The next morning (April 24th, 2014), I again walk over to the ancient city of Pompeii. The weather is even nicer today, mostly sunny instead of mostly cloudy, so that’s good. My hotel is around a mile from the ruins and the 15 minute walk is invigorating plus it gives me the opportunity to scope out where other business are nearby. Turns out that this particular area is a little subdued. I’m not certain if it’s a typical Italian neighborhood or not. The street the hotel is on is kind of a main drag, at least during rush hours. Most of the business are closed up, or gated, or periodical. Up around the corner there’s a tiny hole-in-the-wall store that I got all my groceries at, then there’s a small coffee shop…oh, wait, two of them, very close together. Both of them serve food in the form of sandwiches and one of them is a full blown (though small) broasted chicken place. But they both do a brisk business with those tiny cups of Espresso. At outrageous prices (well, they do have to ship it all the way from Brazil…or rather they did in the 1800’s). Up and down that street, the same thing, very few open businesses. During my week here at the hotel, the neighborhood didn’t really seem all that lively. I’m not complaining, but it would have been nice to go out at least once. There wasn’t a club anywhere nearby so, didn’t get to do that.
This picture is looking up the street towards Pompeii, taken just across the street from the hotel. When I visit the ruins, I start by walking up this street until I reach the off-ramp from the freeway (where this street ends going in this direction) and then take a right. Onto another street heading east towards the ruins. I’d have to walk east on that street under a large overpass with the freeway above, past a couple fields of multiple kinds of vegis and some grapes for wine. Also by a casino of all things. Then I’d end up at a multi-mall area with numerous businesses on the ground floors of numerous hotels. Turned out that this was all right downhill from the Pompeii ruins.
Then, I’d walk across this seemingly informal entrance to a paid freeway, it was curious because of where it started, then I’d climb up around 200 feet of roadway with sidewalk to a bunch of small kiosk type businesses, mostly fast foods. Across from them, was the quite nice entrance to the ruins. Meanwhile…
And then the picture below is a few blocks from the ruins. Can’t really tell much, huh? I had the same problem so I was happy to have instructions from the hotel staff with me. Note the ‘Safe Parking’ sign in English there? You have English speaking tourists from the thousands of hotels around the area all heading to the Pompeii ruins in their rental cars, and of course they need a place to park. There were probably 6 very large parking lots on this street alone. Even the hotels and restaurants get into the act of parking space rental. One hotel/restaurant had a sandwich board sign, “5 Euro escort to the ruins”. It’s funny because they’re right below one entrance up on the hill, like 200 feet away, and just 100 feet from another! Everytime I passed there was a guy standing there next to the sign, waiting for the next sucker. And he was set up right across the street from where some tourist buses stopped and dropped off their tourists. My guess is that the restaurant was getting hundreds of people per year annoying the waiters asking how they would get to the ruins so they just started a business based on the lack of map reading by the typical tourist. Instead of just putting up a freakin’ sign. Typical. I have no problem with businesses taking advantage of situations, but not ignorance. Seems unfair to me.
And this is the business area just below the ruins, you can see ancient Pompeii in the background. In ancient days, this area would have been covered with water and swamp land with farms here and there but it’s sort of built up and paved over now. There are at least two entrance/exit areas to the ruins and this shot faces one of them, and behind me are 10’s of trinket booths, 3-4 large restaurants built on the ground floor of 3-4 large hotels. There’s even a mini-mall with overly expensive tourist trinkets. Most of the hotels look like they were built 50-60 years ago. This is also where some of those giant tourist buses arrive from Naples to disgorge their loads of mostly annoying tourists like me. While I was here, along with several tour buses, 3 buses loaded with school children arrived and unloaded what looked like a thousand annoying kids looking for some learning. They headed for the entrance in the below picture, I headed for the other entrance to avoid them.
I’m just a few hundred feet from the other entrance anyway and I’d only come to this one because I wanted this picture of the south side of the ruins to get a sense of what it might have looked like centuries ago. I would have entered here if it wasn’t for those darn kids. But, whatever, I’m here, so in I go again, at the same entrance I used yesterday. This shot is from the modern switchback ramp we tourists use to get in the main entrance. That’s an ancient flood wall in the foreground and Vesuvius in the background. I just stood here for a few minutes enjoying the quiet of the early morning and the picturesque view.
Today, I took a right just after entering the ruins…yesterday I’d gone straight for a few hundred feet, then took a left (heading northerly). The modern steps in the next photo lead down to a pathway which goes to either exit. I could have come in this way via the exit if I’d wanted to save money. No gate. Well, check that, there is a gate, but early in the morning it’s unmanned and open so you can walk right in the exit. This view is to the south. That’s modern Pompeii in the distance. There’s a lot of building you can’t see from here, but trust me, it’s built up right to the edge of old Pompeii. This just happens to be looking toward some semi-empty areas that are farmed and remind me of water retention areas you find all over the USA. They’re used as containment ponds if there’s too much rain in a short period. 
And here is the south wall of Pompeii. In many ways it’s quite interesting from an archaeological viewpoint. These buildings were what? Homes? They found some artifacts that would suggest that, but tourists had picked it over so badly over 300 years that it’s impossible to tell what they were originally. They’re outside the defensive wall, but then again, they’d been at peace for decades. Some of them could have been to store grain or horses, or whatnot. Hard to tell now. But they are extensive. There’s a lot of building here.
