A Journey Into Historic Pompeii

     In the early morning of July 7, the Island Princess docked alongside Naples, Italy. We started with an early room service breakfast, and met our tour group at 8:00am. We boarded the shuttle, and drove to the town of Pompeii.

The view from our balcony at the Port of Naples

     In Pompeii, we took a guided tour through the streets, exploring the ruins and learning about the Roman town, and the people of Pompeii.

the entrance to Pompeii

The streets of Pompeii

The main street, shops along the side of the road

inside the bath house

entrance to the main forum

another part of the main forum

     Mt. Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D. covering the entire city in  over 3 meters of ash. Since the eruption happened so quickly, the people of Pompeii did not have a chance to escape, and were entombed in this ash, which created a cast around their bodies.

One of the bodies, along with recovered artifacts

close up of a baby

     Pompeii was discovered in 1748 almost entirely entact. The structures, roadways, and even the Frescos on the walls were excavated. Pompeii is still under excavation today.

Inside a home, this was the base of a table

Inside the same house, the remains of Frescos on the walls

      Once we made our way through the streets of Pompeii, we boarded the shuttle once more to head over to Mt. Vesuvius. We were let off the bus, and started hiking to the top. We hiked all the way to the crater, it was an incredible experience, and truly remarkable views!

Thats me in the yellow shirt!

     Mt. Vesuvius is still an active volcano, although it has not erupted since it covered Pompeii in 79 A.D.

Looking into the crater

We made it to the top!!

Looking down into the crater, dried up ash at the bottom

     After a pretty intense hike to the crater, we headed back to the ship for showers and lunch. We met up with my parents (they didn't go on this tour) for a lovely dinner and the show in the Princess theater afterwards. It was a relaxing way to end our full day of adventure in Pompeii and Mt. Vesuvius!

View from our balcony after setting sail. That is Mt. Vesuvius!

     We were more than ready for the next day as our first day at sea! Stay tuned for our first sea day, and formal night onboard the Island Princess!