Ciao,
Well I have been living in Italy for almost 4 months now and my thoughts seem to have been mainly about the past and history which is hardly surprising living amongst so much Roman civilization, history and culture. The past is also sadly leaving family and friends behind who continue along their own path without you.
Last week we decided on the spur of the moment to go to Pompeii, it had been on our bucket list of things to do for some time now. So armed with no map or tom tom I googled vague directions from the aa route finder and off we set headed towards Napoli.
I think once upon a time in a past life I must have lived in Napoli a very long, long time ago as there is something that always excites me about Napoli, whether it be the food, the romantic love songs or just seeing the outline of the city. I find it incredibly exotic and exciting as if I'm returning home yet I have hardly ever been there. Whereas my husband on the other hand just pointed out all the towns which are sadly now commandeered by the Gomorrah (local mafia) but even that doesn't put me of, I still find it incredibly stimulating seeing signposts for Salerno, Capua and Amalfi.
After hasty directions from the old man in the toll booth we turned off the motorway past the outskirts of a bustling Napoli and the sea in the distance and drove down a narrow road full of dusty old carts, trucks and buses and stumbled quite literally upon Pompeii. Outside the stone walls of Pompeii are a string of small restaurants all selling pizza and decorated with the largest lemons I have ever seen in my life and literally hundreds of tourists milling about everywhere so I felt quite at home seeing such an abundance of diverse European faces (I am one of a few foreigners in my town).
As you enter Pompeii it is literally breath-taking you can't quite believe it is stuck here hidden away in this tiny town and the history laid out before you is simply dazzling. We were given a map to get around the town which is massive you could walk around for hours, of course neither of us is any good with maps we couldn't get the hang of it so we just gave up and wandered around or slipped in on the periphery of some poor old tour guide to hear what he was saying or ask for directions!
It was fascinating to walk round all the alleyways of this old town and see where once there had been a bakery, a restaurant, the baths, which was the best villa in its day and of course the old brothel with its erotic art still etched into the walls.
Whilst walking round the clouds suddenly descended upon us and the rain fell hard on the slab paving stones which have been there since 6th century BC. Once it stopped we were awash with the scent of lemon, rosemary, pine trees and jasmine all mingled in with the rain on the paving stones. It was very easy to let one's imagination run away with you and transport yourself back in time to breathe in the same scent and air as the previous inhabitants in Pompeii had and to see a town full of tourists walking around we could easily imagine them wearing toga's busily going about their daily life.
It was also a stark reminder of the fact that life goes on no matter what happens to us, who we are today, who will be here tomorrow ahh but then again I don't have a crystal ball so once again I am left wishing I could jump into a time capsule and this time instead of going into the future I would go back into the past and spend a day in Pompeii as it once was in all its glory hopefully in one of the luxurious villas and not the brothel!!!! ........
The Amalfi Coast is one of the most beautiful you will ever encounter, we are off to Positano soon so look out for some stunning photos in my next blog and in the meantime I'll leave with you with some Napolitano music by Renzo Arbore great to get you in the mood when making Lasagna! (see link below).........
Erotic art in the brothel
A street in Pompeii
Archeological materials amphorae
Mythological figure decorating the public bath
Herb garden inside a restaurant just outside Pompeii