One of the draws for me to go to Naples was to see Pompeii. I had seen this ancient city in school books and on TV and have been intrigued ever since. Pompeii is pretty well known and I think most people know the story that in 79AD Mt. Vesuvius had erupted covering Pompeii and its people in ashes. The people were preserved by the ash and lack of air. The city was essentially lost for hundreds of years until its rediscovery and has ever since been a tourist attraction for visitors everywhere. I think what makes Pompeii so interesting is that we can get a peek into the day to day lives of these people and we actually have a visual of a human form and not just bones. One of the pictures I took is of a body crouched and praying. How sad and beautiful.
It is very easy to get to Pompeii if you are staying near the Capodichino Airport in Naples. You take the airport Alibus, to the first stop which is the train station. Walk (very fast) through this area and the train station is on your right. At the train station, there are many shops selling tickets to Pompeii. I just bought a ticket and then you head to the second platform on the train to Sorrento (Sorrento is the last stop and Pompeii is pretty much in between Naples and Sorrento). It takes about 30 minutes to get there by the train. Once I arrived at my stop, I could see tons of tourists everywhere. Solo travel isn't a problem here and virtually everyone is a tourist. Once you get off of the train, the site of the ancient city is literally a few steps away.
The tickets are about 12 Euro and you can also get an audio tour guide or a human tour guide which I recommend and wish I would have done in the first place. Why? Because this site is huge. It's an entire ancient town and the maps are basically useless and confusing. It's very difficult to find your way around and identify points on the map. Though I didn't have a tour guide, I managed to find what I was most interested in...bodies.
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| My rating of Pompeii |
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| Mt. Vesuvius looming in the background |
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| The preserved bodies |
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| The Amphitheatre of Pompeii is the oldest surviving Roman amphitheatre |
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| I love the colors in these tiles |
I think I spent about 3 hours walking around the city. I was kind of expecting to see bodies on the sidewalk frozen in a crawling position. I don't know why. But in reality they were in the Forum behind bars or behind glass. I either missed an entire section of bodies or they are in museums. I have the feeling that I didn't see them all but I had gotten my fill of Pompeii for the day. What a great experience, especially to just absorb the history and explore on my own.
Nest Stop: Sorrento, Italy
What would you look forward to seeing most in Pompeii?
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I have visited Pompeii too and I loved it! It was much bigger than I expected and there are areas in your photos that I did not get to see when I visited. I joined a guided tour when we went. Great pictures :-)
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Ahh seriously cool, I would love to go! I bet it was insanely awesome!
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It was definitely something I was excited to cross of my list!
DeleteWe loved Pompeii and wish we'd spent more time there. We didn't have a guided tour either, but went through the streets with Rick Steve's Italy book. His tour was amazing at guiding you through the streets and through some of the old homes, pointing out the water pipe system, etc. We felt it was the next best thing to a tour guide and one of the tour guides interrupted his speech to ask if any of the people in his tour had the Rick Steves guide. He was disappointed when all of them answered no. Ha! I'd really love to go back!!
ReplyDeleteLol I actually have a couple of Rick Steve's books, but never read them. I really should.
DeleteGorgeous place....totally gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteI had the exact same expectation, but while there weren't as many bodies, I was still blown away by how much of the city is still there. It's vast! I think I was most impressed with the paintings and mosaics that are still so vibrant. Definitely didn't expect that.
ReplyDeleteI know, the place so huge. A lot biger than I had imagined. And the paintings were still so vibrant!
DeleteI have never been to Italy or Pompeii, so thank you for taking us there.
ReplyDeleteHappy travels. I am linking up to you through Travel Photo Thursday.
This is wonderful. You saw totally different areas than we did. Did you have a guide that lead you around?
ReplyDeleteNope, I didn't have a guide and the map was very confusing. No one looked like they knew where they were going. I wish I had a guide, but I pretty much saw everything I wanted to see anyways.
DeleteGorgeous! All the history dripping off these photos...
ReplyDeleteI loved seeing the architecture and pottery. Those bodies are sad but amazing. The colors that they used to paint the walls are beautiful. Thank you for sharing this visual treat!
ReplyDeleteDefinitely worth visiting. Thanks for taking us on this tour!
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading Marcia!
DeleteI was amazed with how HUGE Pompeii is when I was there. We were walking around for a good 4 hours and still only saw such a small amount! Great post!
ReplyDeleteI know. I was surprised too! It is huge. I was there for 3 hours and threw the towel in.
DeleteWow that is amazing! love the pictures... preserved bodies? crazy!
ReplyDeleteI am linking up with you via the Thursday link up!
xoxo
-A
www.truesoulandspirit.blogspot.com
What an experience is right! Wow, I never knew it was so big.
ReplyDeleteHow funny to find your blog today over on Coastal Charm, because my post on my blog today also mentions my trip to Sorrento and Pompeii. We were there in the winter, and it was desolate. Very spooky feeling being in the ancient city with almost no one else around. It was a beautiful day in the upper 60's and no lines anywhere, so we actually liked it.
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to see your Sorrento photos, and I'm glad to have found your blog!
Pompeii is by far one of the most memorable places that I visited when I toured around Europe. It was so sad seeing the bodies and the pregnant lady. But so amazing how clever they were back then with their pipes and building work. I would have loved to attend a big party in those bathing houses, with all the wine flowing freely :) Looks like you had a fantastic trip
ReplyDeletePregnant lady? I think I missed that one. Where was she located?
DeleteAwesome. Pick of the Week for Inspired Sunday.
ReplyDeleteThanks Susan!
DeleteWow, so much history, you go to the neatest places! Thanks so much for sharing at AMAZE ME MONDAY!
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
Cindy
Thanks Cindy, I'm trying to go everywhere!
DeleteLoved reliving a trip to Pompeii through your photographs. Looks like you had a great time!
ReplyDeleteI did have a good time. There was something so relaxing about discovering this ancient city on my own.
DeleteWhat an amazing place to visit! I remember loving all the mosaics. I hope to one day return now that I am older and can appreciate it a little more than when I was a youngster :)
ReplyDeleteGreat pictures - takes me back to when we visited Pompeii! I would love to go back one day as there is too much to take in on one trip.
ReplyDeleteI love this post! I remember visiting when I was a kiddo with my family. We lived in England (dad was in the airforce) so was able to travel extensively. Looking forward to seeing the post on Sorento. Italy was by and far my absolute favorite European country. The people, the food, the sights. My favorite was Cinque Terre- the 5 cities on the cliffs. Absolutely stunning.
ReplyDeleteElicia @ lifesajournee
Oh... what a beautiful, eerie place!
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