POMPEII

In order to get to Pompeii you have to take a train from Sorrento. Sixteen stops later we were there. We were to meet our guide at 9:30, but since we had no idea where we were going, we made sure we got there early. Well, the sun was shining and it looked like a great day ahead, but when we got off the train it was too chilly for just a light sweater, so Jennifer, you got yourself a white ITALIA sweatshirt.

We walked across the street and walked around the main entrance to the city. Realizing that this magnificent city was built over 2000 years ago, you are amazed at the technology and acumen of these people so long ago. They had drainage, building techniques used to this day, buildings that are situated so that they make full use of the sun and its power, the rain so that they can use it for all their needs, and it just goes on and on. As we walked along the streets, running north and south and east and west, you could see the ruts in the stones from the wheels of the carts that were used in the city. The main street consisted of shops; you could still see the ovens from the bakery and the water and wine jugs in the shops, as well as the grooves where the sliding doors were situated. 

Our guide told us that the Romans believed in three things: food, wine and sex. All around you can see in their frescoes the phallus, sexual scenes, and the houses are built around the center courtyard and all rooms flow into it; the dining room being the main public room where so much was done.

We headed down the street, which curved to the left where the prostitutes lived. Prostitution was normal during the time and since many of the sailors who came into Pompeii could not read, there were pictures which showed different positions...so when a sailor came into the house he would just look at the pictures over the door and choose which position he wanted. It was amazing to see the stone beds still in the rooms, along with the colored frescoes over the doors indicating different positions.

We had arranged a private tour, so it was just the 3 of us and what a wonderful experience. Leli had so many great stories about the people, their way of life, about their city and how they must have felt when Vesuvius erupted. We explored the grounds for three hours and did not see it all. Plus, only about 25% has been excavated. One can only imagine what is still buried under 20+ feet of earth. He told us that the government just doesn’t have the money and even though the excavation would create many jobs, they just aren’t interested.

One thing I found very interesting is that the tourists are allowed to walk on the marble floors, able to enter buildings, touch the walls, see the frescoes up close, really get the feel of Pompeii. It was heartbreaking to see on the walls tourists who had to include themselves in the history of Pompeii by carving their names, to forever desecrate this beautiful city.

After lunch we headed over to Herculaneum, on the west side of Vesuvius. Herculaneum was a ‘resort’ town, where the people of Pompeii came to relax. It was much smaller than Pompeii, but more intact. There is much more to excavate, but the current town sits on top of it and the government will not displace the families in the area. The reason that it is still intact is that it was covered with the ash from the volcano, whereas Pompeii was hit with the pyroclastic blast which was much more destructive.  There were approximately 300 bodies found, where at Pompeii the number is inclusive because of instantaneous incineration caused by the blast.

From wikipedia:  It is also famous as one of the few ancient cities that can now be seen in almost its original splendour, because unlike Pompeii, its burial was so deep as to ensure building's upper storeys remained intact, and the hotter ash preserved wooden household objects (beds, doors etc.) and even food. Moreover Herculaneum was a wealthier town than Pompeii with an extraordinary density of fine houses, with far more lavish use of coloured marble cladding. The discovery in recent years of some 300 skeletons along the sea shore came as a surprise since it was known that the town itself had been largely evacuated.

There is so much more about these two cities to be told; Leli recommended a book by Robvert Harris – Pompeii, which he said is a must-read.