Napoli.. well, not really.

Napoli

Ok.. Well not really Napoli.. Portici, which is southeast of Napoli. I was primarily making this stop to visit Pompeii and Herculaneum. Both ancient cities perished in the same eruption of Vesuvius in 79AD but were buried under different conditions. Because of this Herculaneum has been better preserved of the two, but Pompeii is the larger, more uncovered of them both.

It’s hard to explain how majestic both sites are. Both should be visited by anyone coming to Italy, but leave yourself some time. I spent over 8 hours in Pompeii, and I still didn’t get to everything. I didn’t really comprehend the scope of the city until well into the day, and didn’t understand that most of the well preserved/restored items were on the other side from where I started. As a result the sun began to set before I had visited every site I wanted to.. Alas., as I have commented on so frequently on in this trip “I’ll have to come back”


Herculaneum has far less of it’s city exposed, but is far more intact. Some wood beams still exist, and the frescos are much more vibrant than Pompeii’s. The history behind both cities is captivating, and a must read.

Now I’m off to Athens.. Bus, 15 hour Ferry, Bus..