Napoli & Pompeii

"Don't get lost in Napoli".

This is what our tour guide Vittorio said numerous times throughout our 45 minute walking tour of Napoli today.  He didn't need to tell anyone twice.  I can describe Napoli with one word:  Slum.  It's not a place I'd wanted to visit having already heard what it was like, but it was part of the tour and worth enduring for our ultimate destination.

I did have to count my fingers before getting back on the bus.

Mt Vesuvius

Pompeii is magnificent.  This was one of the parts of my trip I was most looking forward to, and was more than happy to sacrifice one of my few days in Rome to see it. 

Small digression - Rome has been a disappointment.  I think this is down to three main reasons.  Firstly, I went to France first, and cities like Paris and Nice, whilst not being comparable with Rome in any way, really did set the standard high as far as being clean, open and tourist friendly cities.  Rome is none of these things, purely by the nature of its age, and therefore layout.

Secondly, my hotel hasn't been great - the past two nights some idiots in the room next to me first decided it was a good idea at 4am to put some music on and sing along at the top of their voices, and 2am this morning Skyping (I assume) - I could clearly hear the person on the other end.  I've been told they left today - at least, I think that's what the night man on reception said, because he only speaks Italian.  Also, the water in the shower and sink has two temperatures - freezing cold or scalding hot.  You can't choose which option either, no matter which way you turn the tap - it's pot luck on the day, or the time.  No sleep and hot/cold showers make me grumpy!

Thirdly, I think it's simply overhyped.  Vatican City and the Colosseum are the only things that have met with, or exceeded, my expectations.  The rest of Rome consists of piles of rubble, and the various churches galleries are scattered all over the city - and really, there are only so many churches one can visit.  Stick with the Vatican Museum, and you've pretty well seen the nost important art in Rome, other than Galleria Borghese - which whilst it has some Raphael and Titian, is mainly Caravaggio.  I'm much more looking forward to seeing my favourites in Florence and Venice:  Titian, Veronese and Botticelli, along with Michaelangelo and Da Vinci's works. 

So rather than spending any of tomorrow here, I'm leaving first thing for Florence.

Back to Pompeii.

Many skeletons have been found, in the position they died in - they fill them with concrete (it's not mumified)

Simply amazing.  I knew it was preserved quite well, but just how well is really surprising.  They are still excavating the site, and have begun on the other two towns destroyed by the volcanic explosion.  22,000 people lived in Pompeii at the time, and approximately 2,000 were killed in the eruption. 

So much of the city is still intact - the wood burned away of course, and the roofs (and subsequently some walls and pillars) collapsed under the weight of the ash over the centuries, but it's pretty well all still there.  Not much imagination is needed.  Freizes, mosaics, paint on the walls - quite a bit of this has even survived.

One of the 7 entrances into Pompeii - the roads are all original, and paved with volcanic rock

One of the first places we visited was a bath house - they had running water, and even an early version of a central heating system, involving double walls and floors and fireplaces.  The floor mosaics in the baths have completely survived along with some wall and ceiling decoration, and the lead piping.  The best way I can describe Pompeii, is with the photos. 

Bath House

Largest House in Pompeii

 The photo above is a part of the largest house found in Pompeii - 3,000 sqm large.  No, that's not a typo.  Below, a mosaic in the house. 

Mosaic Floor

One of the 34 Bakerys in the city

Wine Shop

Note the mosaic floor and mosaic fireplace and painted wall in th background in this house

There are many brothels in Pompeii - they have paintings above the doorways with suggestions of... what you can do inside.  Brothels were also marked with erm... symbols on either the wall or street outside, so you couldn't miss them...

Brothel

Lots of free paring - tie your horse to the sidewalk!  These are everywhere, especially on main steets

The Temple of Apollo - it has statues of Apollo and Diana (both copies, the originals are in Napoli) and the alter at the rear where animals were sacrificed.  Why is it the Americans in the tour groups are always the one to ask the stupid questions?  "Who built the Temple of Apollo, the Greeks or Romans?".  And another as we passed the prison, where well... they couldn't get out to escape the eruption "Who would have been put in the prison?"  Uhh... criminals?  Even the poor tour guide was hard pressed to deal with the stupidity at times.

Temple of Apollo

A fraction of the many, many preserved items from the city (with another skeleton in the back)

Theatre (fixed and used today for some things)

Another perfectly preserved mosaic

The main city Forum - you have to imagine the pillar go right around, the marble slab flooring...

Forum, with Vesuvius ever present in the background

The Basilica - although back then, the word meant Place of Justice, not place of worship

Main Street

Above, one of the four main streets of Pompeii (two ran E-W, two N-S).  You can see three stepping stones in the middle - the streets had no drainage, so people used the stones to walk across in bad weather.  The gaps in between were perfectly placed to allow horses and chariot wheels to ride through.

Shop Fronts on Main Street - you can see the counters

Wheel Ruts - shows you how heavy the traffic was on the streets!