Days 65-67 - Naples, Pompeii and Salerno

On the second day in Naples Melissa and I conquered the city.  We spent the entire day walking around, which was extremely exhausting because of all of the hills.  It was well worth the effort.  

The former Royal Residence

San Francesco di Paola, a gigantic church



Naples at night

The last day in the Naples area was filled with a trip to Pompeii.  If you paid attention in history classes you'll remember that the city is famous for the 79 AD eruption of Mt. Vesuvius.  The blast killed 12,000 people, many of whom still exist as plaster casts.

When the train pulled into the station I was surprised to find that Pompeii is still a major city.  The ancient city is surrounded in all directions, even up the side of Mt. Vesuvius.  As we made our way to the ancient city we ran into a protest.

It wasn't too long of a walk and we were soon inside.  Below are some of the pictures from the ancient city, including a couple of the plaster casts.

Mt. Vesuvius in the background

This vineyard stands exactly where the vineyard stood in the old city.  Archeologists were able to determine where the vines stood because the root locations were preserved by the eruption.

In their original location

 Above are some of the plaster casts of actual human beings.  When excavation of the city took place archeologists found large pockets of air and filled them with plaster.  Many of the air pockets turned out to be outlines of the residents last moment on Earth.  The pockets exist because the bodies were completely engulfed and then decomposed over time, leaving a perfect mold of a human.
We enjoyed our overall experience in Pompeii.  It was nice to see yet another thing I had learned about with my own two eyes.

The next morning Melissa and I set out for Salerno.  All of the hostels along the Amalfi Coast were booked for the night so we had to delay our trip there for twenty-four hours. 

There is not much to do in Salerno aside from shopping and eating.  It was still a good day but the Amalfi Coast promises to be more exciting.

Scott