In terms of cultural history, there's a huge
amount to see at Pompeii and Herculaneum, the ancient
Roman sites frozen in time by the eruption of Mount
Vesuvius in 79 AD.
A visit to each individual site cost 11 euros for admission
but you can buy a ticket for 20 euros that gives you access to 5 different
archaeological sites across 3 days that include Herculaeum and Pompeii. You can
take the Circumvesuviana train from Naples or Sorrento to the
Ercolano station for Herculaneum or the
Pompeii Scavi station for Pomepei.
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| Pompeii |
Herculaneum used
to be a posh residential area, much smaller than Pompeii and
more well-preserved than Pompeii. There was even a villa nearby where Julius Caesar’s father lived. It was astounding to
walk past the grand houses with courtyards, fountains, baths and temples; all so
well preserved. And there were some gorgeous wall mosaics and frescoes that
gives a glimpse of how sumptuously decorated the houses were. I couldn't get my
head around the fact that we were seeing actual pieces of art and architecture created in 79 AD!
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| A courtyard in Pompeii |
Pompeii is
about six times larger than Herculaneum and used
to be a bustling city centre. However, now there are barely any free standing
structures left and most of the mosaics and important artifacts are in museums.
To be honest, I enjoyed visiting Herculaneum more
than Pompeii which
was a bit over-whelming for me. What was also depressing was seeing the calcified
bodies that were on display. It was heart-wrenching and morbid to see such an
intimate glimpse of someone’s last minutes before being frozen in time by
volcanic ash.
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| Herculaneum |
We decided to visit Herculaneum first
in the morning since it was shadier and I was quite determined to
avoid being caught under the fierce sun in Pompeii. In
retrospect it was good we went to Pompeii in the
afternoon around 4 pm because
the crowds had died down as well. Tip: I’d suggest getting a tour
guide for Pompeii - we relied on our guide book and got a bit lost as most of
the sites were closed for restoration and the guidebooks didn't have the most
up-to-date information.
Looking back, I think how remarkable and awe-inspiring it
was, that we were able to wander around these ancient sites and see how people
lived almost 2000 years ago. A must visit destination if you are travelling
around the Amalfi Coast.
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| A house in Herculaneum |
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