Attempting to explore Pompeii in a single afternoon was probably the biggest no-no of my trip to Italy. What was I thinking?!
I enjoyed the morning wandering around Naples (taking photos of the town, coastline, and Mount Vesuvius in the distance) and then hopped on a bus headed towards Pompeii. I thought an afternoon would be enough time to explore the ruins, but, I completely underestimated the size of the site.
The ruins of Pompeii cover roughly 170 acres and feels quite maze-like. I’d highly recommend grabbing a tour map of the area to save time and confusion. This will also ensure that you get to see everything you want more efficiently. I, however, didn’t realize there were maps until I was already deep inside the ancient walls… and then it was too late to go back!
There is so much to see and learn about in this area: The Temple of Apollo, Lupanar (it was a brothel!), House of the Tragic Poet, The Civil Forum, The Granary (plaster casts found here), House of the Vettii, and much more. Due to my terrible planning, I didn’t get to see as much as I hoped. However, I still managed to roam around and fully immerse myself into the environment and stumbled upon many of the ruins.
I really admired the mosaics and frescoes found all over the site. I kept imagining how tedious and satisfying it must have been to create such pieces of art. I personally enjoy drawing mandala-style art and felt totally inspired by the patterns in these Roman designs. It’s absolutely amazing that so much of this ancient art has survived the damage from Mount Vesuvius.
The eruption of Mount Vesuvius completely covered Pompeii in volcanic material back in 79 A.D. I’ve read online that roughly 2,000 people died during the 25hr period it took for Vesuvius to spread its doom. During the same eruption, the nearby town of Herculaneum endured major devastation as well. I didn’t really know much about Herculaneum before my trip, so I didn’t schedule any time to visit that site. Soooo, I’m definitely going to go back someday and explore Herculaneum and more of the Pompeii ruins.
Not everything in the ruins of Pompeii is ancient, though. A Polish artist by the name of Igor Mitoraj has created some beautiful modern sculptures for this area. A few of these include: Luci di Nara (seen above), Grande Toscano (seen above), and Torso di Ikaria grande (seen below). I’m pretty sure the Torso di Ikaria has a Medusa in the pelvic region, which is probably some form of symbolism I’m sure.
Despite the lack of time and sleep, I truly enjoyed my visit to Pompeii. I will most likely visit again in the future, as well as other parts of Italy, but for now I’m quite satisfied with what I’ve experienced. I saw a volcano for the first time, learned a lot about Pompeii, gained understanding and inspiration from the ancient architecture, and learned a lesson on how to be better prepared for trips in the future! Haha. Maps, folks… it’s all about the maps.
Until next time…
Whoa Dana 