Sunday – May 27, 2018
Last night, our ship the Celebrity Reflection cruised from Piraeus, Greece along the western Italian coast. We awoke this morning in Naples, Italy!! So much fun! The gigantic ship slowly cruised into the harbor, made a 180 degree turn, backed up into the pier, and then docked. These captains are such show offs! Yesterday Captain Kafetzis kept congratulating himself by saying, “Man, I’m good!” After his impressive docking maneuver this morning, I imagined him at the helm bragging to his crew. Maybe that’s what it takes to drive this behemoth: Moxie!
The sky was hazy but bright; not much of a breeze and humid. We had an eight o’clock meeting time for an excursion to Pompeii, so we arose early and had breakfast. We had originally planned to see the ancient city on our own but our transportation was cancelled, so we booked an escorted tour, which turned out to be the best idea.
We met our tour leader, Jose, and boarded a bus for the 40 minute drive from Naples to Pompeii. We had been warned that this was a “strenuous” tour. First there was a 15 minute walk from the bus parking lot to the entrance of the site. Then, according to the write-up, we had to “walk 2.5 miles on large uneven rocks and stony pavement.”
We took the challenge, but I would not recommend Pompeii to anyone with any balance or mobility issues. Also, sneakers or other closed shoes are a must. One of the women in our group fell and broke her ankle and had to be carried out on a stretcher. After that, we were very careful!
Pompeii was a Roman city which was buried under 20 feet of volcanic ash and pumice during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79AD. The city was preserved because of lack of air and moisture. Jose said the eruption was geologically similar to the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helen’s in Washington State.
The site was discovered in 1748 and became a popular tourist destination ever since. Pompeii provides insight and knowledge into the everyday lives of the 11,000 people who lived there two thousand years ago.
Today, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site but nothing prepared us for the size and scope of the city. Pompeii is very large and truly difficult to easily walk around. I was very glad we had a tour guide who knew his way around the labyrinthine streets because it could be very easy to get lost.
Visiting Pompeii was well worth the difficulties. The city was a large brick and stone ‘ghost town.’ I felt sad for all the lives that were lost and the terrifying experience of being under such a huge volcanic eruption. It was easy to make the connection to the volcano in Hawaii which is currently erupting.
Pompeii is truly an historian’s treasure trove and it was very interesting to see ancient homes, baths, shops, temples, and public squares of the Roman city.
A few hours later, I took the photo below of Mount Vesuvius behind the city of Naples as the ship gently cruised into the Mediterranean Sea. The two peaks are the remains of the volcano after the eruption in 79AD which buried Pompeii.
Our last night on the ship was quiet and peaceful. We said farewell to other passengers we had met and to crew members who were so kind to us during the cruise. The Monday morning we arrived back in the port of Civitavecchia. We took a bus to the Rome airport and we flew home. This was an incredible trip! I highly recommend the Celebrity Reflection and this particular itinerary which was filled with historic places: Rome, Malta, Athens, Rhodes, Santorini, Mykonos, and Naples/Pompeii. Now to rest up and plan for the next adventure!