It was October 13th, Monday when we docked in Naples, Italy. One of the places we'd always wanted to see was Pompeii.
We could see the peak of Mt. Vesuvius in the distance on the right.
Aha! Pizza makers below our balcony!
Our Norwegian Cruise Line excursion again provided bottled water.
I'm not positive of all the Non-Stop excursions, but I've heard they didn't get the free bottled water and had to purchase their own.
One of the first things we saw after entering Pompeii was the Piccolo Theater.
There were narrow streets covered with large, smooth cobblestones.
Apparently, sewage and other things were often thrown in the streets so these high stone walkways were used to cross the street. They were also spaced wide enough for chariots.
We could see the peak of Mt. Vesuvius in the distance on the right.
Aha! Pizza makers below our balcony!
Our Norwegian Cruise Line excursion again provided bottled water.
I'm not positive of all the Non-Stop excursions, but I've heard they didn't get the free bottled water and had to purchase their own.
One of the first things we saw after entering Pompeii was the Piccolo Theater.
Our FAVORITE tour guide during the entire cruise was Vito! He was full of good humor and incredible knowledge. You knew everyone loved him because throughout our walk other tour guides would call out to him or come over to give him a hug. Vito laughed saying they were nice to him just because he was old.
Vito explained that the indentation in the stone here was for sliding doors.
There were narrow streets covered with large, smooth cobblestones.
Apparently, sewage and other things were often thrown in the streets so these high stone walkways were used to cross the street. They were also spaced wide enough for chariots.
You could still see some of the paint on the walls.
Pompeii was first settled in the 7th century by the Greeks. Vesuvius erupted in AD 79. There was no lava.
Excavation began in 1748. 3/5 of the town is already excavated.
There were 18,000-20,000 people living in Pompeii at the time of the eruption.
You can see Vesuvius in the background from Pompeii. It looks peaceful, but it can still erupt again.
Seeing bodies that have been covered by ash brought home the shock of the tragic events.
It was wonderful that we arrived early because Pompeii was soon crowded with tourists.
This raised relief on one of the stones on the street pointed the way to the nearest brothel. Would you believe it took me a long moment to realize what the relief was?
I'm so glad we were finally able to see what an incredible place Pompeii was.
We have lots of oleander in Hawaii, but I don't think there are a lot of double ones. Vito reminded me that it is poisonous. It is pretty though.
These morning glories were also strikingly colored.
Art and I returned to the ship early, and we were able to see when Arnold and Nancy returned.
Our fun loving Non-Stop tour guide secretly told the wait staff it was our anniversary.
It was a HUGE surprise when they started singing "Let Me Call You Sweetheart" and brought us a cake.
Ummmm... Nope. Our anniversary is in January.
There was a one hour time change as we headed out to sea.
Day #9 was to be a relaxing day onboard ship.
Someone decided you would have another anniversary, I guess. Vito seems like he was a lot of fun. And the number of tourists were a real surprise to me. :-)
ReplyDeleteHi Kay! I haven't visited in a while ~ my life has been busy! But I'm so glad I was able to enjoy your photos of Pompeii, a place I've wanted to visit all my life. The body casts are so hard to look at. We had a Pompeii exhibit at our museum a couple of years ago, and the casts still haunt me. It looks like you are having a wonderful trip. Save travels!
ReplyDeleteI've not been able to visit either because we're working on the photo book now and we've also got some family crisis that we're having to cope with. It's a difficult month. I've already got posts on this trip scheduled until toward the end of this month.
DeleteThe artwork of the ship's crew is really fun, isn't it. We loved our visit to Pompeii, and found it entirely fascinating. One wonders if the volcano will erupt again, right?
ReplyDeleteYou both look like you had the time of your lives! Did the volcano offer Big Island Art professional courtesy?
ReplyDeleteALOHA from Honolulu
ComfortSpiral
=^..^=
Too funny!
Deleteonce again, i am really enjoying your trip!
ReplyDeleteI saw the movie the Last Days of Pompeii.when I was quite young and it haunted me for a long time. That body makes the horror real. I too have always wanted to go there. Yucky but interesting about the stone walk ways over the sewage.
ReplyDeleteVito would have been fun and how sweet he is such a loved fellow. That makes him a very rich man.
Vito brought Pompeii to life for us. We could imagine how people lived and the horror of how they died.
DeleteI've been to Pompeii!
ReplyDeleteI know nothing about Pompeii. Thanks for the introduction. It's ending must have been horrific, but because it was buried in ash, there is much still intact when it is unearthed.
ReplyDeleteIt was surely the anniversary of something in your life together that needed celebrating! That is such a lovely picture of the two of you looking like newly weds!
ReplyDeleteAwwwww.... Thank you, Olga.
DeletePompeii is truly remarkable.
ReplyDeleteSo glad you finally got to see the wonders of Pompeii. Someday I will, too, inshallah.
ReplyDeleteHow would it look on one's resume, "Towel-roller on board cruise ship."
Those towel animals are really fascinating.
DeleteI'd be tempted to steal the towels! There's a very old (1970-something) racy movie called "Summer Lovers" with beautiful actors, but amazing scenery of Greece, shorelines and hilly white-washed homes. One Greek restaurant in K.C. has a huge screen TV with their continuous film of spots around Greece, most filmed from a hot air balloon. I'm mesmerized each time I see it. After Hawaii again, I think I'd like to visit Greece. DrumMajor
ReplyDeleteYou have such a grand time. The history here is amazing.
ReplyDeleteWe live in a beautiful world and exploring it is an art. Great expose
ReplyDeletewww.negrifille.blogspot.com
I am so enjoying this trip you are taking. These are all the places I too want to see. Thank you.
ReplyDelete