Trip to Pompeii and Exploring the "recoveed" city.

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POMPEII

This was Friday, the day on our own.  We decided a couple of weeks before leaving that we’d spend this day exploring Pompeii.  The tour we booked (online) explained that we would have a 2.5-3 hour drive to  before we got there.   It was a pretty full bus and we were assigned a particular guide who shepherded us around and kept track of us.  Our guide was Manuele and he gave us information about Pompeii and general Italian stuff til we got there.  He had a strong deep voice and N had no trouble hearing and understanding him.  However, the other guide spoke about half the time.  Enriqueta, on the other hand, had a soft, not easily understood voice, so half the info was more difficult to understand. 

We heard a really long story of the Monastery  Monte Cassino, which was one of the places the Allies bombed in WWII.    The monastery was built by St. Benedict over a Roman ruin and it was expanded numerous times.  The site was damaged twice by earthquakes, was burned at one time and sacked by vandals another time.   Benedict began a library (of scrolls) there in the 6^th century AD.  The library grew to 11,000 items (both ancient scrolls and books) by the beginning of WW II.  General Clark was the person who decided what and where and when to bomb.  This was an excellent refuge for German soldiers, so the order was given to bomb the monastery, but General Clark hesitated for awhile.  It was discovered later that word had reached the Abbot who removed the entire library before the bombing began and the entire library was saved, although the buildings were severely damaged. 

She talked of the evil deeds of Mussolini  and her (the Italian people’s) gratitude in the rebuilding of the monastery and the country after the war  by way of the Marshall Plan.

We received a long discourse (we were on the bus for 3 hours) about wines,-- the best in ancient times, how they made it by boiling, etc.

She explained why Italians (and many other nationalities) drive/walk on the left side of the street.  Had to do with having the sword arm (right) ready to fight/protect.  This was changed in countries Napoleon conquered when he decreed that they must use the other side of the road.  Sounds a little strange/suspicious, but that is what was relayed to me on our long ride.

POMPEII          

Vesuvius erupted  on Aug 24, 79 AD (actual date, probably not correct, but does it matter?)  No lava spewed—the town was inundated by scalding ash and pumice which was thrown in the air and went south because that is the way the wind was blowing.    There were earthquakes days before the eruption and the poor left the city to find safety.  The wealthy stayed to protect their property and stuff and died.  The inhabitants were killed by toxic gasses and hot pumice.  In 30 minutes the entire town was covered to over the highest walls.   How do we know about this?  A young 17 year old  named Pliny the Younger- (his uncle was Pliny the Elder) who was in the Gulf of Naples, saw from a distance what was happening and wrote it all down..  He described that the day turned dark.  This is (and was) the most densely populated volcanic area in the world.  The last eruption was recorded in 1944 and another was expected in 20-30 years.  They are well beyond the time it should have occurred.

As we walked into the restored (kinda’) city of Pompeii, we were assigned to a local guide name Willie and were given radios to hear what he was saying.  The group we were in included 3 young men (10, 12, 14 yrs old) and this will be relevant later.   We saw the area where the gladiators trained and also saw the theatre which seats 5,000

We saw shops and residences—shops had a groove in the threshold for sliding (and locking) a door, and the residences had a marble threshold.  One house we explored included bedrooms, kitchen, lounging area,  atrium for bringing in light and capturing rainwater.   

 The streets were intentionally not level with a groove down the middle for water to flow away.

The bodies of the people who were trapped and died in this disaster decomposed over the years leaving a mold of their bodies in the hardened ash.  Archeologists carefully excavated these “molds” and poured plaster into them to show how the people who died looked.

The town had running water for public use and  for a few private houses.  The water was moved via lead pipes (which could cause serious mental problems) but the water had a great amount of calcium, which coated the pipes, saving the population from lead poisoning.  Some of the pipes are visible in the walls.

lead water pipe in wall

Our guide seemed sensitive that the 3 boy’s parents might not want them to get a full account of the brothel in the town.  He delicately described the rooms and the need for companionship for travelers.  This was all quite legal in Pompeii.   Some of the adults who may not have been listening to Willie’s discourse might have been a bit confused.   The signs leading to the brothel were  phallic images carved into the marble of the street—pointing the way to the brothel named Lupanare.  Figure that out, those who know some Latin. 

