A Visit to Pompeii

 

One of the main things to do in Naples is to go to Pompeii. And that's exactly what we did.

Pompeii was a Roman town that got famous because in the year 79AD Mount Vesuvius, the local volcano, erupted and desolated the city.

The first place we went to in Pompeii was the theatre gardens/gladiator housing. Originally this area was a garden where Romans would relax between intermission breaks of the plays that were held in the theatre next door. After a while they converted it into gladiator housing instead.

Next was the theatre. The theatre was not-surprisingly built in the roman style, a semi circle of tiered seats around a small stage. The rich and important would sit in the front row, the common folk behind them. Sadly, women and slaves had to sit the farthest away from the stage in a balcony thingy.

Third was the ancient McDonald's. It was called Thermopolium (literally "hot food place") and was where normal people who couldn't afford private kitchens came for a hot meal. 

After that we saw what a typical rich Roman's house looked like. Instead of having a roof angle outwards, the roof drained water into a small pool inside. They had frescoes on the walls, and a garden that was also inside. The roof was mostly open, so there would be loads of natural light.

Then our guide took us to the bath house. We didn't actually go inside so I don't have much to say for that.

Last we went to the temples. There were lots of arches and pillars, and a statue of a centaur.

Pompeii was a great ancient Roman experience. It was in amazing condition compared to the other ruins we have seen in Austria.

Thanks for reading! And until next time, it's never a good idea to live near a highly active volcano.