< previous
next >
Day 5: April 22, 2025
Today we started driving enjoying the views of the bay of Naples, with the volcano, Mount Vesuvius, looming just beyond. We arrived in Pompeii and had a guided tour of the archeological site of Pompeii.
The ancient city was frozen in time at 79 AD when Mt Vesuvius erupted and buried it underground. Wow! The site is so big but we got to see the highlights: the theaters, the forum, a plaster casts of a person, the villas of the wealthy families, the amphitheater, etc. We can really get a feel for how they lived 2000 years ago, how the city was set up and the grid-like urban plan of the Roman town. We also got to explore some of the houses and shops and see how those were built. There is so much to see and we really learned a lot. Our guide Gianni was very entertaining.
We also visited a cameo factory. Italy is famous for their craftsmanship and artistry, and in this area their specialty is carving jewelry (cameos) from seashells. It is interesting to see how they make everything by hand and the work is beautiful.
After lunch we drove to Napoli (Naples). It's a big city on the bay in a stunning location. Our guide Luigi (Gianni's nephew) for Naples city walk was also very entertaining. We had a lot of fun walking around the crowded streets and watching the locals, enjoying the chaos! What a vibrant, passionate city.
Next we had to say CIAO to our wonderful driver, Libero. And we continued out adventure boarding the overnight ferry to sicily… Let's sail!!!!