A day at Pompei

We had a great day touring Pompeii.  In 79 AD, mount Vesuvius erupted covering Pompei.  It remained undiscovered for over 1600 years, covered in 25 ft of ash, until a chance digging for a canal discovered a forgotten city of 25,000 people, with the most beautiful homes, shops, bath houses, and yes, even a brothel.   

One of the most amazing things.  When the archaeologists began excavation and heard a hollow sound, they filled the hallow objects with plaster.  This is one of the most amazing finds, a young woman believed to be 23 years old and measures approximately 5 feet tall, typical for this region given the time period.  While somewhat uncomfortable to think of their demise, most met it quickly due to the off gassing that occurred with the volcanic eruption.

One of the few sections with the original frescoes on the exterior of the city wall

A couple shots of the courtyard used to train fighters for the games at the forum

Amazing amphitheater with perfect acoustics.   The dark spot in the center is a rock where if you stand and talk, the acoustics are perfect and everyone can hear you talk without raising your voice.  We tried it and it worked, amazing.

What is referred to as the original McDonalds.  The pots inside rocks were used to

 hold soup that was served to the masses at a counter.

View of part of the city from the high ground

A pizza and bread oven from 300 BC

Mark and Anne with Mount Vesuvius behind us.  Realize, the mountain was twice as high before eruption and the gap behind Mark's head was all mountain that was blow away in the blast.