The easy life continues underneath blue skies and mild temps of a Southern Italian Mediterranean climate. My aunt Anna keeps me well fed with tastey food and enthusiastically washes my clothes. Uncle Frank is an ace at the wheel driving amidst crazy Italian drivers as he shuttles me around from site to site.
Yesterday we visited the volcano known as Mt Vesuvius and the excavated city of Pompeii. The top portion of Mt Vesuvius is protected by a national park. There are a couple of access points and a few trails. The most popular consists of a scenic drive most of the way to the top followed by a short hike, less than a mile, to the west facing rim. The views were outstanding and enhanced by five star weather. The west facing rim is lower than the actual summit and an elusive summit trail is not very obvious or marked. I assume that’s intentional given the number of tourists who visit every year. The park officials probably just want to keep everyone in a limited area. I had originally hoped to trek to the summit but we just stuck to the west rim to save time for Pompeii. For those desiring more extensive hiking options I’d suggest buying the hiking map at the ticket booth. If I go back that’s what I would do. After absorbing some stunning views on Vesuvius we headed to Pompeii.
Pompeii was buried by Mt Vesuvius when it erupted in year 79 A.D. The city was covered by a lava flow very rapidly and remained preserved in suspended animation before being excavated during more recent times. What is left is the most well preserved example of an authentic Roman city. Stone streets with cart ruts, decorative paintings adorn various walls, marble columns, and a coliseum just to name a few of the elements. The area is quite large and there’s no lack of things to see. It definitely rates as one of those special archeological sites that must be visited in one’s lifetime and lives up to its hype.
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