Pompeii Far Exceeds Expectations
Easter Sunday, April 9, 2023
Originally, our ship was scheduled to visit Sorrento, Italy, and from there we would take our excursion to Pompeii. Our plan had been to go to O’Parruchiano La Favorite, a lovely restaurant situated within a lemon grove. This is the restaurant where cannelloni was invented. However, as we were leaving Malta, we received notice that the port was changed to Naples, Italy, instead. We were disappointed about not seeing Sorrento, but the bright side is that Naples is a bit closer to Pompeii. We have never been to Naples, either, where pizza was invented, so we were excited about exploring the city and enjoying some great pizza and wine.
From our ship, we could see the expanse of the city across the mountains, and an enormous castle-like fort undergoing renovations. We gawked at the ominous looking and magnificent Mt. Vesuvius as well. Clouds hovered above it as if the dormant old volcano was smoldering.
A Crowded, Gritty Urban City
Our excursion group met our bus around 8:00 in the morning. The trip offered views of the city and outlying industrial and residential areas on our way to Pompeii.
Like the port city of Catania on the Island of Sicily, Naples (Napoli) is very urban. They both are densely populated (our tour guide said that in the city of Naples, 8,000 people live within one square kilometer).
There were areas where homeless people camped, where old homes were crumbling and wrecked as if hit by a tornado, and what looked like dumping grounds for old metal and trash.
Like Sicily, there were many ancient buildings that were not well preserved. Naples was even dirtier than Sicily, with large amounts of litter and trash everywhere.
We loved that there were orange trees heavy with ripe fruit were everywhere, even along the sidewalks in downtown Naples.
Despite the run-down buildings and filth of the city, the people were stylish and sophisticated. They seemed to be just enjoying life.
Cameo Carvings
On the way to Pompeii, we stopped at Palazzo del Corallo for a demonstration of cameo carving. We were given 15 minutes to use the restroom (there are no seats on the toilets in any of the restrooms we visited in Italy), watch a video about camera carving, and shop.
Not only were there a large variety of high end cameos (rings, pendants, broaches, bracelets, etc.), but also coral jewelry as well.
Pompeii
The ride to Pompeii from the cruise ship was only about 30 minutes. When we arrived at the site, what we could see just from the bus was very impressive. After disembarking from the bus, we walked past an expansive seafood restaurant (with a sign that said in Italian that it was not just for tourists) and a campground area with cabins, crossed the street, and entered an area of tented booths outside of a luxury hotel, another restaurant, and shops.
The crowds at Pompeii were enormous. Sometimes we had to just stand in place for 5 or 10 minutes because the crowds in front of us were not budging. Our guide did a good job trying to keep us together and actually managed not to lose anyone.
The UNESCO World Heritage Site of the lost city of Pompeii is beyond description. I have always wanted to see it, but it exceeded all of my expectations. It was wondrous, exciting and overwhelming. My eyes couldn’t take in enough.
One day is simply not enough. I would love to stay in a cabin across the street or at the lovely hotel right at the entrance, and spend at least four days soaking in every little detail of Pompeii, as well as Herculaeum.
Walking the ruins was a challenge, because the large rocks on the uneven walkways were challenging to maneuver. We had to watch every step, sometimes unable to look around as much as we might like, so we probably missed quite a bit. Our feet took a beating.
At one point, our guide pointed to Mt. Vesuvius and explained it was only nine kilometers from Pompeii. We saw a plaster cast of a servant girl who was face down, trying to shield herself from volcano’s fury. It was very moving to think how horrible dying that way must have been.
We could see that Pompeii was once a magnificent and sophisticated city, known as a vacation community for high society. Pompeii had a forum, an amphitheater, gymnasium, shops, an aqueduct for irrigation, fountains, and private baths.
Images danced in our minds about what living there must have been like. We could hear the horses snorting as they pulled the narrow two-wheeled wooden wagons through the stone streets.
Large carved stones were set like speed breakers to slow the wagons down. The sidewalks were elevated a foot higher than the roads to protect pedestrians.
We could imagine the prostitutes beckoning from the brothels; people strolling through the massive garden and gathering in the large meeting area; slaves washing the laundry and baking bread; brutal battles among the gladiators.
