Up Pompeii

After a quick continental breakfast – never Dad’s favourite, we popped outside the hotel to catch one of the many buses that take you back up to the town. The marina includes the busy ferry port, with boat heading off to Capri and Naples. This means there’s always plenty of public transport on hand. We managed to get our €1 tickets from the nearby kiosk and then tried to work out where our bus was. We were waved off in some general direction, but really didn’t have a clue which one we are supposed to get on. It eventually turned out that it hadn’t arrived yet, so we tried to find a little shade whilst we waited.

Unfortunately Dad doesn’t do waiting very well; he fidgeted and accosted any likely looking bus before finally threatening to just get a taxi. At this point, magically the bus appeared and we finally piled on. However the driver was now on his break and promptly walked off, prompting more fussing and complaining from Dad. None of this took very long and we are soon heading up the incredibly steep hairpin bends to the top of the cliff and Plaza Tasso. The distance is miniscule, but most of it is vertical. I noted that Dad wasn’t insisting that we walk tomorrow.

She's no Botticelli babe and looks like she has a rather badly broken leg, but ... she’s almost 2000 years old

At the top of the cliff it was a fairly straightforward business getting to the railway station. I vaguely knew where it was and a handy map helped. Plus it gave us the chance to look at some of the shops. Personally I was pleased how well I remembered it all. I spent five days here four years ago and walked round the town most days. I promised to show Dad and Tina some of the highlights later.

Once we reached the station, we mustered our best Italian to buy our tickets for the Circumvesuvian. This is the railway line that skirts around the slopes of Vesuvius, stopping at Pompeii and Herculanium (Ercolano). How I wished I’d given this a go on my last visit. It really is very straightforward. Basically we were at the end of the line and only had one direction to go. It also gave us a wonderful chance to sightsee again, affording us some really excellent views as the train hugs the coastline. You can’t even miss Pompeii, you see the ruins just before you reach the station. Plus if you’re in any doubt just follow the masses of other tourists. Once off the train it was a very short walk to the main gates and the booking office.

In addition to the small map we were given with our tickets, we decided to hire three audio guides to help us find our way about. Unfortunately to do this you have to leave something with the staff. Tina was the only one who has her passport handy, so she let them keep it as our deposit – eek! Still it did really help to give us a better understanding of this enormous archaeological site.

At this point my Dad announced that he was going to wander off by himself! We’re a bit surprised but Mum had warned me that he had a tendency to disappear, so perhaps it’s just as well he warned us in advance. Thankfully we all had mobile phones, so agreed to text each other when we were ready to meet up. This was interesting as Dad hadn’t really done much texting before.

Tina and I made our way up through the main entrance (Porta Marina) into the town. It was quite eerie for me, as I had just reached the point in my book, where the hero was doing the same thing. It really did bring the town to life, as it would have been in 79AD, just before all hell let loose.

We headed up Via Marina, past the temple of Venus (Tempio di Venere) to the Basilica. As we wandered about listening to our guides, I was evidently beginning to suffer from heatstroke. This was because I was convinced I could see a large party of nuns dressed in their flowing robes and each sporting a bright yellow baseball cap. Clearly I must have been hallucinating, but apparently my cousin was too because she could see them as well. If you now doubt my sanity, I have included the photo to prove it!

The Basilica is your first taste of what is to come. It also gives you an excellent opportunity to see how many of the pillars are constructed. They may look like stone, but in fact they are merely brick, covered in plaster.

Following the road up a little further we came to the Forum. This was the heart of Pompeii and everyone who visits will take a photo here, with Mount Vesuvius looming ominously in the distance. It summed up everything about the place. You find yourself wondering what went through the residents minds, when this every present feature of the landscape, suddenly turned against them.

A little further on, we reached the theatre district. There are two theatres, one large and one small – no prize for guessing what they are each called! The large one had obviously undergone a lot of work; it looked like it was still being used for performances. The smaller one (also known as the Odeion) hadn’t been adapted quite so much. Both buildings were really substantial monuments and it was easy to imagine a performance taking place in buildings that are so familiar.

Next to the theatre is a beautiful green quadrangle, or to give it its proper name, Quadriporticus of the Theatres. It was getting pretty hot, so we took the opportunity to sit in the shade, drink our water and in my case slather myself in sun cream. Suddenly I noticed a rather exotic bird land a little way off. I couldn’t believe my eyes, it was a hoopoe. For years every book of British birds I’d ever seen, had a very optimistic entry for the hoopoe. Presumably they had occasionally made it across the Channel, but I’ve never been very convinced. I was determined to try and get a photo of it, but wildlife always tends to resist. In the end we spent about ten minutes running round the Quadripoticus, trying to get a shot of it. Sadly it was here that I lost my watch, but didn’t realise until much later.

It was time to leave the great municipal monuments behind and start to explore the homes of Pompeii. First off was the House of the Ceii. Its claim to fame is a small garden made to look much larger by the frescos that decorate the surrounding walls. The main focus is a spectacular hunting scene, full of exotic animals. Although it’s faded now, it would have given the viewer the impression of a much larger open space.

As we walked along the streets of Pompeii, we saw plenty of Roman fast food stalls, with counters and huge storage vats. However one of the most exceptional was the Thermopolium of Vetutius Placidus. This one featured a wonderful fresco on the wall, giving some idea of how it would have looked.

The house of Octavius Quartio contains some particularly beautiful wall paintings depicting the Goddess Diana and the hapless hunter who spied on her whilst she bathed. He was promptly turned into a stag and she set her hounds on him. It was hard to get a good photo of the images as they are covered by Perspex to protect them. Around the back of the building is a beautiful water garden – well it would be if there was any water. However it was at least planted up like a real garden, if a rather overgrown one.