Back up that path and you see this. It is called the ‘Basilica’. Built in the 2nd century BCE, as part of a monument building era. It’s actual use was as a courthouse. Also used for business negotiations.
Another shot of the Basilica. It’s kinda neat. And huge.
I took another picture of this view because it is really cool having the ruins in the foreground and Vesuvius in the background. With those fluffy clouds over her.
I believe this was a public area. Like a city park. Shot is looking east.
There are some remnants of ancient marble carving along the roadway. It’s pretty rare in Pompeii now as much was carted off by 300 years of theft, tourism, and amature acheology, but this remained and they’ve covered it with a plastic barrier. Very ornate. Lots of work. Hard to get a good picture of it with that plastic pane over it.
Boy, that cloud hasn’t moved much in the last hour…
Below is a pic of the Aedes Genii Augusti building. It was in the process of reconstruction or remodeling at the time of the eruption. There is a small temple at the back of this outdoor courtyard, with four columns, accessed by stairs on either side. There would have been a statue of the Emperor. In the foreground is a white marble altar, showing the sacrifice of a bull, typical of the imperial cult. On the opposite side, the scene is showing the Civic Crown of oak leaves, resting on a shield, which was a prerogative of his imperial majesty. As far as what this building was intended for, that is unknown. It may have been intended as a temple for the worship of the Emperor and was in the process of building.
Some amphora that survived the destruction, mostly intact. They would put anything in these jars. I think the handle style and shape of the jar would tell what the amphora was used for.
Next door to the amphora storage was this nice staircase made with fine, imported, marble. And the little altar in the back. 
And then these dead guys…
And they were in a huge house with these nice paintings. One of the two was judged to be a servant or slave, the other had on a gold ring and was holding a silver key, as well as a handful of sesterces (silver coins…money). Eighteen other bodies; men, women, children, were found in the basement.
After seeing a couple dead guys, it was time for a snack so I stopped here at the Cafeteria, in the middle of Pompeii, had a nice espresso and a tiny cake of some kind. There were only stand up tables inside still open so I came back outside and sat on a wall like that guy there in the picture. The juxtaposition of the modern cafeteria, with restrooms, a coffee bar, icecream treats, a kitchen/bakery vs. the 2,000 plus year old ruins was interesting.
Then it was time to wander. Can’t remember what house this was. Might be the entrance to the public baths.
Pretty nice family sized tub, huh?
This looks like a tepidarium.
Hum, seems as though this building is the one I was in the day previous. Oh, well, it can stand another look.
There’s a marble lined tub right there.
And then 
And back outside for some more wandering. The causeway takes you along Via Della Tombe with it’s funerary architecture – interesting in it’s own right.
These buildings were just to honor the dead. No one lived here.
Known as a Necropolis I believe. And here would be where people gathered for ceremonies and such to honor the dead.
Then you walk beyond the causeway, Necropolis, whatever, on the marked path, top a hill and hey, what do we have here? The villa looks modern. It’s not though, it’s Villa dei Misteri (House of the Mysteries) and it was completely buried with a light ash in the first part of the eruption that protected it from the ensuing harsh eruptions. It’s probably the most spectacular and well preserved house in all of Pompeii and is a rich archeological find. Check this out: Saving the Villa of the Mysteries 
First a shot of the excellent painting done here. Most of the walls were decorated.
The above shot is a full room view of some of the most famous paintings in Pompeii. This room was believed by some to have been a ceremony room where an older girl would have been inducted into womanhood in some ritual while surrounded and aided by older women. Might have been an initiation ritual into the mystery cult of Dionysus. Some archeologists consider the room to just have just been richly appointed for elegant dining.
Sadly, the room was roped off so this is as close as I could get. 
And then there was this window shutter. I thought it was interesting that this wooden shutter was there at all after 2,000 years but, there ya go.
This was just a ho-hum room, nothing special. But the owner had paid for these frescas anyway. Just to liven it up, perhaps?
Then one room, hard to tell what the room was for, had this satyre figure. Hmm. But the room gave off a ‘man cave’ vibe.
That must be the missus imploring the Mr. to settle down, and he’s running off to the concubines rooms naked. 
This color purple would have been available only to the rich.
And then one large room that once had large frescos and a fountain in the middle. Winter time lounge area?
There are some beams and rafters that have been replaced but also originals. I believe these are originals.
Then there are the restorations of the gardens. Historically accurate.
Here I’m standing on the path that lead down to the villa and Vesuvius still has that cloud hovering over it.
Then back around to the south, some of the villa’s buildings…it was, like most large homes of the time, a working farm. The place was 40,000 square feet with 60 rooms!
So then I wandered back to Pompeii and again skirted the town proper but hugged the northern, guarded rampart of the ancient town.
Almost looks like a modern building. Since it was a guard house, it’s rather unimpressive, architecturally. But, it’s old. And back then, functional.
Guarding old Pompeii.
And here’s the House of the Faun. It stands in what was once a pool inside the largest house in Pompeii. 2,970 m2. That’s a copy. Very big house, but the roof is gone. Hard to get a sense of what it was like, but it was obviously richly appointed before the eruption. Remember though, these people had warnings before the eruption, in the form of numerous precursor earthquakes, which is why the death toll inside Pompeii wasn’t that great.
The mosaic in the entryway above caught my eye.
And here, I’m just walking on one of the interesting streets in Pompeii. Kinda cool.
That’s all for now. More to come…