Day 12: 8 July 2010

 Today we went back in time to Ancient Rome!  First stop...Mt. Vesuvius.  Even at 9:30am there was already traffic on the SS145 from Sorrento towards Napoli.  We didn’t arrive at Parco Nazionale Vesuvio until 11am.  As we quickly discovered, we had arrived at the entrance that leads up to Vesuvius through the forest which is only accessible by a private bus.  With no choice but to drive 60km further, we decided to suck it up and take the 2 hr bus/truck excursion.

The ride to the top brought us on an ancient bumpy road that wound through the pine forest, then up through beautiful fields of yellow flowers.  It was like an amusement park ride on the road…def. not for anyone who gets even the slightest bit carsick!  The bus dropped us off 1,050m up, where we got out and had to hike about 20min uphill on a gravel path to the top.  Hiking up was tough b/c our feet kept slipping on the gravel.  It was a very scenic and fragrant hike…we were looking down at the fertile land below, the town of Pompei, the Bay of Naples, and Capri the whole way enjoying the views and breathing in the aroma of the yellow flowers along the path.  When we reached the top, a guide gave us a 15min explanation of Vesuvius and pointed out everything in site.  The view was beautiful and the crater of the volcano and layers of magma were impressive.  It was very windy at the top, but we could make out small areas of steam coming up from the volcano.  Vesuvius is in a dormant period right now.  It’s big eruption in 79AD was the one that destroyed Pompeii, but more recently it erupted in 1944 destroying a small town below and the funicular on the Napoli side of the volcano.  Apparently the magma is 8km below where we were, and the longer it stays dormant, the bigger the eruption will be when it does occur.  After taking lots of pictures and stuffing our pockets with volcanic rock, we finally hiked back down and rode the bus to the start.

Next, we went off to Pompeii.  In typical Naples area fashion where you are nickel and dimed for everything, we had two options for parking: pay 2.50E/hr at the train station, or park at a restaurant and pay 8E for the day or “free” if you eat there.  Knowing we would be here a while, the more cost effective option was to order the cheapest thing on the menu so we could park at the restaurant.

Good thing we ate before entering the ruins at Pompeii b/c the town is huge! I always thought Pompeii was a small village, when in reality it was a important port and trading town of 20,000 people with tons of roads and buildings when Vesuvius erupted on Aug. 24, 79AD. Took Rick Steves’ audiotour which led us to the Roman forum, basilica, temple, baths, aqueduct, bakery, brothel, theater, restaurants, homes, and amphitheater.  The foundations and sides of most buildings are still intact, but the roofs are gone due to the thick ash that settled on Pompeii (like tons of snow) when Vesuvius erupted. Although there is no furniture inside the buildings (most artifacts are at the Archeology Museum in Naples), we still saw and learned about a ton of Roman history by looking at what remains. One display had clay pots found here as well as plaster models of people trapped in Pompeii.  During excavation, hollow spaces around decomposing human bones were found and filled with plaster to create models of some of the 2,000 people who were trapped in Pompeii. We also saw many neat features of Roman life including brick columns covered in marble dust stucco to look fancy while saving money, three raised stones in some major roads that served as crosswalks so people wouldn’t get their feet wet when crossing the street, flour grinders powered by donkeys, a brick oven, visible grooves in the roads made by chariots, and a double floor heating system in the baths that Joe says must have been an early form of radiant heating! We spent 3-4hrs wandering the streets of Pompeii.  It was really fascinating!

Back outside the walls of Pompeii, we were quickly reminded that modern day Pompeii and the entire area around Naples is a very depressed area. An older man posing as a restaurant employee approached us and told us we had to pay for parking.  We knew right away it was a scam and managed to get away with no extra charges. Took a while to get back to Sorrento because the SS145 coastal road is also a slow one lane in each direction.  However, we did catch a beautiful sunset over the Bay of Naples.

For dinner tonight, we wanted to try Trattoria da Emilia, recommended by Rick, and Rob and Jen.  It was a hike down to Marina Grande, but worth the walk.  Joe loved the mussels with spaghetti in an olive oil, lemon sauce, and I enjoyed the gnocchi alla sorrentina (with tomato sauce and mozzarella).  Knowing this was the place to order seafood, Joe wanted to tried mixed fried seafood straight from the water in front of us.  The fish came out intact, heads and all, with some de-boned.  Joe ate most of it, but couldn’t quite get past all the heads! 

Once again tonight we were randomly seated next to two other American couples. Amy and Carla were a wacky mother-daughter pair from California doing Carla’s dream trip around Italy.  Can’t quite put into words what they were like except to say that they were those loud, obnoxious Americans who didn’t really even try to blend into the local culture.  Case in point, Amy chased the waitress to ask for dessert.  By the time we finished dinner, we knew everything about them from their love to travel, their opinions on California’s education system, and Amy’s upcoming stint as a cultural assistant in Madrid to avoid her parents’ wishes for her to attend law school.  For the record, they keep a crazier schedule than we do, seeing and doing every single thing Rick Steves recommends in all jam packed days.  We still couldn’t picture them hiking 3 hrs. in Capri or Carla striping on the trail in the intense heat.  At least they provided some dinner entertainment. After dinner, we stayed and chatted with the other American couple, Dana and Kevin from Hoboken, NJ who were on their honeymoon.  Finished Carla and Amy’s wine with them and walked back to town together.  Dana and I had lots to talk about since she is a kindergarten teacher.  Somehow we always meet lots of people wherever we go!