We saw a collection area for urine—used to dye cloth.

The forum was the town gathering place—There was a temple to Diana and Apollo

Pompeii’s ruins were not “found” until the 19^th century because people were looking for it in the wrong place

Pompeii is not completely excavated or restored to leave  something for posterity to see what things were like when it was originally found—it is also a very expensive undertaking to unearth and protect what has been done.

Religious Day- part 2, the Vatican

From the book I bought in the Vatican

 One of my reasons for wanting to take this tour was the opportunity to see "in the flesh" some of the areas of the Vatican that I'd been reading about all my life.   My bucket list has/had the Sistine Chapel at the top as well as some of Michaelangelo's most famous creations.

After our "lunch" we were ushered into the Vatican.  One of the things to see were the members of the Swiss guard, which I had heard stories about when I was in Switzerland years ago.

Some places in Vatican City do not allow any photography, so I bought a book with some of the most famous artwork to use for this page.   I took a picture of the Pieta which was behind glass and lit and the picture only shows the glare of the lights and glass.

This is from Nick's "fancy" camera.  It is found in St Peter's Basilica (more about that later)

Before we went into the Sistine chapel, our local guide sat us down in a garden and gave us a lecture about what each of the 9 main paintings in the ceiling represent.  She showed us pictures and gave us the information she felt we needed before going into the famous place.  Some of the regulations were:  We need to be silent, no pictures (because of copywright laws) we have 30 minutes in the room.   What she failed to mention is that with 7 gazillion other people in the room, that it seems small and not at all like the pictures we have seen (of it empty).  I'm sorry to say although the Sistine Chapel was at the top of my list of things to see, I was disappointed.  This picture is from the book,  imagine it teeming with humanity.

Before entering the Chapel we traveled along the Gallery of Maps whose walls held hand drawn maps from the earliest days of travel.

I was less impressed with the maps than I was with the ceiling.









Our last stop on the Vatican tour was to St Peter's Basilica-- the largest Christian church in the world.    The decoration of the floor, walls, ceiling areas and the niches was amazing.  This is a church that Michaelangelo designed (both the architecture and the inside designs)

A skylight

This is where the Pope says mass and it will seat 10,000 worshipers.

We also spent some time in St. Peter's Square (which is oval, not square)

Religious Day---3 churches in the morning

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This morning we explore 3 important churches and will particularly notice the various mosaics.

The churches are  San Clemente Church, Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore and Santa Prassede Church and to tell the truth, they sorta blended together after awhile.  Maybe I didn’t take good enough notes to keep the 3 churches separated.

As we were walking from the bus to the first church, our guide told us a really long story about Nero and his Mom, Agripina.  I’d heard the story before, being an antique history geek, but she gave it a new twist.

The original San Clemente church was built in 400 AD , burned, and this church was built on the site.    The mosaic floors were very unusual. 

As we went through the churches, we were treated to  historical information--   Emperor Constantine brought freedom of religion to Rome and it was abolished and it was abolished in 396.  The decline of the Roman Empire began around 250 and continued until about 476 AD.  When the Roman Empire fell, the Church took over and organized the government  They took care of the people and were involved in the growth of agriculture.  The Popes and religious hierarchy were the only intellectuals.  The ordinary people were uneducated.   The Papal state was in charge of diplomacy—the Pope became like a king.

The marble used in these churches was recycled from older buildings that had been torn down or had fallen down.  Our guide explained in great detail the artwork in the Apse.  It seems that  all of these areas have the same sort of artwork with the same symbolism.

Many of these churches had a ban on flash photography, and some a ban on all photography.   Interestingly persons pictured in these mosaics who were holding a pole are known to have been martyrs.  Certain colors were used for certain people pictured.—Jesus and Mary pictured in red or blue, etc.   These mosaics were done in colored glass about 1200 years ago and are vivid and  in great shape.

