Blogs from Pompei, Campania, Italy, Europe - page 17

Pompeii.........What can I say. Beautiful. I was not really expecting the city to be as intact as it was, but it was pretty amazingly perserved. I know a lot of people are turned off by the "bodies", but their were actually very intriguing to me. I know that probably sounds pretty weird, but they obviously aren't the actually the real bodies of the people. They are plaster casts. It's actually a fairly amazing procedure on how they do it. I will explain to you in more detail if you really want to know. But the majority of the "bodies" were left in the original position that they were frozen in under 30 feet of ash. Some were a little more disturbing that others. The town itself was actually a lot bigger than I thought it was ... read more

Hi, Well, I must admit Italy is not quite what I had hoped for and I may leave tomorrow or Monday which is about 4 days sooner than planed. If so, my flight is to Helsinki which does not really have more than a weeks worth to do and is expensive Sooooo... the plan would be to take the one hour hydrofoil ferry over to Estonia where I can live well on 350 elt per day or whatever it is they spend over there. Its something like 30 USD. About a third the cost of Italy or Finland. Today I saw Pompeii! It takes about 4 hours and is massive. Maybe a mile or more across. Everything is amazingly detailed and decorated. I couldnt believe the level of comfort and beauty for 60 AD. Then you ... read more

Hello Everybody, Hope that everyone that shares this journal with me is doing well. Our trip is already more than 1/2 over. Today we are spending the entire day at sea on our way to Naples. In yesterday's journal entry I said that we were on our way to Rome, but that was a mistake; Rome is coming soon though! I spent the day resting because I didn't feel too great this morning, but I'm fine now. We have a great itinerary planned for tomorrow, Friday. We are going to have a private van, driver and guide, so we will have the opportunity to see and learn a lot since there is so much to see in the region we'll be in. I'm really looking forward to seeing Pompeii since mom has told me so much ... read more

We docked at Naples, which is about halfway between the ankle and the knee on Italy's boot. Cruising into the Bay of Naples we were greeted by the sight of a beautiful harbor city with the mighty Vesuvius dominating the view to the south. We were in Naples for only one day. We chose to spend our time ashore seeing the ruins of Pompeii, the town between Naples and Vesuvius that was buried under ashes and volcanic dust in the eruption of 79 AD. Excavation started in the 1700s when Pompeii was discovered and is still going on at several sites including nearby Herculaneum. The eruption of Vesuvius was described in great detail by Pliny the Younger, who at the time was a well educated Roman teenager visiting his uncle, Pliny the Elder, a government official ... read more

Chapter 13 Up Pompeii - Titter ye not!!! A most excellent breakfast was consumed, finally a positive. They headed to Stazione Garribaldi where they caught the circumvensia to Herculaneum. A kind of over-ground underground, extremely cheap but had seen better days, the circumvensia connected Naples to Sorrento on the Amalfi Coast. As they alighted at Herculaneum station, they were immediately mobbed by taxi drivers offering to take them up to Mount Vesuvius and back for 10 euros each. The bus only cost 4 euros so once more they politely refused and headed for the ruins of Herculaneum. Eighteen euros for a combined ticket which included Pompeii and four other sights. Just down the road from the station they arrived at the gates of Herculaneum. Tourist Site 17: Herculaneum History: With Vesuvius brooding on the horizon any ... read more