Pompeii was an ancient city near the present day commune of Pompei. It was a thriving, rich, ancient city. A volcanic eruption delivered its destruction and buried it in ash and pumice.

Today, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that receives millions of visitors per year.

The meeting place at Piazza del Popolo

We braved the cold and wet weather as we were standing at Piazza del Popolo. This was where we were meeting our tour guide for our trip to Pompeii. As we were waiting, we started looking at all the structures surrounding the piazza. We found an obelisk, a fountain, and three churches. This piazza has three churches (the twin churches of Santa Maria dei Miracoli and Santa Maria in Montesanto and the third church of Santa Maria del Popolo). Interesting!

The drive to Pompeii

The two-hour drive to Pompeii felt like sleeping through the morning. The mood was sleepy in contrast to the excitement of going to Pisa. It was dark and warm inside the bus while driving through the gloomy and rainy weather outside. We were starting to wonder how it would be when we reach Pompeii. The tour guides were talking to the group during the initial part of the trip and kept us in the loop about what to expect at Pompeii.

The ruins of Pompeii

The ruins lay within the rebuilt community of Pompei. The preservation and maintenance of the streets was a good first impression. Its construction was Roman engineering. It has withstood the test of time. Some portions of the streets were worn down by ancient wagon wheels but has largely remained intact.

We were thinking that preserving the buildings was a different story. The walls were still standing but not much was left of the upper portion. There were some structures that were in excellent condition.

Additional information coming from the tour guide added a better picture of the community.

The weather was starting to turn bad while we were at the ruins. Dark clouds were closing in at the horizon. At this point, the tour guides were advising us to head back to the bus. They were still debating whether it will be wise to head for our next destination – Positano.

Pizza for lunch

It may have been mentioned in some other posts. We have noticed that Italians in different regions of Italy vie for the title of “The Best Pizza”. This place was not different. Our advantage was we get to taste the different kinds of pizza! There was only enough time to grab a quick bite of local pizza and run back to the tour bus.

The rain came pouring down.