We gazed at the remnants of frescoes on the walls and imagined the wealthy families in their dining rooms, reclining on large couches with pillows, as servants brought their meals. The more elaborate houses even had courtyards with fish ponds or baths.
What an amazing experience — a childhood dream come true, to touch the walls and walk the streets of Pompeii!
Just know that because of the dense crowds and the massiveness of the site, you do need more than one day to visit. I bought a booklet, Pompeii, 2000 Years Ago and Today, so that I could read and learn more about Pompeii. From the booklet, which I have just cracked open and barely delved into, I learned about the different civilizations that gradually built the city from a farming town to a major industrial and trading center.
A Little Bit of History
The first major disaster in Pompeii was a massive earthquake in 62 A.D., which reduced the city to rubble. The surviving Pompeians rebuilt the city back into a industrial and commercial center once again, and were in the process of completing and extending its temples when second disaster hit, and Pompeii met its final end.
Mt. Vesuvius had been considered an extinct volcano for centuries. In fact, it was covered in vineyards, luxurious villas, and farmhouses. Shortly after midday on August 24, 79 A.D. (some argue it was November 24), Mt. Vesuvius, without any warning, “came to life and erupted with savage violence.” From the booklet:
Flames from the volcano soared high into the sky, but an immense black cloud soon rose above them, blacking out the sun. Volcanic matter, lapilii [rock fragments ejected from a volcano}, and red-hot scoriae [frothy lava], rained down on Pompeii. Walls and roofs crumbled, then ashes mixed with water fell until all forms of life were extinguished. Darkness reigned and the scene was made even more apocalyptic by lightning, earthquakes and even tidal waves. The few survivors who managed to escape in the direction of Stabiae or Nuceria were overtaken and killed by the poison gases which spread everywhere. The inferno continued for three days, and then all was silence. A layer of death, from five to six meters (15-20 feet) deep, covered the area from Herculaneum to Stabiae.
All forms of life were obliterated from Herculaneum to Stabiae.
We heard from passengers on the ship that the site at Herculaneum is even more amazing than the ruins of Pompeii, because looters caused such damage at Pompeii. Herculaneum, because it was discovered later, is better preserved because it was more carefully and scientifically excavated,
Vesuvius remained active for many centuries up to modern times, and cities around it were rebuilt, but Pompeii remained buried for 19 centuries. I will be reading more about how Pompeii was discovered and excavated, as well as details about everything that we saw and didn’t have a chance to see on Easter Sunday at Pompeii.
Exploring a Bit of Naples
After the bus returned us to the Island Princess, Cliff and I went back to our room to freshen up, and then left the ship again to explore Naples and have some of that amazing pizza.
The walk from the port into town is about 15 minutes. As we stepped out from the terminal, there was a taxi, as if it had been waiting just for us. It cost 20 Euros to be driven to the busy shopping and restaurant heart of the city.
The crowds were intense. Motorcycles sped through the masses of people as if the drivers were intentionally trying to hit as many of us as possible. We ducked into a narrow side street full of sidewalk cafes, took a few turns to explore, and then went back out into the crowds again. We decided to walk toward the massive castle or fort we had seen from the ship.
In Sicily, we were amazed that when pedestrians were in the crosswalk, cars, motorcycles and scooters didn’t stop. They weaved around people. We would cover our eyes and pray. Naples was even WORSE! Truly, you take your life into your hands trying to cross the street. Even when we had a crossing signal telling us to go, the cars and motorcycles kept coming at us! It was rare that drivers would actually stop, but then they would start revving their engines and honking their horns. It was terrifying.
Finally, we found a small restaurant where we could sit inside. It had nice outdoor seating, too, but we wanted a quiet spot. We shared a wonderful Margarita pizza with Buffalo Mozzarella. The waiter selected a large Italian bottle of beer for Cliff and a glass of white wine for me. We topped the meal off with sharing a lovely tiramisu. The bill (with service charge) was only 25 Euro. The restaurant owner was delightful and quite a character. His elderly grandfather sat in the corner, just looking around, never saying anything.
Then we took our time walking back and looked around the shops at the terminal. We topped the day off with drink at Good Spirits Bar before heading back to our room.
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