Pompeii

A fairly early start by coach to get to Pompei at about half eight, time for a coffee and a wee before the gates opened, being one of the first groups in we were there before it was too busy. We were met by a second guide and split into two groups to tour some of the ruins. The site that has been uncovered to date is huge, about 170 acres .

We entered the town via the foyer an open area that once had a covered way around it periphery in front of the two amphitheatres . Traders would have had shops under the covered way where the doors now are.

People talk about the Roman Roads but even in their day they had groves worn in them from the carriage wheels, they also had crossing points like stepping stones. Some road were blocked off to prevent the traffic entering selected areas.

The stepping stoons across the road to get from one raised pavement to the other.

The traffic stopped here, above the stones is the square which must have been a pedestrian. The pavements were not just rough stone but a finished smooth surface

Lots of the rooks in the buildings had there walls painted and some of this has survived remarkably well for almost 2000 years.

There were also some of their everyday utensils on display as well as storge vessels.

      

One of the things that everyone wants to see when they visit Pompei is the brothel, actually quite a small building standing on the street corner with stone beds, pictures showing what was on offer and even a toilet.

Another item everyone is interested in is the casts of the people who were entombed in the ash when the eruption occurred. The original casts contain the skeletons inside them, but these on display are replicas made from casts.

The casts are housed in the market area off the main Forum.

       
   

The shops in the town are quite obvious by the ovens, counters and recessed pots in the counter tops.

   
We visited the Roman Bath house to see the under floor heating that also ran up the cavity walls.   The heat was from the water that flowed under the floor with a hot bathe and a cool one, the roof was domed to control the steam.  

They  had lead pipe for their plumbing and because the town was sat at the foot of the hills where the water supply came from they even had water towers to control the pressure. They even had drinking fountains

 

 

This photograph gives a good indication as to how deep the town was buried by the ash.

 

 

 

After we had completed our visit we all toddled off to a restaurant a short way away where prices were more reasonable and had lunch with a drink for 20€ not the best meal in the world but OK and it was then back to the car/ coach park of which there were many.

Our coach journey home was via Naples and its good to see that still have some trams .