Posts Tagged ‘herculean’

Not Pompeii

Saturday, October 18th, 2014

We are not far from Mt.Vesuvius, which still rumbles from time to time.

And if you find yourself in the neighborhood you should pass up it’s famous neighbor and head to Herculean. It too was devastated back in 79 A.D. and was a seaside resort for the rich and famous of that day. It is beautifully excavated and there is so much more to see here.

At about 1/4th the size, most of its relics and frescoes are still here and not in a museum. Wandering around gave us a true picture of daily life. They even had fast food restaurants and wine shops as well as gymnasiums and elegant communal baths.

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Located in the southern part of the city of Naples, it revealed an elegant and organized lifestyle, unlike the area that surrounds it. Naples is dangerous!

Herculean is many times bigger but they are unable to excavate because the ruins are buried in ash and lava under a slum neighborhood of today. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit but took little money, no purses, one credit card, and were grateful for a new, monitored parking facility next to the site.

Gotta watch your back, not just for volcanoes!

old,new,and the volcano

old, new, and the volcano