Photos and documentaries abound, but it’s our lovely guide Luchia’s wealth of information that brings Pompeii to life. Hard to believe it was decimated in AD79 and not rediscovered until 1594, even more incredible, the ingenuity that went into the building of and livelihood within the city, so many centuries ago. The Romans, with a little borrowing from the Greeks, were indeed ingenious architects and designers as well as great philosophers, artists and business men.
After marveling at the remains and feeling sad for the agony the residents endured when Vesuvius erupted (still one of the most active volcanos having exploded 37 times since) we make our way along the Amalfi coast to our Sorrento accommodation.
Just one problem…La Minervetta has the dates wrong. Much drama later and despite efforts to placate, we find they can only accommodate two of our three parties tonight for, in their books, we aren’t due to arrive until tomorrow.
Pixie takes one for the team and goes to a dodgy hotel up the road, sulks awhile then, determined not to let this affect her holiday, joins the team, indulges in a group hug and a few large swigs of Moet then joins her buddies in the 300 step descent down the cliffside to a restaurant on the shoreline where more Champers provides a gentle dulling of the senses. Suddenly the drama doesn’t seem quite so bad after all…until we realize what that return journey involves…
Spectacularly historic city, recycled and built on top of itself over and over thus jam packed with cars simply because attempts to build underground carparks and train lines results in even more ancient archaeological finds…easier to cover it over and try again elsewhere.
A good portion of the women are over bronzed, fond of lipliner, sport bleached hair, excess bling and don’t appear to age well. The guys? Not too bad. Fifi loves the city, Dicky says it’s ok but full of ‘wogs’…bless! Ducky and Donna enjoy but we suspect the former is still smarting from the vegetarian restaurant…
72AD! And that some 5,000 wild animals were put to death in the 100 day opening celebrations; that 70,000 people could be seated within 20 minutes; that awning segments were hoisted across the roof to provide shade…and that most of the marble facade was pillaged to build St Peter’s Basilica. Yes, we are in awe of the brilliance of Roman construction.
assimo, originally used for Chariot Races, now the venue for all celebrations including Live Aid.
Finally back to the Piazza Navona which sits over another ancient stadium, to view the magnificent fountains there then make our way to our guide recommended restaurant for lunch. It’s vegetarian…and a smorgasbord…Ducky has a mild panic at the thought of ‘eating at the trough’ and ‘no meat’ throws him into a total tailspin. Never the less, he perseveres and we compensate by agreeing to eat at ‘guaranteed meat’ Hard Rock Cafe this evening.
