For our fourth and final day in Italy we decided to take a day-trip to Pompeii. There were different prices for the trains, depending on how many stops they had and how fast they would get you there. We opted for the cheapest one, and it took us 3 very long hours to get to Naples. We played cards, tried to sleep, and enjoyed the scenery.
Once we got to Naples we had to take another half an hour train ride to Pompeii, which deposited us directly in front of the gate the Pompeii Ruins. After traveling for that long, I was REALLY hoping that this would actually be worth it. It was! :)
You enter the city at the main gate, Porta Marina. In the picture below you can see the main road on the right, leading up to the gate.
The road from the gate leads right into the Forum - the center of life in Pompeii - with Mount Vesuvius looming ominously in the background.
Now, right away I was struck by the giant bronze statues that are everywhere. In a way, they felt like they belonged there, but at the same time they looked way too contemporary to me. I kept thinking, were the people of Pompeii ahead of their time, or what!? What is going on here? We didn't have a guide or anything, so I didn't know. Come to find out, they are part of a temporary exhibit by the late artist, Igor Mitoraj. Ahhhh, now it all makes sense. They are going to be gone next month, and that seems like a shame, because I liked them so much - I felt like they really added something special to Pompeii. If you can go in the next month, you really should ;)
Here are some closeups of the ones in the Forum.
Other areas included the Basilica
The Theater
Looking down into the gladiator barracks.
The baths
I don't know the specifics of many of the other buildings we meandered into, but there was something interesting to see around every corner.
Of course, one of the things that these ruins are known for are the plaster casts of the former inhabitants, eerily captured in their last moments. While excavating the city, archaeologists kept coming across hollow spaces underfoot, created when the victims' bodies decomposed within the volcanic debris that they had been buried in. The holes were gently filled with plaster, and the molds were created.
Another thing that seems rather simple, but that I enjoyed seeing (and walking on), were the streets. These basalt stones are the original Roman pavement.
Past the Forum was a pedestrian- only zone. The three stones that Alex is leaning against (below) were a barrier to keep chariots out.
The Pompeiians would flood their streets every day to keep them clean. The elevated stones were crossings, where they could avoid getting their feet wet. The high sidewalks on either side were to hide the plumbing, and had reflective bits of white marble in them, to help people see where they were going at night.
And that was really about it for us. The ruins are quite extensive (we didn't even see a quarter of it, although we did hit most of the highlights), but 2 hours was enough for us, especially because we knew we had a long train ride back home, not to mention a VERY early flight in the morning. We actually opted for the 2 hr. train home from Napels and paid a little more - it was well worth it ;)
And that was our last day in Italy.....at least on THIS trip. Here's to hoping for another one some day ;)