In the Santa Maria Maggiore church, the gold on the ceiling was brought from “the New World” by Columbus and given to Pope Alexander VI  (one of the Borgia family).  

We of course, had a break after the three churches and we opted for gelato rather than a "real" lunch.  Do I need to mention that each day we were there, Nick had gelato at least once and sometimes twice.  If it had been on the breakfast menu, it would have been 3 times.    An interesting morning, a yummy lunch, a bathroom break and we were ready to see the Vatican.

Ancient Rome Day

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This morning we will explore the Forum and this afternoon we’ll tour the  Colosseum .

On the way to our first attraction, our local guide told us that Rome has no skyscrapers because no building is allowed to be taller than St. Peter’s Basilica.    We drove by the home of the President of Italy which has 500 rooms.  This “house” was donated to the country by the Vatican.

Random trivia fact---Italy has more Egyptian obelisks than Egypt has.

The tour provided “radios” for our use to hear the guide, Elidia (not the correct spelling) and they worked amazingly well.   We heard everything and could control our own volume.  I wish we’d had this improvement when we toured the Kremlin and various other places. 

We first heard the word Andiamo  for the first time this morning and heard it 30 or so times each day.  It means “Let’s go”.  Another word that was used over and over was  alora  a “throw away” word which could mean “well, now, so,  or then”  Highly useful when thinking of what to say next.

Rome was founded 2800 years ago and the colosseum was built 1937 years ago.  We explored the Forum first, seeing the place where Julius Caesar was assassinated.

Shrine to Julius Caesar

  We heard the whole story especially about his funeral and cremation.    We heard about Octsvian Agustus and the Triumvirate who ruled Roman Empire after Caesar’s death.

We heard lots about EmperiorsTiberious, Caligula, Claudio, Nero, Vespacian, Titas, Domitian, Commodus

The Forum was the meeting place for everyone who was anyone in Ancient Rome. It is a rectangular area surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings in the center of the city of Rome. 

Domitian, who ruled for 5 years and was one of the most autocratic rulers, shifted the power from the Forum (senators) to his palace (his personal power)   While he was a controlling ruler, he created a huge library of scrolls.  Interestingly, he had roads in the city polished to a gloss like a mirror so he could see who was behind him  He was not careful enough, since he was eventually stabbed.

Lunch was on our own and we shared a really good turkey sandwich  (panini) and had gelato after.  Interesting prices—panini- 7 eruo,  2 gelatos
9,5 euro each, bottle of water 3 euro.

The Colosseum (one of the highlights of the tour for me) was our project for afternoon.  As we all knew, this Colosseum was the place of gladiatorial contests, executions, and entertainments.  Built by emperors to keep the populace “happy” and to keep them from thinking about governmental problems.   Gladiators fought there for over 700 years- statistics showed that only about 10% of them fought to the death, with the crowd suggesting to the Emperor the final outcome.  What we see in the movies, thumb up or down, was not accurate.    Some of the gladiators were given rock star status, even though they were technically slaves or prisoners.

The Colosseum is fairly well intact, although it has been renovated over the years. 

After bus ride back to hotel, we looked around for additional hearing aide batteries (no luck)  ordered pizzas for supper.  Nick had sausage and I ordered prosciutto on mine.  American pizza is what I’m used to and the Italian style seems  strange to me.  Not as much meat, not as much cheese and the Italian pies were not cut.   

A tomato sauce and cheese from later in the trip

We were given a table knife to cut the pie on the plate. We ate about half our pizza and went out looking.  


 We tried to use the Collette app to find our way and it would have been helpful, if it had stayed on.  Every time we got to an intersection, the app would cause the phone to go to sleep and it sucked the battery down very quickly. Maybe Collette could work on that.

Welcome Dinner

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 We met to get information we’ll need for the week we’ll be here.

We were told that Rome is one of the safest cities in the world, but we need to be careful when approached by people selling roses or cheap “selfie sticks”.   

We were told that there are NO public rest rooms in the city.  Attractions usually have them available in the souvenir areas, and restaurants/bars have them, but you need to purchase something for it to be okay to use them.   

