Italy – Pompeii 11/09/16

We took the train from Salerno to Pompeii, which took around 40 minutes at a cost of €4.40 pp return. We bought a guide book where the following extract came from.
“Mount Vesuvius erupted on the morning of 24 August 79AD, covering the town of Pompeii within only a few hours killing all inhabitants. The explosion projected a 20km high column of volcanic materials, followed by a shower of small pumice stones, and then ash which settled over a radius of 70km. Over the next few days there were tremors and tidal waves. Then came heavy rains which carried away what had settled at the side of the volcano, surrounding the area, Herculaneum, and covering it by 20m of solicited mud.”
Throughout history teams of archaeologists have been excavating the town of Pompeii which continues to this day.
We had no idea of what to expect once we arrived, but once inside (entrance fee €13 pp), we were totally flabbergasted by its sheer size, this town is huge. Streets upon streets have been excavated to reveal how this town once was – houses, palaces, Basilica, arenas, temples there all there. Wondering around, there’s a sense of solemnness, eeriness and ………however the grandness of what was once is so impressive. What’s more impressive is the fact there are no tacky stalls selling pointless plastic souvenirs anywhere, no modern day restaurants or hotels, it is as it was let’s hope it remains this way. Wondering around we were in awe of its splendidness, every corner you take, there’s something different to view. Some of the internal excavations have revealed the original stone mosaic floors, some reveal kitchens complete with terracotta ovens, whereas others reveal the erotic wall paintings in the bath houses and spas. It’s truly an inspirational place. The external excavations reveal original cobbled streets, the ornate stone carvings on building, the water ways for fresh water to get around the town. The majestic columns of the Basilica and Palace are in situ, as are the arenas all-be-it in a ruined state, never the less still very impressive. There are areas curtained off where archaeologists of the modern day work away, and in places mesh curtains hang with words and diagrams of where earlier archaeologists found bodies once excavations started. They also have some of the preserved bodies (skeletons encased in plaster to show the actual position the body was in). The whole place is stunning, seeing architecture of that day, how it was constructed, how everyday people lived, yet its a place of sadness, realising how the people of Pompeii came to an abrupt end, in the hands of mother nature. Before we knew it we had been walking around for over 4 hours, the time just slipped away, but as we were coming out we spotted the visitors centre. This was really remarkable, it’s an audio/visual display of how Pompeii was built, how it grew, of what a thriving metropolis of a town it was before it’s gruesome end. Pompeii is definitely a “MUST DO” place to visit.