I am very excited about today's excursion. We start by driving out of the port and make a quick stop at a local cameo factory. Personally, I have always loved cameos, but seeing so many of them in one place has kind of spoiled the uniqueness to me, so I did not buy anything. It was nice to look at some of the more intricate pieces and how they are made. Once we finished we piled back on the bus to continue up the mountain to about 3000 feet. The road is incredibly narrow.
Mount Vesuvius is a volcano east of Naples, Italy. It is the only volcano on the European mainland to have erupted within the last hundred years, although it is not currently erupting. The only other two such volcanoes in Italy (Etna and Stromboli) are located on islands.
Vesuvius is on the coast of the Bay of Naples, about nine kilometres (six miles) east of Naples and a short distance from the shore. It is conspicuous in the beautiful landscape presented by the Bay of Naples, when seen from the sea, with Naples in the foreground. Vesuvius is best known for its eruption in AD 79 that led to the destruction of the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. It has erupted many times since and is today regarded as one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world because of the population of 3,000,000 people now living close to it and its tendency towards explosive eruptions.
Mount Vesuvius was regarded by the Greeks and Romans as being sacred to the hero and demigod Hercules, and the town of Herculaneum, built at its base, was named after him.
The height of the main cone has been constantly changed by eruptions but presently is 1,281 m (4,202 ft). Monte Somma is 1,149 m (3,770 ft) high, separated from the main cone by the valley of Atrio di Cavallo, which is some 3 miles (5 km) long. The slopes of the mountain are scarred by lava flows but are heavily vegetated, with scrub at higher altitudes and vineyards lower down. Vesuvius is still regarded as an active volcano, 
although its current activity produces little more than steam from vents at the bottom of the crater. Vesuvius is a stratovolcano at the convergent boundary where the African Plate is being subducted beneath the Eurasian Plate. Its lava is composed of viscous andesite. 
Layers of lava, scoria, volcanic ash, and pumice make up the mountain.
Vesuvius has erupted many times. The famous eruption in 79 was preceded by numerous others in prehistory, including at least 3 significantly larger ones, the best known being the Avellino eruption around 1800 BC which engulfed several Bronze Age settlements. Since 79, the volcano has also erupted repeatedly, in 172, 203, 222, possibly 303, 379, 472, 512, 536, 685, 787, around 860, around 900, 968, 991, 999, 1006, 1037, 1049, around 1073, 1139, 1150, and there may have been eruptions in 1270, 1347, and 1500. The volcano erupted again in 1631, six times in the 18th century, eight times in the 19th century, and in 1906, 1929, and 1944. There has been no eruption since 1944, and none of the post-79 eruptions were as large or destructive.
The eruptions vary greatly in severity but are characterized by explosive outbursts. On occasion, the eruptions have been so large that the whole of southern Europe has been blanketed by ash. Vesuvian ash fell on Constantinople, over 1,200 km away.
The view from the crater is incredible.
After the hike we got back on the bus and headed over to Pompeii. The excavated town offers a snapshot of Roman life in the 1st century, frozen at the moment it was buried on 24 August 79. The Forum, the baths, many houses, and some out-of-town villas like the Villa of the Mysteries remain surprisingly well preserved.
Pompeii was a lively place, and evidence abounds of literally the smallest details of everyday life. For example, on the floor of one of the houses (Sirico's), a famous inscription Salve, lucru (Welcome, money), perhaps humorously intended, shows us a trading company owned by two partners, Sirico and Nummianus (but this could be a nickname, since nummus means coin, money). In other houses, details abound concerning professions and categories, such as for the "laundry" workers (Fullones). Wine jars have been found bearing what is apparently the world's earliest known marketing pun, Vesuvinum (combining Vesuvius and the Latin for wine, vinum). Graffiti carved on the walls shows us real street Latin. Pompeii underwent a vast process of infrastructural development, most of which was built during the Augustan period. Worth noting are an amphitheatre, a Palaestra with a central natatorium or swimming pool, and an aqueduct that provided water for more than 25 street fountains, at least four public baths, and a large number of private houses and businesses.
The large number of well-preserved frescoes throw a great light on everyday life and have been a major advance in art history of the ancient world, with the innovation of the Pompeian Styles. Some aspects of the culture were distinctly erotic, including phallic worship. A large collection of erotic votive objects and frescoes were found at Pompeii. Many were removed and kept until recently in a secret collection at the University of Naples.
At the time of the eruption, the town could have had some 20,000 inhabitants, and was located in an area in which Romans had their holiday villas. Prof. William Abbott explains, "At the time of the eruption, Pompeii had reached its high point in society as many Romans frequently visited Pompeii on vacations." It is the only ancient town of which the whole topographic structure is known precisely as it was, with no later modifications or additions. It was not distributed on a regular plan as we are used to seeing in Roman towns, due to the difficult terrain. But its streets are straight and laid out in a grid, in the purest Roman tradition; they are laid with polygonal stones, and have houses and shops on both sides of the street.
We entered Pompeii from the Sea Gate. The outside walls were beautiful. I left the group at this point. There were places I wanted to see and I knew if I hung with the group I might not have time to see them. But Pompeii is like a large maze. Some roads dead end and some areas are not open to the public. So I learned that you have to pay very close attention to the map and where you are and how to get where you want to go. It was fun actually.
I started my walk at the Great Theater. Built in the 2nd century BC and could hold about 5000 spectators.
Leaving the theater, I walked along the roads. You can see where they have been worn down by wagon wheels. I swear there are some roads here in Virginia that are not in this good condition.
This is the house of Menander. Built in the 3rd century BC it was a multistory home of relatives of Nero. In the bath area there is a warm room with a mosaic depicting sea creatures and Negroid figures.
This is the House of Ceii. Here you can see one of the staircases that lead to the upstairs. The home has what was obviously a lovely courtyard garden.
Walking along the roads, you see some of the more erotic street signs. This was my kind of town.
This is the house of Lararium of Achilles. This home was damaged in the earthquake of 62 and was still in the process of being repaired during the eruption. This mosaic in blue tile shows the final episodes of the Trojan War.
This is one of the public restrooms located throughout the city.
This guy died at the Stabian Baths and is the oldest bath building with facilities for both men and women. 
Here you can see how the rooms where heated. The floor was supported by short brick pillars to leave an empty space below through which the warm air flowed from the furnaces.
My favorite... This is the Lupanare or house of prostitution. This building included 5 rooms on the ground floor and upstairs plus their own restroom. The stone beds were covered by a mattress. The painting depict different positions to be used during the erotic games.
This is the bakery. 
There is a large woodburning oven and several millstones made of lava which didn't leave sand in the flour (this was very bad for the teeth). A bar was put through the hour glass portion and a mule was tied to it to turn it. Poor mules... there wasn't much room for them.
This is the temple of Fortuna Augusta in honor of the emperor.
This is the Forum Granary and was probably incomplete at the time of the eruption since it was not being used. It is now used to store varius materials from Pompeii and a few plaster casts of victims are on display, including this one of a pet dog (breaks my heart).
This is the temple of Apollo and the most ancient sanctuary in Pompeii. The architecture dates from 575-550 BC. This is the statue of Apollo.
And finally this is a view of the Forum.
And these are my two pups of the day. This boy was laying down in the street when I got to Pompeii. The gentleman who was having coffee at the table behind him said he had been sleeping there for about 3 hours. And when I came out of pompeii to meet the group for the bus, he was still in exactly the same spot. Of course I had to pet him just to make sure he was alive.
And this sweet girl was a real lover. She wanted to be petted and followed me around for a while. Whenever I would stop, she would lay down at my feet.
