Pompeii - Italy photofest part 2 (don't say I didn't warn you!)

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Just before you begin, I'm going to offer the warning again. There were literally 100s of photos of ancient ruins on my memory card and it was hard to narrow them down! So leave now if you want - I won't hold it against anyone.

Pompeii was top of our to-do list for our Italian adventure. I remember learning about the eruption of Vesuvius when I was in school and have long wanted to visit there. Patrick was particularly excited about the visit. He has a book which tells the story of the disaster based on some of the findings the archaeologists have made there. I think that really helped both him and me to imagine the events as we were walking along the cobbled streets and listening to the audio tour tell us about the buildings and life at that time.

Several memories will linger from our visit to Pompeii. First, the heat. It was stifling. There was no shade. We had 2 small people with us. It was the hottest I think I have ever been!

Secondly, that Conor wore his Crocs. There was nothing in our preparatory reading which had said 'Wear closed shoes with thick socks because there is sand and dust everywhere and you will suffer unimaginably if you don't'. And we did! Every 30 seconds we had to stop to shake the stones and sand out of his shoes. It would be fair to say that he doesn't suffer well!

But the lasting memory I will have of Pompeii is the scale of the site and the grandeur that is evident in the excavations. Pillars and statues. Symmetry everywhere. How amazing it must have been in the amphitheatre at the height of its glory. Just amazing.

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(clearly these last 2 photos are more evidence that we were there than of the grandeur!)

I could lie and say that these are the last photos of Italy I shall post, but you know there are more on my computer and that you will either see them as they are or in a layout someday soon. But I shall try and post of other delights like our visit to the north coast this weekend or the piles of laundry that are building around here. You shall have to wait and see!