This Is Like...Seriously Ancient Guys...
POST FOR SUNDAY MAY 22!
Today is Pompeii! Hurray!
Chris and I get up early yet again and talk to our wonderful hotel conceirge, Dino. I mean, I consider myself a hard worker but this man is here 24/7. There hasn't been a day when we haven't seen Dino behind the desk, waiting tables, bringing cars back and forth, or anything else the hotel requires. We learn that his family owns the business but in his own words, "I'm the best."
Whatever makes you happy. :)
Anyway, we get on the shuttle to get on the train (yet again, word of advice--give yourself least amount of transporation as possible when traveling overseas and especially here in Italy--it'll save you stress and worry!) to go to Pompeii.
And in a word, Pompeii is astounding. We rented the audio guides (which are just as good, if not better than the human tour guides that you can hire when you get there. As we were walking around, I would listen to the tour guides and they would all say different things...get the audioguide that lets you listen to the corresponding number to the area that you are in within the Pompeii site. 10 Euro for two.) and went on our way. And my God, people had told me, but this place is just huge.
I was walking where Romans had walked three thousand years ago. I was looking at and touching buildings that someone else had thought about, constructed, and made. I saw casts of the bodies of some of those who parished in the volcano eruption of 79 AD.
Wow. If that doesn't make you say wow, I don't know does.
Although I loved the famous parts of site, such as the House of the Fawn (and no, for those of you who know about the famous painting in the brothel, we didn't get to see it...they were doing construction and it was roped off...damn! If you don't know what it is, you can ask me. ;)), but I of course reveled most in the two theatres, the Small Theatre and the Grand Theatre. The small seated about 1,000 people and the larger about 5,000. Again, I was taking (very dramatic) pictures (me, dramatic? Never...) where Romans had put on shows of Plautius and such.
Again. Wow.
After walking around Pompeii for about five hours, learning about the history, taking many pictures and taking in everything from the site itself to scenary of Mt Vesuvius in the background, we decided to head out. It was on the later side but I had really wanted to at least get closer, if not climb Mt. Vesuvius. When we had left Pompeii, we looked at the bus trips and sadly, we'd missed the last one by about ten minutes.
Then, an older man with lovely olive skin and piercing blue eyes, who's name is Melluso Vincenzo (movie star name if you ask me), saunters over to us asking if we want a taxi. After a little barter and flirting with Vincenzo (yes, he goes by his last name), we get a great rate to get to volcano (a good few kilometers away!) and hop into his van taxi.
Vincenzo doesn't speak much English but he tells us what he can about the area and seems entertained, like most, by the two of us. We stop to take more breathtaking birds eye view pictures of the bay of Naples, part of the Mederterrian, and eventually reach the volcano.
Vincenzo tells us that we can climb the mountain volcano if we want and that he'll wait for us for an hour. I, of course, egg Chris into doing it with me. She looks up out of the taxi at the top of the volcano and the weaving path ahead and says, "Well, it doesn't look that bad."
Chris lasted about five minutes and turned right back around to flirt with Vincenzo in the taxi.
I, of course, now have put myself on a mission and in like Adrienne fashion, won't back down.
So, I climb the mountain of volcanic ash. There's a lot of people who obviously started the hike and stopped, out of breath due to the steepness and lack of oxygen and turn right back around.
Not I, said the pig.
I'd forgotten how much I loved having such determination. I didn't care that I was out of breath. I didn't care that there were rocks in my shoes. I didn't care that I had a freaking brace around my right ankle.
I was going to say I climbed Mt. Vesuvius if it killed me.
And it didn't kill me. It was harder than I expected but reaching the top was more than well worth it. I not only saw an amazing breathtaking view of Naples and just beautiful Italy at sunset, I could see inside the crater volcano. I could see smoke from two corners of the inside of the volcano.
Excuse my French, but fucking amazingfantasticWOW.
While climbing down the mountain, little did I know that Vincenzo had asked Chris how old I was. When she said I was 25, Chris said he had a look of astonishment and didn't believe her. He told her he thought I was 15. Chris told him again, 25 and with that, he shook his head. She said she never saw someone so upset about someone's age.
Ten years younger? I'll take it.
Also, I also no idea that as Chris flirted with Vincenzo, he offered that they watch a J-Lo (yep, you heard right) movie in Italian. Soon, flashing on the screen were some more than steamy scenes and Chris instantly shifted in her seat, not realizing that taxi drivers in Italy show you such things in their car...
But let's be real. Italians love romance and have no problem being naked or seeing nakedness. Like, ever.
I bopped back down to the car, ready to tell Chris about my adventure and as I talked all the way down while in the taxi, and then I realize...
I climbed a volcano today. And I saw ruins of Pompeii. Of 3,000 years ago.
My God, I don't want to leave.
Can I also add, Italians, both men and women, make smoking really damn sexy? How do they do that?
Tomorrow, off to Rome! Cross your fingers and maybe say a little prayer for that car ride?
