Italy Day 2 - And the sights come into view. Old ones.

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Early morning, 6:45 breakfast and get on the bus to begin the day. We needed a transfer bus to get to the hotel, from the little streets below. The road is a two way road, but wide enough for one lane, and the bus was too big to get around cornors and get to the hotel up the hill.

Went to Pompei and walked the ruins, which are still being excavated. I learned that at the time of Pompei's destruction in 79AD, that the ruins show boat houses that were along the shore, at that time.

About 11, we are done, and back on the bus headed for Rome. Lunch along the way at one of the freeway quick lunch places.

Upon arriving in Rome, the first thought was I was on 290 at rush hour. But, no, wait, something is different, the road is wide enough for 1.5 cars, and they are going in both directions. At some spots two buses can not pass each other. But they have that worked out, they know where they can pass each other on the street. and one waits for the other one to pass before continuing on. The little scooters however, don't pay attention to road signs and rules of the road, so they just whip around what ever they want and continue on.

We had a nice relaxing evening with friends, and turned in for the night. The wifi in the room does not work. The wifi in the lobby works great. There is wifi for the room, but the access points don't pass out addresses for you to connect. The attitude of the help here is not what you would call "model". "It doesn't work in the room, it works here, come here, it is outside company, and not working" "Will they fix it tomorrow?" "No, it doesn't work, come to lobby".



So, the delay in publishing this blog is only because I can't get a connection. And, of course you might imagine the lobby is full of people "approving POs" "answering questions, solving technical problems, etc.". And when you fall asleep sitting in the chair because your head still doesn't know what time it is, you pick up and head for the room.

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Photos

Streets of Pompei
Amazing how well the buildings were preserved.

One of the plaster casts of those found.
This isn't a person, but a cast of that person, and what they looked like when they died. They found people, and then after removing them, made a cast where they were found to show the position when they died.

Roman technology
Night lights to light the walk at night. The Romans used the reflective marble, so that at night, with a moon, or any light, the little diamond squares would mark the path, much like landing lights on an airport. Only these aren't LEDs.

Walking the streets of Pompei
The streets with the buildings and shops along the side,

Ruins and the mountain in the distance
The mountain in the distance is the one that buried the town.

The frescoes are still in great shape
These were on the ceiling.

Artifacts being stored for display
All of these items were uncovered and are being stored and studied. They are still uncovering parts of the city.

Boat Docks at Pompei
According to the guide, these were boat sheds where the boats were kept. The sea was at that level back in 79AD.

The tourist trap for mementos of Pompei
Just part of the "market", there is no shortage of hawkers trying to separate you from your Euros.

Time for food
Everyone has to eat sometime. This was on the road to Rome. The Italian truck stop.