Pompeii, Sorrento, Napoli Trip

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Saturday:
I got up at 5:30 to get ready for my trip to Pompeii. Matt and Tommy ended up going with me on the group trip, getting to go for free since several people didnt show who had already paid for a spot. We played cards and slept most of the way there--the scenery on the drive was beautiful, many more mountains than our area! When we arrived in Pompeii we took a guided tour of the city, which was really neat but somewhat abbreviated because of the rain that started about the same time we arrived. We got to see the house of Romulus and Remus and a ton of really neat artificats while in the city as well as touring all throughout. After the tour we went to a nearby resturant where they had lunch waiting for us. Mike and I shared spagetti and pizza, it was really good!
After lunch we got to wander around for about an hour then piled back on the bus to head to Mount Vesuvius. The bus took us most of the way up the mountain, then we got off and hiked up to the crater's edge. It was cold and raining, but it felt great as we hiked up to the very top of the volcano. The crater is so big, definately an awesome view--we didnt get to see the view of the Bay of Napoli since the clouds were low but it was still spectacular!
After the hike Mike, Matt, Tommy, and I split off from the group to meet up with Esther and Gillian who were in the area on a trip with their class. We took a taxi to a train station then the train into Sorrento where they were waiting for us. We wandered around through the shops--Sorrento is beautiful, all the flowers are blooming so the air has a wonderful perfume along with friendly and open people. We ate at a cute little pizzeria, shopped around taste-testing lemoncello, then headed for a campsite we had found to stay at. Even at night the campsite was beautiful with big trees and flowers everywhere. We had two little cabins next to each other, which got REALLY cold at night!

Sunday:
When we got up the next morning we realized that our campsite has a view of the entire bay of Napoli, Mount Vesuvius, and Napoli---one of the most beautiful views I've ever seen!!! We bought groceries at a little market on the campsite and had breakfast before packing up and heading into town. Mike and Gillian split off to meet up with the other group, Esther, Matt, Tommy and I headed back to Mt. Vesuvius for another hike. We ended up missing the stop so we went into Napoli to explore. After a little wandering and asking around we took a bus to a castle a ways into the city. We wandered around and found the best pizzeria in the ENTIRE WORLD! Definately in a category of it's own, with a fun staff and no other tourists to be seen. Most of our meal was spent being stared at, talked to, and talked about by surrounding tables and staff. Esther and I got pictures with the waiters before leaving. After pizza we got gelato and wandered back to the castle to take pictures before heading back to the train station to catch our train. We got back to Roma around 7:15, then got dressed up and made dinner together at Esther's. By the time we got done with dinner it was midnight so I headed home and went to bed

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