Back out on the street we came face to face with hidden history. Parts of the site have been left completely untouched. The Italians sensibly recognise that tempting as it might be to uncover the whole site; the priority is to maintain and conserve those areas that have been. This means that at certain points you find walls sticking out of the earth. Who knows what lies just beyond your reach? There could be fantastic treasures just waiting for someone to uncover them.

Our next stop was the House of Venus in a Seashell. Now she’s no Botticelli babe and looks like she has a rather badly broken leg, but she’s not bad considering she’s almost 2000 years old. She lives out in the garden in a little pergola. Inside the house the walls are quite plain, except for tiny little landscapes painted on the wall. It looks like the way we hang paintings on the wall.

By this time we had almost made it to the far side of the site and finally reached the large palaestra. This is the gymnasium next to the amphitheatre. Although we couldn’t get inside, we could peak through the doorways. We could just make out the swimming pool in the centre. A little further down we came to the House of the Garden of Hercules. The building was very small, but the garden was impressive. It had also been planted up to recreate how it would have looked, based on biological samples.

For a bit of a change we decided to leave the main town via the Porta Nocera and find ourselves in the Necropolis. It’s an amazing sight, looking for all the world like a miniature city, but one occupied by the dead. Roman tradition dictates that people couldn’t be buried inside the city walls. So instead they buried them outside, along the main roads. It’s really worthwhile taking a look, particularly as you find the odd bit of Roman graffiti along the way.

It had been a while since we started exploring and frankly we were feeling pretty peckish. Unfortunately there wasn’t anywhere nearby to get food, but we did come to another entrance where, frustratingly, we could see some market stalls selling snacks. We sidled up to the guards on the gate and managed to charm our way out for five minutes, so that we could buy some ham rolls and a drink.

Technically we were now outside of the town’s walls and it gave us a chance to see Pompeii from a different angle. We walked around the end until we reached the next gateway, the Porta de Sarno, and then headed into the fantastic Amphitheatre. I was really thrilled to be here. My biggest disappointment with my brief visit in 2001, was that we didn’t come anywhere near this side of the site. This time it proved to be an excellent place for a picnic!

We now headed back towards the main entrance, taking in the top of the site. We did try to reach one of the towns more … ‘educational’ buildings, but sadly the streets were blocked off whilst conservation work took place. We know because we tried ALL the routes. Of course we were trying to get to the infamous brothel will all it entertaining frescos. A friend of mine had visited Pompeii about 30 years ago with a school group. In those days women were not allowed in to view these (and other) works of art. Luckily I had seen them last time so it was only Tina who had missed out.

We had been wandering around the hot, dusty streets of Pompeii for sometime now and frankly could have done with freshening up a bit. Well 2000 years ago visiting the Stabian Baths would have really done the trick. I really loved visiting this building because it’s so complete. The wonderful barrel roof of the bath house is a testament to the strength of an arch. The three main rooms that every Roman bath would have are the Frigidarium (cold bath), Tepidarium (warm bath) and Caldarium (hot bath). The latter two rooms give you a wonderful view of the heating system that allowed hot air to circulate under the floor and within the walls. We are only just rediscovered under-floor heating today. My absolute favourite room in the Stabian Baths is a little strange – it was the loo!

Okay, we had missed out on one naughty site, but luckily the House of the Vettii keeps its cheeky artwork in the doorway. Thirty years ago the fresco that now welcomes visitors was kept, very firmly, behind a lockable door and again only men were allowed to see it. When we visited, there was quite a large group of giggling females admiring it. It’s an image that was very popular in Pompeii and symbolises wealth and prosperity. Basically it’s a man weighing an extremely large appendage on a set of scales! And no, I don’t mean his arm.

Next we visit the largest house in Pompeii, the House of the Faun. That being said it isn’t that impressive, as the walls have all but disappeared. However there is a wonderful little sculpture of a faun, that gives it its name. Sadly its wonderful mosaics now reside in a museum in Naples.

Just before we headed back to the Forum, we came to the entrance of the House of the Tragic Poet. The owner clearly intended to keep unwanted visitors away, as the mosaic on the floor clearly states “Beware of the Dog”.

At the top end of the Forum, there are store rooms full of artefacts and some of the famous plaster cast figures. These were created by filling voids in the ash, before carefully excavating them. I just can’t imagine what went through the mind of the first archaeologist who tried this technique. It must have been such an eerie sight. When you see these shadows of frightened, injured and choking people, you just can’t help being touched by their plight. The most memorable figure is sadly missing this time. However on my last visit I saw the cowering dog, desperately trying to free itself from it chain. According to the notice it was currently on a world tour.

We were absolutely shattered at this point, even thought there was still plenty for us to see. However Dad had contacted us and we met up again at the main entrance. After a quick visit to the gift shop and the purchase of a lovely guidebook to mark the occasion, we wandered out into the street. Here there are plenty of stalls selling fresh citrus fruits and wonderful freshly squeezed juice. It’s far too tempting and we found ourselves a seat and enjoyed a long cool drink. Then a really surprising thing happened – it rained! Well only a little bit, not enough to worry us and frankly it was quite refreshing.

Finally we made our way back to the railway station and caught the first train back to Sorrento. Tina and I were able to enjoy the view again, but Dad had clearly had enough excitement for one day and slumped in his seat, nodding off, whilst we photographed him! It was only when I thought I had better look after his camera that he finally came to.

That night we decided to take advantage of a little surprise. I hadn’t realised when I booked the holiday that we would be staying half-board. I thought it was going to be bed and breakfast. We felt we should give the included meal a try after all it might be very good. Well, whilst it wasn’t bad, frankly it wasn’t anything to write home about. We made up our minds to go back to the restaurant outside tomorrow.