her walking in the streets of the old city, knowing every corner, every courtyard, every building, and hearing her great stories about her family and her
D o l l d o c to r Th
e cr f a
s r te
city. Marina wanted to make sure I would discover the real Naples. Of course, there is more to Naples than Mafia stories,
Pizza Napolitana or a Port city with all its variety. Naples is like a magical maze you have to discover and you are sure to come across some real gems along the way. One of these gems is Ospedale delle Bambole L, a hospital for dolls. 'I want to show you something very special' Marina told me when we were walking along Via San Biagio dei Librai. I followed her into a courtyard and then into a staircase that took us directly to a magical tiny shop which operates as a hospital for dolls from all over the world. I was fortunate to meet Titiana Grassi,who happened to be the owner of Ospedale delle Bambole. Titiana is the 4th generation in the family business, which was established in 1890 by her great grandfather, Luigi Grassi. Titiana is a beautiful blonde Neapolitan woman and in her work uniform, a white doctor gown, she could easily be mistaken for a real doctor and not necessarily the hand craft artist that she is. I was looking at Titiana while she was sewing a broken neck of a porcelain doll and I could tell how her hands knew what to do, even without looking. I had noticed si
some old pictures on the walls and assumed the
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