My family’s heritage is partially Italian, southern Italian specifically. That part of my family comes from Napoli (Naples), just a quick hour and a half train ride from Rome. A trip down to the region included a tour of the famous ancient city of Pompeii with a stop in Napoli to taste, rumor has it, the best pizza in the world.
A quick side note on the Italian train system, Tren Italia. After having traversed the European continent on several different day and overnight trains I had a new appreciation for the efficiency and speed of the Italian train system. It is by far one of the better train systems in Europe and, after having traveled in Italy both by car and train, the train most definitely offers a more relaxing way to go.
Arriving at the Napoli train station we picked up the inner city train to Pompeii. The sky was dotted with some rather ominous looking cumulous clouds but we were spared the rain from the previous day, save for a few sprinkles.
Most of us have at least a remote idea of the history of Pompeii. The city was destroyed when Mount Vesuvius exploded, taking a large portion of the mountain top with it in 79 AD. The eruption occurred over the span of two days and left 12 to 20 feet of ash and pumice blanketed over the city and its inhabitants. Visions of the plaster made human forms caught in the explosion burn in our memories. It is the raw agony captured in these forms that haunts our thoughts. A community caught unaware by the disaster and buried, forgotten and undiscovered, for 1500 years adds to our curiosity.
Our visit took us through the streets of Pompeii, into the houses of the wealthy and poor citizens alike, into their places of worship, their baths, their brothels. Along the way I was surprised to learn a few things that were different from the way we live our modern lives.
Most of the people didn’t have kitchens so food was purchased from the local bakeries and ‘restaurants.’ This would certainly create much more of a community feel than our current-day living situation. Pompeiians were also dedicated to canis lupus familiaris, or the domestic dog. Floor mosaics can be found in the homes of inhabitants paying tribute to man’s best friend. Residents enjoyed running water fed from an aqueduct to three different water systems – the bathhouses, private homes, and public fountains. Lead pipes delivering the water can be found throughout the city. During drought times there was a plan for how the water would be rationed; first the baths were cut off, then the private homes and finally water flowing to the public fountains and neighborhood wells.
After a few hours in Pompeii we ventured back onto the train into the city of Naples. We were there on a Sunday so it was relatively quiet and many of the shops and restaurants were closed. There were a large number of trash piles littering the streets, particularly next to the train station where hawkers were selling anything from cheap plastic toys, to cell phones, chargers, and electronic devices of all varieties. It wasn’t visually appealing, but the city itself possesses an energy difficult to describe. I have to divulge here that only I and my youngest brother felt this way. The others with us wanted to scramble, quick-like, back to the train station and head back to Rome. With a bit of coercing we were able to convince them to at least follow us to a pizza place to taste some of the infamous pizza Napoli is known for.
Our walk to the area known for housing the best pizza places in the city was (for my family) a harrowing one. We passed more piles of trash (the city trash collectors seem to be infinitely on strike), sketchy looking individuals, and took us down narrow, empty alleys. Admittedly we did witness a nearly successful purse snatching – par for the course in a big city. I was close to sending the whiners and complainers (one in particular) back to the train station to wait for the rest of us to return. Since it was a Sunday, we had a bit of trouble locating a restaurant that was open. After not-too-long of a walk, we found one that was bustling. It was worth the walk.
Only having one day to explore both Pompeii and Naples was an inadequate amount of time. At least I now have a glimpse into the area so I can be more focused when I return.
