It was in February when my better half & I decided to travel to Naples and staying there for about a week.
Of course Pompeii was one of the spots we wanted to go … and in February Pompeii is empty. When according to reports during spring/summer/autumn there are ten thousands of tourists visiting ancient Pompeii daily, in winter it’s only few people you’ll find around you when roaming the ruins.
The weather … there was a gorgeous blue sky and bright sunshine with temperatures somewhat higher than 20° C. Don’t let yourself be misled when there are visitors in my photos bundled up in quilted jackets. My better half & I we just had put on some pullover with a T-shirt underneath – and it was fine. Don’t underestimate sunshine in Southern Italy … especially when there’s no shade.
We started from Naples by train which took us to the stop at the entrance gate of Pompeii. There is a sign for queuing up to the ticket gate when leaving the station … but in February you may just walk to the gate, buy your tickets and enter the archaeological site.
Only few steps and there is the Forum – the remnants and debris of buildings, columns, arches, temples … are suddenly around you.
… and in the background there is Vesuvius. (Well – we didn’t make it to the volcanic crater during our stay in Naples, but maybe soon – Naples is a fascinating city worth another visit.)
The fatal outbreak of Vesuvius in 79 AD covered Pompeii under glowing ashes and destroyed the city and its neighboring villages. Although as we learnt on the spot most of the exquisite sculptures were removed rather soon after the outbreak the basic structures of the Forum, the temples, the streets and buildings remained for later – to be discovered and excavated from the 18th century on. Of course again most of the excavation finds ended up in museums.
… and once more Vesuvius …
The columns on the gallery varying in height belong to the former temple of Jupiter on the fringes of the Forum.
Another temple on the fringes of the Forum is the Tempio di Vespasiano resp. the Tempio del Genio di Augusto dedicated to the Roman emperors. The white sacrificial altar was buried under the ashes.
When roaming the streets of Pompeii you’ll find again and again mosaics on the floor, more or less perfect, as well as mural paintings, also more or less perfect. Of course some of the best preserved decorations found their way to museums. It was certainly a colorful lifestyle.
Pompeii is built on a chequerboard pattern. The streets are long and straight, cross-roads are at right angles. Some huge arches survived until nowadays.
The streets have defined lanes and rather high pavements. As far as I may say that’s the original design for traffic and transportation. Recently I read that this design was especially made for managing heavy rainfalls – the down pouring water could escape without damaging any ground floors in buildings.
The buildings, most of them are open to visitors, cover sometimes vast areas with inner courtyards. According to information boards there are palaces of rich Roman citizens as well as smaller houses for craftsmen including also workshops.
Finally some elaborate capitals – you’ll find lots of these around you when walking the site.
My better half & I enjoyed our stay in Pompeii – also we were happy to pay our visit in February on a wonderful day. Nevertheless it was somewhat exhausting … Pompeii is a city and has the size of a city – we are not talking about some agglomerated temples and houses, but a city and walking along the streets with discovering interesting details all over the site is challenging – I can hardly imagine doing so in he heat of July …
I really recommend to use the winter for a visit because of the feeling that Pompeii belongs to you, the serene atmosphere around you and temperatures in the low 20s.
At last … the guardians of Pompeii … a sleek black-and-white furry creature … roaming the ruins all day long with its colleagues.
