Pompeii — A Dream Realized

Last Day of our Roman Holiday

I have held a fascination for a place called Pompeii from the first time I heard of its existence way back in primary school, so even though we only had a short time in Rome, I was determined to incorporate it into my visit. Stacey came up with the brilliant idea of staying an extra day, getting up before dawn to transfer our bags to the Pop Inn Hostel, and catching the shuttle bus from there. Keeley decided she would come too and spend her last full day in Italy with Stacey and me.

We hopped on the metro and arrived at the hostel at 6.35 am. Stacey and Keeley went up to leave luggage and I went off to get coffee. Stacey told me we had missed the shuttle, so I waited outside the coffee shop for them to join me as I thought we were walking to the office, but apparently she was only joking. I managed to choke on my coffee and spewed it all over my new scarf.

I bought an extra coffee to put in my thermos but when I opened the flask, it was half full of vodka! I didn’t even remember filling it in Brasov. We’ve had four flights since and every time, when asked by security, I have declared it empty as I honestly thought it was. I was so surprised to find vodka in it!

Bus trip to Pompeii

We were successfully transferred to the bus where I got in the front seat next to a lovely guy who came from San Salvador but lived in China. I managed to fall sound asleep quite quickly but not before seeing two accidents — a car and a motorbike-— what a mess! And then a collision between two trams! One of them had come off much worse than the other. Italian drivers — even of trams!

I woke up just before Cassino where the Benedictine monks have an abbey on the mountain called Montecassino. It was considered to be a centre of learning with a library of 15,000 manuscripts and books being kept in its library. It was completely destroyed in World War 2 where 60,000 allied soldiers lost their lives and 20,000 Germans. We stopped here and had another cup of coffee.

We continued through San Vittoria along part of the Via Appia (Appian Way) which the Romans built centuries ago — 540 kilometres of road all the way to Brindisi. On to Caserta which has the distinction of possessing the second largest castle in Europe after Versailles. When we reached Napoli, (Naples) the capital of Campania province — world-renowned for its culinary inventions (most famously pizza) — we stopped on the harbourside to take some photos before driving on to the coral and cameo making factory where we saw cameos being handmade.

Cameos come from shells.

I didn’t know they were made from different sorts of shells and different parts of the same shell. Very interesting. Lots of cameos to buy, but sadly they were really expensive. You can understand why when you see the amount of work that goes into making them. There were some blue ones of flowers that I liked and a very tempting green pair of earrings. I resisted. I’m not really a cameo sorta gal.

We finally arrived at the new town of Pompeii. We headed to the Ristorante Santuario where we were served a huge plate of spaghetti Bolognese followed by a combination meat dish with bubble and squeak, and fresh fruit salad all washed down with a bottle of moscato. A delicious lunch and much, much better than what I had been expecting. Then back on the bus for the (very short) trip to old Pompeii.

Perfectly preserved Pompeii

I was completely blown away by the sheer size of the city, the excellent preservation of most of the buildings, and the engineering skills possessed by the Romans 2000 years ago. It was sewered and drained and had running water through lead pipes and water spouts. You could see where people had put their hands on the rock to bend over to have a drink. Our guide, Nino, was excellent and very funny as well as well-informed. Ask me anything about Pompeii that you would like to know!

There was a huge theatre that is still used for night concerts and plays, two temples (one was under construction when Vesuvius erupted) and a whole city of shops, villas, bordellos, the courthouse, town hall, forum, main roads, and even one-way streets! I always had the idea Pompeii was a village but I was wrong. 20,000 people lived here in 79 AD. 15,000 were evacuated but the rest perished, asphyxiated by the sulphuric gases and covered up with metres of ash, to remain undisturbed for the next 1700 years. The eruption of Vesuvius and the disappearance of Pompeii passed into folklore as a mythical story like the disappearance of Atlantis. It wasn’t until a well was being dug in the 1700s that Pompeii was found to be more than just legend. They began excavations. Even today, there is a third of the city which remains covered in ash.

Bus back to Roma

After sharing a gelati, we climbed aboard the bus for the long trip home. We stopped midway for a toilet break and we bought some sprite and pringles and like naughty schoolgirls sat up the back drinking the vodka I had accidentally brought and being shushed by people who wanted to sleep! What fun!

Back at the hostel, we checked in and were allocated to the themed Africa Room with one big bed. Stacey had convinced Keeley to spend her last night with us. Stacey asked Baby for restaurant recommendations and we decided on Trattoria Dell’Omo — a momma and poppa place around the corner.

The poppa was at least 80, the momma was in the kitchen cooking the best Italian food we’ve had — scrambled egg soup for entrée, which was delicious, then fresh gnocchi (Keeley), tortellini (Stacey) and mushroom fettuccine for me. Desserts were all gone but we were brought a complimentary custard and chocolate to share.

We had a great night as Antonio, the son, finished serving us and sat down to eat with friends. It was such a friendly atmosphere we didn’t leave till almost midnight! I showered and crashed immediately, and I don’t think Stacey and Keeley managed to stay awake much longer than I. We all had a great sleep and woke up in time to get Keeley on the 8 am bus to the airport. We just made it!

I hope you enjoyed reading about Pompeii. It surpassed all of my expectations. If you’re ever in Roma, do yourself a favour and trek on down to Pompeii. You won’t be disappointed.

Here’s my previous post, if you missed it.