Herculaneum

It was our last day of our walking holiday on the Amalfi Coast and we had a leisurely start, retracing the scenic part of our route on the first day to take photos of the views that were obscured by the low cloud and rain on Sunday.  We met several folks from our group doing the same.  We then walked up to the village square, which is really a triangle, and secured some maps from the tourist information which will help in the creation of my Blurb book of our week.  There was time then for a cuppa in a local cafe before getting on the bus which would take us first to Herculaneum and then to the airport.

We decided to go without a guide around the site as it is much smaller and easier to understand than Pompeii, and we actually thought more interesting.  As it turned out, Eve, Elaine and Francis joined us and Tony took on the role of guide whilst Francis filled in the background from his guide book.  A fascinating place with many of the modern day services we would recognise.  Because of the fall of ash, it was covered quickly and the buildings were not as blasted as they were in Pompeii.  In many places second floors remain together with stunning marbles and frescoes.  I found most emotive the cells which people had flocked to on the then shore, presumably to await escape by boat.. it is thought they were suffocated and three hundred skeletons have been found.  I thought it respectful that visitors can only view this part of the site from a distance.  Taking selfies with the bodies as we saw at Pompeii with the plaster casts would be most distasteful.

We had just two hours in Herculaneum and then it was to a long wait at Naples airport for our flight.  We hooked up with Margaret and Brian for a very late lunch before finally boarding and headed home.  Once through Heathrow, we were back to Oxford on the airline service which runs through 24 hours and every half hour to and from Heathrow and Gatwick during the day, an excellent service.

So we are back with our Oxford family for a few days.

My blip shows a section of the excavated Herculaneum with Vesuvius in the background.  At the time of the early eruption, there would have been just one peak but the later explosion created a new peak within the old crater.