Part 3 – Pompeii and the Sistine Chapel
On the morning of Monday, February 2, Mike and I caught the commuter train back in the direction of Napoli, but got off halfway at Pompeii. We were able to stash our bags for free at the entrance to Pompeii so we could wander around free of the weight.
For those who don’t know, Pompeii is a relatively wealthy city that was covered under ash from a volcanic eruption that happened around 75 A.D. (the exact year escapes me right now). The disastrous event happened so fast that people had no time to react. Cavities were found where their bodies had once been, which were then filled with concrete to show the pain and terror they were in when they died, clinging to each other or curled up in a ball. Suffocation must be a very painful way to die. The city was kept preserved exactly as it was buried until it was first discovered a few hundred years ago. Since then, it’s undergone an extensive excavation and continues to be unburied today.
It is the size of a small city, with the layout of a small city. There are residential areas, public forums, roman baths and tombstones. One of the greatest wonders are the frescoes. They were kept surprisingly well intact in a way that we rarely are able to see in something that old. Mostly, we can see color.
It was grey and dismal outside while we were there. It didn’t rain, but the sun didn’t shine either. To me, Pompeii has a very eerie feeling to it. It’s strange to walk around knowing the whole city just stopped operating and essentially ceased to exist in one fateful day. The best part was the Roman baths. They are famous and I’m not sure anything quite like it is in operation today. The frescoes and mosaic tiling is impressive and the baths are something out of my imagination.
Pompeii ruin
casting of body and artifacts
ceiling of Roman baths
room in Roman baths
fresco in home showing a bride preparing for marriage
mossy pillar stumps
Pompeii garden
view of smoking volcano... it's still active, but isn't expected to erupt in our lifetimes
When we’d had our fill of walking around, I was hungry so we stopped to eat just outside the tourist attraction. Big mistake. It was the most horrible pizza. It’s funny how we found such differences still so close to Napoli. We ditched the pizza and caught the train to Napoli to catch our train back to Rome. That train experience wasn’t great either. On the way from Rome we had lucked out and caught a Eurostar, or fast train. On the way back we caught a regular train and we seated in a cabin with four other people. We spent our trip staring at each other in a dreadfully hot cramped car. We were grateful to get back to Rome.
Our room in Hotel Galatea in Rome was adequate. It had a simple modern design and a lovely bathroom. No complaints. Breakfast was great. They had a super expensive cappuccino machine maker that made an excellent cappuccino at the press of a button. We were spoiled.
On Tuesday, we caught the metro over to the Vatican. We emerged on Via Barletta and made sure to take a picture. We found our way to the Vatican Museum. It was still early so we got in without having to stand in much of a line. I made the mistake of rushing through most of it trying to get to the Sistine Chapel at the end. There were people everywhere inside and the tourist groups were annoying me. I don’t know what got into me but I just didn’t have enough patience. Eventually, closer to the end, we slowed down, taking in the amazing detail of the frescoes covering every surface. I liked the collection of religious modern art the Vatican had acquired. I was surprised to see a great number of household names. Finally we emerged at the Sistine Chapel.
I saw the Sistine Chapel when I visited as a teenager before it was restored. In a way, I liked it better then. It was dark and smoky. Somehow, the restored colors were so bright they seemed fake. It’s still an amazing work of art. I spent a long time looking at the faces. This time I had a new perspective on Michealangelo, having just been in Florence, his native home. I heard the Pope gave him a hard time with the commission and I was contemplating the relationship all artists have with their patrons, those who are lucky enough to have them.
When we emerged from the museum we headed over to Piazza S. Pietro and watched workers taking down the holiday decorations. A large stable had been constructed to go with a massive Christmas tree. The faux stone was being thrown away, which as an odd site to see- a man carrying what looked like very heavy stone but was actually foam. Additionally, men were taking down Christmas ornaments from the tree and interacting with a small crowd asking for them. Every so often, they’d toss one to a cute girl or an old woman.
We stopped to relax at a cafeteria place nearby and Mike ran into four people who were on his flight over. We contemplated how small a world it can feel like at times. On the other hand, I write this a few weeks later with Mike on the other side of the world and right now it feels rather big. My time with him in Italy was amazing and resulted in some of my favorite moments that I will cherish for the rest of my life. I guess love does that.
The next morning we both went to the airport and caught planes in opposite directions. He flew back to the States and I flew on to Thailand. Although I had already been out of the country for a month, it felt like in some ways my journey was just beginning.