Ciao for now!
Love love,
Adrienne
Today is Pompeii! Hurray!
Chris and I get up early yet again and talk to our wonderful hotel conceirge, Dino. I mean, I consider myself a hard worker but this man is here 24/7. There hasn't been a day when we haven't seen Dino behind the desk, waiting tables, bringing cars back and forth, or anything else the hotel requires. We learn that his family owns the business but in his own words, "I'm the best."
Whatever makes you happy. :)
Anyway, we get on the shuttle to get on the train (yet again, word of advice--give yourself least amount of transporation as possible when traveling overseas and especially here in Italy--it'll save you stress and worry!) to go to Pompeii.
And in a word, Pompeii is astounding. We rented the audio guides (which are just as good, if not better than the human tour guides that you can hire when you get there. As we were walking around, I would listen to the tour guides and they would all say different things...get the audioguide that lets you listen to the corresponding number to the area that you are in within the Pompeii site. 10 Euro for two.) and went on our way. And my God, people had told me, but this place is just huge.
I was walking where Romans had walked three thousand years ago. I was looking at and touching buildings that someone else had thought about, constructed, and made. I saw casts of the bodies of some of those who parished in the volcano eruption of 79 AD.
Wow. If that doesn't make you say wow, I don't know does.
Although I loved the famous parts of site, such as the House of the Fawn (and no, for those of you who know about the famous painting in the brothel, we didn't get to see it...they were doing construction and it was roped off...damn! If you don't know what it is, you can ask me. ;)), but I of course reveled most in the two theatres, the Small Theatre and the Grand Theatre. The small seated about 1,000 people and the larger about 5,000. Again, I was taking (very dramatic) pictures (me, dramatic? Never...) where Romans had put on shows of Plautius and such.
Again. Wow.
After walking around Pompeii for about five hours, learning about the history, taking many pictures and taking in everything from the site itself to scenary of Mt Vesuvius in the background, we decided to head out. It was on the later side but I had really wanted to at least get closer, if not climb Mt. Vesuvius. When we had left Pompeii, we looked at the bus trips and sadly, we'd missed the last one by about ten minutes.
Then, an older man with lovely olive skin and piercing blue eyes, who's name is Melluso Vincenzo (movie star name if you ask me), saunters over to us asking if we want a taxi. After a little barter and flirting with Vincenzo (yes, he goes by his last name), we get a great rate to get to volcano (a good few kilometers away!) and hop into his van taxi.
Vincenzo doesn't speak much English but he tells us what he can about the area and seems entertained, like most, by the two of us. We stop to take more breathtaking birds eye view pictures of the bay of Naples, part of the Mederterrian, and eventually reach the volcano.
Vincenzo tells us that we can climb the mountain volcano if we want and that he'll wait for us for an hour. I, of course, egg Chris into doing it with me. She looks up out of the taxi at the top of the volcano and the weaving path ahead and says, "Well, it doesn't look that bad."
Chris lasted about five minutes and turned right back around to flirt with Vincenzo in the taxi.
I, of course, now have put myself on a mission and in like Adrienne fashion, won't back down.
So, I climb the mountain of volcanic ash. There's a lot of people who obviously started the hike and stopped, out of breath due to the steepness and lack of oxygen and turn right back around.
Not I, said the pig.
I'd forgotten how much I loved having such determination. I didn't care that I was out of breath. I didn't care that there were rocks in my shoes. I didn't care that I had a freaking brace around my right ankle.
I was going to say I climbed Mt. Vesuvius if it killed me.
And it didn't kill me. It was harder than I expected but reaching the top was more than well worth it. I not only saw an amazing breathtaking view of Naples and just beautiful Italy at sunset, I could see inside the crater volcano. I could see smoke from two corners of the inside of the volcano.
Excuse my French, but fucking amazingfantasticWOW.
While climbing down the mountain, little did I know that Vincenzo had asked Chris how old I was. When she said I was 25, Chris said he had a look of astonishment and didn't believe her. He told her he thought I was 15. Chris told him again, 25 and with that, he shook his head. She said she never saw someone so upset about someone's age.
Ten years younger? I'll take it.
Also, I also no idea that as Chris flirted with Vincenzo, he offered that they watch a J-Lo (yep, you heard right) movie in Italian. Soon, flashing on the screen were some more than steamy scenes and Chris instantly shifted in her seat, not realizing that taxi drivers in Italy show you such things in their car...
But let's be real. Italians love romance and have no problem being naked or seeing nakedness. Like, ever.
I bopped back down to the car, ready to tell Chris about my adventure and as I talked all the way down while in the taxi, and then I realize...
I climbed a volcano today. And I saw ruins of Pompeii. Of 3,000 years ago.
My God, I don't want to leave.
Can I also add, Italians, both men and women, make smoking really damn sexy? How do they do that?
Tomorrow, off to Rome! Cross your fingers and maybe say a little prayer for that car ride?
Ciao for now!
Love love,
Adrienne
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