November 2009
Traveling south from Rome in our Trafalgar European Cavalcade tour, we arrive at the Ruins of Pompeii near Naples. Pompeii was a thriving city almost 2,000 years ago; until the nearby volcano (which they thought was a mountain) erupted! The whole city with everything in it at that time was buried under 22 meters of ash and dirt. The town was thus preserved under all the ash and provides a snapshot of life in the 1st century! Accidentally discovered in 1652, it is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and at provides much information about the life in a city of the Roman Empire.
The area of the town was huge and there would be many more excavations to be done in the future. The Italian government has decided to stop excavating first and to concentrate on what they currently excavated already. Travelling with a tour guide or a tl elast some sort of reference is important to help imagine and understand what life was back then. With the help of research, studies, information and points of interest, we can experience as best we could life in the 1st century!
Pompeii forum
Drawings on walls, graffiti, vandalisms, city design, house layouts, artifacts, furniture and many more priceless pieces of human history were found in the excavations. Casts from the voids left by decayed bodies were made and from there it was deduced that the population did die suddenly from the toxic gases from the volcano.
Cast of human suffocating to death from toxic gases from the volcanic eruption
Other facts (I remembered) from our tour guide:
1)The Romans used lead pipes for their water supply. A slow revenge from the natives of Britain whom the Romans conquered and took the lead from.
2)The roads were also designed as a drainage system with a sloping angle so all the water will flow out of the city.
3)Sidewalks are used so that people will not get wet from the water draining out. Stepping stones / stone blocks with spaces in between are used to cross the street. The stone blocks are spaced in such as way that the chariot wheels can pass through (in between the stone blocks, the space between the wheels of their chariots are standardized!)
Stepping Stones / Stone Blocks to cross the street / drain
4)Water fountains all over the city providing clean water were made available to all the people.
Water fountains supplying clean water to the population
5)We saw at least one arena (small one) and one forum, which seems to be typical in most Roman cities (Rome has them too). Comparing to our time, the forum is like their mall, park or coffee shop. The arenas were like our stadiums for sports and entertainment.
6)There was definite evidence of prostitution and the red light district. Rooms for sex and even sexual positions painted on the walls.
Sex Positions Design the Walls of a Room in the Red Light District
A very good advice: before or after (preferably before) going to Pompeii, one should watch Rome, the TV series from HBO. HBO did a masterful job, depicting life in Rome (and thus Roman cities). The TV series would help the imagination to make the experience of Pompeii truly historical. It was unfortunate that the series was cancelled due to the production being too costly.
Considering the times (1st century, not too much technology, no electricity), life in a Roman city was pretty good. One should be in a decent position in society though; for example if you were a slave, it wouldn’t matter much if you lived in Rome or in some other time. There was food and water, good sturdy homes, transportation, entertainment and even art. You had daily news, specific specialized crafts (butcher, etc) leading to possible careers. You had the protection of the Roman army, you can travel to other places (in the empire), or get to see many foreign things from the conquests of your soldiers. I would never prefer olden times from the current technology age (or even more into the future); but still, probably one of the other best times to be in this world would be in the Roman Empire.
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Pompeii is an amazing historical landmark. Its been year since I visited there, but the impression is still alive. The restored ruins are amusing for their story frozen in the bricks and the casts of bodies, which recall the loss of the port city back to life. I think everyone should go and experience this incredible city.
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