Herculaneum & Pompeii

Picture this: it’s midday on a sunny day in Southern Italy in August AD 79.  After some violent earthquakes the night before, you didn’t sleep well, but are now relaxing in the shade of the forum.  Suddenly, a massive BOOM is heard, and as you look in the direction of Mount Vesuvius, you see a dark cloud shoot over 14 kilometres above the crater.  Soon, burning pumice stones begin to rain down.  You try to take shelter in your home, but soon the stones and ash burst through, suffocating you and your family.  Pretty grim, huh?!

The explosion of Mount Vesuvius devastated not only the town of Pompeii, but also the surrounding areas, including the nearby town of Herculaneum, now known as Ercolano.  We planned to visit both, starting with Herculaneum in the (slightly ambitious) hope that by the time we reached Pompeii in the afternoon, the tourist bus hordes would have left or at least dwindled.

Herculaneum is closer to Vesuvius than Pompeii, and most of its residents who weren’t able to flee were killed by an intense blast of heat, rather than the falling volcanic debris.  It was also buried deeper than Pompeii, meaning it is better preserved.  It is quite eerie walking around the streets – it is easy to imagine the people of Herculaneum strolling the boulevards, perusing the shops or sitting in temples when you can still do so yourself!

We nearly walked straight past what was undoubtedly the creepiest and most heart-rending part of Herculaneum – the skeletons of those who had sought refuge at the shoreline, but been taken out by the massive heat clouds generated by the eruption.

After Herculaneum I felt like I could have been happy heading home – such was the level of detail and the overall experience.  However, you can’t come to Naples without visiting Pompeii, so on we went.  The sheer scale of the site blew me away – and that was before we headed beyond the town gate and into the outer part of the town.  While not as well preserved as Herculaneum, the size of Pompeii and the amount of different parts of the town that you can walk around is truly amazing.

If you have the time in Pompeii, I’d definitely recommend heading north, away from the crowds, to some of the lesser visited but equally interesting parts of the town.  The views from the wall are incredible!

Tired but so happy to have seen these amazing sights, we headed home for more pizza.  When in Naples, right?!