We had not been to Pompeii in sometime, but most of our group wanted to go there. Antonio drove us to the site, and we meant a guide there who was booked through Viator. Pompeii was a major Roman city that was destroyed in 79 AD by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, a nearby volcano. For those that have never seen Pompeii it is a unique experience because it is amazing what is all left in tact from the eruption. You can see how the Romans really lived in these unique ruins. They were first discovered in the mid 1700’s when the King of Naples was building a palace in the area. He ordered the excavation to start and it is still in progress today. You can see streets made of huge rocks were chariots and wagons rolled along creating huge indentations in the rock where the wheels rolled. You can see stepping stone rocks across the streets to allow people to walk from one side of the road to the other. There are human remains where you can see mummified people exactly as they were when they died during the eruption. There are blocks and blocks of different buildings and palaces where you can learn how the Romans lived back in this time. Shops line the roads and you can see the troughs that held the food that was served to the people walking down the roads. If you ever get the opportunity to come to Naples, make sure you take a day to see the ruins of Pompeii. It is certainly worth the time.
From Pompeii our group headed to the Amalfi Coast in two large taxis. Unfortunately there was a recent landslide that created a great deal of traffic which prevented us on going to Sorrento as originally planned but our driver, Antonio, was smart enough to avoid the majority of the traffic and get us to Positano. Many people from our cruise didn’t get to see much of the Amalfi Coast while our group got to spend a couple of hours walking down the beautiful streets of Positano. With all the bougainvillea in full bloom this is truly a beautiful city. You can walk right down to the beach and go in and out of the various shops and restaurants along the way. The city was packed with many people going to the beach and others just enjoying some of the many restaurants. July is a busy time on the Amalfi Coast! Several of our group elected just to have a little lunch looking out over the Amalfi Coast and the town of Positano. It is one of our favorite places to visit.
Sharon & Greg