Via Krupp (pic 5), Piccola Marina (pic 4) and Monte Solare.
For Via Matromania see my tip on that walk and the same for Via Krupp (both recommended).
Punta Cannone (Cannon Point) isn't that easy to find. The signposting from Capri (the town) is minimal but eventually you'll get there and, along with Monte Solare, it offers the best views looking down onto the Faraglioni.
For an excellent view and a nice garden and a lovely rest spot you should head to the Garden of Augustus where you will join many other tourists doing the same thing, but don't let that put you off.

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Somehow, in the back of my mind, I always knew it was going to turn out like it did. The drive down had me smiling to begin with. Twice vehicles had to back up and slip into someone's driveway so our minibus could navigate further. If you think the Amalfi coast roads are narrow, think again.
A place as famous as this was bound to have tourists and so it was that, as we walked to the stairs, the plethora of tourist boats awaited the attentions of the smaller rowboats to pluck their live cargo and deliver them to the interior of this romanticized venue.
The chaos of the flotsam revolved around a tethered open launch (pic 2) in which sat 3 men busily engaged in collecting money.....lots of it! At 10.50 euros per person (4 euros tax included) plus tips, this is a cash cow being milked for all it's worth.
I did a quick calculation and estimate that each rowboat was making 650 euros per day plus 400 for the taxman. Of course, that's on the days when you can get in.
Eventually one made its way over and 4 of us boarded, some in a decidedly ungainly manner, and were immediately instructed to sit on the floor, an eminently uncomfortable position.
We paid our dues to the three men in a boat and were rowed on the the entrance where the only thing missing was a set of traffic lights, such was the volume of craft. Then it was our turn and we had to lay really flat, an even more uncomfortable position as our host grabbed the fixed chain and pulled us in to the fabled cavern where I couldn't wipe the smile off my face at the absurdity of it all.
The blue was stunning (pic 3) but the distractions were many as we joined dodgem boats and were serenaded by various renditions of "O Sole Mio" and "Volare". We zig-zagged this way and that to avoid other boats before we soon were at the entrance again in yet another queue to return to the outside world.
Rosemarie still thinks that they have floodlights underneath because nature couldn't deliver such a phenomenon but I didn't pause too much to ponder that, I was still laughing.