Pompeii with Piper

Special side trip, called Pompeii Express, for me and Piper.

Bullet train down to Naples. Bus to Pompeii. Funny tour guide, Enriquo, for the ruins of Pompeii, then water and slushee and back north to Rome.

We are looking at the remaining columns of a temple to Zeus, or was it Apolo, or was it Jupiter? Mt. Vesuvius in the distance. Had the wind blown differently that fateful day it would have gotten Naples, which is far closer to the volcano than Pompeii.
The main square, two main temples, a massive two-story building looking out on the square, courthouse… this would have been full of traders, tradesmen, residents and sailors.

Court house. Side colonnades were two stories. The second floor was open to the main interior space, allowing for a viewing gallery; the public could follow the rulings of the day. Seems as though gossip was a big component to their city life, reality TV precursor.
Main Street.
Piper is walking over the pompeian crosswalk. You can see another crosswalk up ahead, crossing the street to her right. Streets were full of sewage until they were periodically flooded and washed clean with water from the aqueduct. These raised stones allowed one to cross the street without falling in the muck. Carts and chariots were all made with standardized axels to fit between the stepping stones. Grooves for the tire/wheel tracks run deep in the stones of the streets, all black stones from ancient lava flows all around town. Vesuvius was active in the past and is still active.
Opera house for the wealthy and visiting VIPs. A much larger commoner’s theater located nearby.
Most larger homes had a basin for collecting rain water in the front courtyard.
Fresco. So many. This merchant city was not wealthy so there was nearly no marble but the walls were built with stone and brick and then covered with stucco or plaster – perfect for painting on. And repainting.
We learned that Pompeii was a trading port, right on the water however today it is almost 3km from the sea. The eruption of 79ad filled in the bay and changed the coastline. Before a recent grant for excavation these grander homes were not revealed, leaving mostly merchant shops, common parts of the city and common dwellings for view.
Fountain

Dolphin mosaics in entryway of wealthy home.

Floor mosaic
Amazing. We are told that this city was brightly colored in its day, inside and out, but the interior frescoes are still unbelievably rich.

Wall outside the public bath house. Not sure this reads well but there are great carvings. This faces a large yard or courtyard area that was the gymnasium, Latin for where the beefcakes hangout.
Warm or tepid women’s bath, lockers and bench.
Women’s steam bath, next door to the tepid bath. Fluted ceiling to allow condensation drops to run down the sides. Walls and floors were hollow to allow for heat from wood burning stoves outside to heat water, air and surfaces. Radiant heat plus steam.
There were many of these around the city. McDonald’s! It was a food stand that was designed for walking up, ordering and walking away to eat elsewhere or on the street. The round terra-cotta bowls were warmed from below, large lids kept the various dishes warm all day. I’m putting one in at home.
Signage, or GPS, as our guide says, directing one to the nearest brothel. Pompeii had many. For more documentation on this category of artifact, I can provide greater detail outside of this post. I have many thoughts about this. For now, let’s take the design of the signage. You don’t have the benefit of scale, as I do, but this was rather discrete. It’s also 8′ from the sidewalk so tastefully NOT in one’s face, so to speak. The harlequin sort of mixed tile may have been a flag of sorts, all colors welcomed at this brothel perhaps, my unschooled hypothesis. Or perhaps the tiles are just a lively, eye-catching graphic added to the community service message.  oh, how nice. the Smith’s have such a nice family crest above their door and look, so helpful, directing us to the closest nympheum. So helpful…
Like many ancient cities, Pompeii had a fortified wall. This view is from the outside of Pompeii, looking at the gladiator school, which was more like a jail.  See the plaster and stucco still in places.
The inner square and training yard for the gladiator school. Mt. Vesuvius is barely seen behind the equipment. The tip of the cypress tree on the left was the height of ash in most places.
Some of the thousands of pottery pieces recovered and one of the many displays of life forms found, this one is a dog. Really get the sense of tragedy. 20,000 romans lived here for hundreds of years. Most fled. The remains of 3,000 have been found so far but one third of the city is yet to be excavated. The Roman Empire decided to not excavate the city in 79 AD, seeing the complete burial of the city, its port and surrounding towns to the south. Once the Empire fell, it was completely forgotten for nearly 1700 years until 1748 when the first excavations began.
What a special day – Thanks, Piper! I cherish that we got to experience this together, one of your long-held dreams. Maybe you want to write a book about this experience?
That’s my girl, the seasoned traveler!

4 thoughts on “Pompeii with Piper”

  2. Piper,

    You are such an amazing author! I am amazed at your talent and ambition for writing. Sarah is excited about your return and hearing even more about your adventure. Swelokan will be a blast for you both.

    Genevieve Rubera

  3. I love that you and Piper had a mama-daughter trip to Pompeii!! How cool is that,or actually how hot?? We loved Pompeii and were blown away with the history. What great adventurers you guys are. Much love xo

  4. So…by now you think you may be in Barcelona. Maybe not, because we remember you had talked about Rome also. Nearing the end folks. The photos and narrative of Cinque Terre and Pompeii were full of great perspective and wit (especially Pompeii’s “red light district”). We hope Spain provides powerful vistas and a great deal of music. Guitar would be nice. Love Dad and Chris

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