A bar is not a place for alcohol consumption, but a coffee place.  Italians stand at the bar to drink their coffee, you will be charged extra to sit at a table in a bar.   

We were encouraged not to carry our passports or wear name tags.  

If we use cabs, pay in cash and don’t tip.  Cabs may be called by a restaurant, or the hotel desk, but “hailing” a cab won’t work.   

Alexa explained that the cord in the shower is for emergencies (slipping/falling and needing help)    

We were told that many restaurants open at noon and close at 3 for siesta and open again later for dinner.

Water from all fountains (except Trevi) is clean and good to drink

Alexa took our orders at the earlier meeting—we chose a salad choice, a pasta choice, an entrée and a dessert.  When we arrived at the restaurant, we told the waiter what our choice was.  Since this was a particularly upscale restaurant, I took pictures of the 2 choices for the first 2 courses. 

Starters (salad)  arugula and dried beef

 

                                                                                                    Fennel and oranges

 Pasta with tomato sauce and bacon

                         Pasta with Shrimp and pesto

  

After our meal, we drove by the colosseum which was lit up.  This was a preview of tomorrow's tour and activities

BENVENUTI A ROMA- most of the day on our own --kinda’

A Collette representative met us after we collected our checked bags  and guided us to the bus for our hotel.  But first she dealt with a torn suitcase problem.  One of our group’s new polka dot suitcase had a chunk torn out of the side.  Not sure if it was just extraordinarily rough handling, it got caught on something sharp, or just what.  (FYI, she taped it up for the trip back and the tape was hanging in strings when the trip was over.) My tight strap around my case was half off when it came down the ramp--  Don’t think anyone took it off intentionally, but again, must have caught on something and partially came off.  Be careful out there.

We met in a garden room of the Hotel Dei Borgia for a “paperwork and get to know you” time while the rooms were being cleaned.    We met with our Tour Manager, Alexandra Dorobantu (Alexa) who was checking us into our rooms.

After getting the info she needed, she suggested we go walking around and get some lunch since the rooms might not be ready til after 2pm (we’ve already lost 6 hours—this meeting began about 10ish  -- 5 am Texas time.)  Another informational gathering will be held in the hotel at 5:30 to go over the week’s schedule and for Alexa to give us  a page of Italian words and phrases.   

We went out for gelato (Nick prided himself in having gelato twice or 3 times a day—that may be why he came to Italy)   followed by lunch.  I had a Panini and Nick ordered a pizza.  At most meals, we tasted each other’s food so we could get a wide variety of taste experiences. 

We walked to the Trevi fountain this first afternoon and oh my goodness!  What a sea of humanity—this was middle of the afternoon on Tuesday and the place was so crammed with tourists that we had difficulty getting very close.  Got close enough for this picture, which doesn’t really do it justice.  As with most travel pictures, the actual thing/scene you are experiencing can rarely be recreated in a photograph to the extent that your eye (and brain) can see it.

On our trek to the fountain (which interestingly enough our guide IIiedia – called “fantan”- took me a while to sort out what was being talked about.)   

Anyway, on our trek to the fountain we saw block after block of interesting/ colorful graffiti.

We all commented on the crazy driving and parking by residents of Rome.  People parked their vehicles on the sidewalk, cross ways in a parking space, or many just double parked- leaving their car in the street.  The lanes to drive in seem to be mere suggestions.  We were warned frequently to be very careful crossing streets because of the scooters.  It seems that half the population owns and drives Vespas.  Some blocks they are the only vehicle parked for a long stretch.  I’m guessing that ¼ -1/5 of the cars on the city  are Smart Cars.  

 And my friends who know me, understand my affinity for these little cars.  I saw color combinations I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen in the U.S. and several which seemed to be twins to my little Maxxy (or at least close cousins)  Not sure if it was a Smart or not, but look at this tiny little one seater vehicle.

Got back to the hotel and the room was ready.  It took us awhile to be sure we had the electrical adapter correctly configured to keep our phones, etc charged, then we napped and read.  Woke up about 4 (10am Tx. time)  to get ready for our bus to supper.