Sunday, 6 October 2013

Naples - Friday 4 October

We sailed into Naples before 7 am, and at breakfast I noticed the silhouette of Mount Vesuvius out the window. I dashed out on deck to capture a memorable photo.


I had organised a private tour with some Cruise Critic friends for our day in Naples. We (with Jan and Steve, Rick and Brenda from British Columbia, and Harvey and Barbara from California) gathered at 8:30 am, ready to join our tour with Drive Amalfi. We were told that we weren't docked by the main cruise terminal, and that bus shuttles would take us there. Unfortunately, Princess didn't also tell us that, regardless of this, tour operators would still be able to meet us near the ship. So, we unknowingly hopped on the shuttle which promptly drove us past all the tour guides holding signs for their clients. I ended up having to phone Salvatore to alert him to send our driver around to the terminal. So, we finally got under way about 20 minutes late, having started out early. Never mind, we were on our way with the same driver, Raphael, who had delivered us from Sorrento to the train station in Naples two weeks earlier. The surprise for us was that he had a friend along for the journey, to assist us and help translate and to organise things. Stephanie was a very vivacious, fun, American woman. We travelled in a big, comfortable van.

We headed straight to Pompeii, where an official guide had been booked by Salvatore, and Rosemarie was ready and waiting for us. We headed straight in (by now it was getting very busy with big tour groups). David and I had barely an hour in Pompeii in 2009 (we had seen quite a bit in that time, but also missed a lot) so I was pleased to go in a different entrance and we first visited the Gladiators' training school and accommodation. This was very interesting. Nearby was the big theatre where plays would have been held, and although this had been largely restored (not original) it was great to see - Stephanie tested the really excellent acoustics by singing a song.




We walked up some of the streets, our guide pointing out the stepping stones, the original ridge marks from carts, fountains, homes with peristyle gardens, and shops. We saw the remains of a 'fast food' outlet and a bakery. We went into the public baths and admired the still visible art and decor, and tried to transport ourselves back in time and amongst the people who lived in Pompeii before the massive eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD.




The most interesting place to visit in Pompeii, going by the long queue outside, was obviously the Brothel in the 'red light' area (they really did use red lights). Our guide kept us laughing while we waited and we were intrigued by the ancient 'sign posts' pointing the way to this part of the ancient town (ie an erect penis carved in stone on a pavement, or jutting out above a building). Eventually we made our way in single file through the dingy little brothel, where pictures illustrated the 'menu' available to clients, and tiny cubicles/cells contained stone beds and stone pillows (yes)! Pompeii had been a port town, and sailors spent a lot of time there, so they looked for such services. The town is now a few kilometres inland, but you can see the remains of the walls where boats would have docked.




We spent a short time in the forum area of Pompeii, with Vesuvius sitting benignly in the background. It was very busy here. At this point, our two hour guided tour was over, and I asked if anyone in the group wanted to spend some more time wandering on their own, or to move on. The vote was to move on.


Because we had spent an hour less than originally planned, and it was also a fine day, with clear views of the summit of Vesuvius, I asked the group if they wanted to consider a modification of our plans, and instead of going straight to Herculaneum and then having a longish lunch, we could squeeze in a visit up Mount Vesuvius and have only a short lunch. David and I had done this in 2009, and I knew that Jan and Steve were keen on this option. The vote to do this was unanimous, so off we went.

It was a 45 minute drive up the mountain, and there was a lot of traffic up the top. The others headed off quickly as we allowed 20 minutes to walk up, 20 minutes at the top, and 20 minutes to walk back down. In the meantime, Stephanie booked us in for lunch at the Kone restaurant that was part way up the mountain. I walked slowly with Barbara, and lent her my walking pole. She and Harvey are in their mid 70s, and hadn't been expecting such a walk, but I encouraged Harvey to go on ahead and enjoy the view, and Barbara and I walked up slowly together, with lots of stops and had a great chat on the way. It was very pleasant and the views were magnificent (more clear than in 2009, but still hazy in the distance). The distance up was further than I remembered and we got about 7/8 of the way up, then I went on ahead to see the view further around (looking for Sorrento in the distance). Barbara stayed where she was and I hurried to the summit as the others were heading back down. I grabbed some photos, and then David and I walked down together, keeping Harvey and Barbara company.



With all on board the van, we drove down to the Kone Pizzeria where Stephanie helped us order pizzas (one per couple) and gluten free pasta for me. The latter arrived nearly 10 minutes after everyone had finished their pizzas (which they enjoyed) so it was a case of 'gobble and go' for me with the pasta (which actually needed more cooking). But it was nice to have a dish with lots of chopped tomatoes and cheese in a nice, light olive oil sauce, and it was great that they could provide it quickly.

We drove quickly down to Herculaneum, which was a lot quieter than Pompeii, and we had just over an hour there - a little less time than planned. We had not booked a guide here (in hindsight, we should probably have hired the official guide offering his services near the ticket office) and people had the option of doing their own thing or purchasing an audio guide. I had brought along a map and good information about some of the best things to look at that I'd got from someone on Cruise Critic, but we needed to figure out where it was starting from, so had to purchase a map and try and match the two. This was rather difficult though, and in the end we just wandered around seeing what we could. We saw a lot, but it would have been good to have a guide give us a shortened tour, explaining things, and seeing some of the things I realised later we had missed. So, we have a good excuse to come back another time! It certainly was an interesting and worthwhile place to visit, even after Pompeii. Herculaneum is better-preserved and more colourful, and gives a better indication of what upper class homes were like (before being completely covered in mud from Vesuvius. It was once a seaside resort town, but is now inland.






Raphael had us back to the ship in plenty of time and we headed up to Deck 15 for a beer (David) and I had a gin and lemonade. I watched the sail-away from the port of Naples with Jan and Steve, then David and I headed for dinner. It had been a good day.

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