Greek Museum and Temples

We'll start with museum since it's the less interesting of the two.

The diving man. It was on the inside of a tomb. It symbolizes a man jumping from the plateau of life into the sea entrance of the underworld.

Another tomb painting. They stay preserved because the elements can't get to them.

Hunting scene.



This was an attempt to match how the Greeks would paint their temples.

All right, enough museuming. Let's get outside.

This sign greets you as you enter the park. Good to know that should I be attacked by a ranger, the guards will swiftly waggle a finger at him.

Hera's temple.

Gah, I just realized I don't know what I'm talking about with these. I just played around in the area without reading the sings. OK, maybe the museum was more interesting in terms of comments.

I leave you with this image. The park was lovely but I'm like a five year old in places like this. Climbing around is more interesting than the history.

Capri Island

I didn't take many pictures. I wanted to relax.

This sums up the entire island. It's paradise on Earth.

This seagull let me get real close to him. Being a bird lover, I named him Scully and took his picture.

This isn't an American tourist spot at all.

Vesuvius the Volcano

So after that grotesque post, I give you Mt. Vesuvius up close. Yes, I ignored my own advice and climbed up an active volcano. For science!

Climbed all the way up to the crater.

See the smoke on the right side?

The veiw is stunning. The fertile soil allowed a dense forest to grow around the volcano.

All these people will most certainly die the next time Mt. Vesuvius erupts. I know it happened a long time ago but don't theose corpses serve as any warning?

Pompeii

About two thousand years ago, Mt. Vesuvius erupted. The ash and smoke covered Pompeii and plunged it into pure darkness. Pumice and coal rained down and broke down the houses. Noxious fumes filled the city. Pyroclastic flows destroyed what was left. Most people managed to escape but at least 2,000 were killed.

Get a feel for the look.

When the pyroclastic flow hit, temperatures went up to 400ºC. The first breath seared the lungs and caused them to fill with fluid. The second mixed ash with the fluid and created a wet cement in the lungs. The third breath hardened the cement and left the person gasping for breath until they died.
These are casts made by the people preserved in the ashes. See how they're holding their hands over their mouths?

The ash created a barrier against decay for the artwork. Artists in the smaller towns tried to imitate famous artists in Rome. This one is mimicing Venus Anadyomene by Apelles but it's not a very good copy. Legs do not work like that.

Pompeii was filled with bars and brothels. Those people aren't wrestling.

Looking at Mt. Vesuvius now with all its lushness, it's hard to imagine that it caused all that destruction and death. You know it's set to erupt again very soon right? There's several million people living right up to the base of the mountain.

Forum Romania

Oh hey, it's a forum. No, not an internet kind. Back in the day, forums were public gathering places. There were shops, you could meet your friends or business partners, or get some lunch. The Coliseum is just down the road so you could watch some games as well.

An overview.

Let's zoom in.

This was used both as a shopping center and a prevention against landslides.

A triumphal arch. The Romans built their arches with three walkways. The middle was large enough to march large groups of people through. When they brought back their conquered enemies, they wanted to make an impression.

It's a temple.

It's that temple from another direction. Aren't you riveted?

Yet another temple.

I thought of something to say. The bottom of this forum was covered in over 40 feet of dirt. It was used as a cow pasture, there was a church built on it, people just forgot about it. It wasn't until the 1970's that they began to excavate and restore it.


These were just cool shots.

I decided it was of great importance to show you this floor. I think I had something to say on it but I forget. Please, love this floor.

I'm so awesome at this photo thing. Look, you can almost tell they're people.
I'll give you some history on the Senate. Only men from the upperclass could be Senators. It didn't make you money but you also couldn't own a business. Lots of the Senators had secret partners though.

Vestal Virgins were women given some power. They even had a say in the Senate. If they lost their virginity before their 30-year service was up, they were buried alive.

On a Hilltop

OK. Saint Benedict. This dude didn't like the pretty architecture of Rome and decided to live alone in a grotto for three years. His friend would lower a basket of food down for him but other than that he had no contact. When he became tempted to leave the grotto, because most people would go crazy with only rocks for company, he threw himself naked on a thornbush. Some monks eventually came to him and made Benedict their leader. He was too strict so they tried to poison him. I personally would not mess with a man hardcore enough to jump naked into sharp objects. It seems like a swift way to bad things happening to you. The cup broke in half and he lived on for a 30 years. Blah blah blah the rest of his life wasn't too exciting.

The outside of the monastery. The inside was filled with old paintings but pictures were not allowed. Many of the people had animal heads. I'm sure this had religious meaning and the monks weren't secretly Egyptian but it was lost on me.

This watchtower was built to keep out brigands. I have no idea how some monks would fight off guys with swords but, uh, they had a good view of their valuables being robbed.

Landscape shots. Nothing you haven't seen before. I just wanted to show off the view. If it weren't for the whole monastery thing, I'd love to live there.

This hill, however, actually has some importance.

Here's why. Mountains were considered the temples of God so they would place crosses on top of high ones. You can see it all the way from the monastery so I imagine it's huge. It was a harsh climb up a road; I can't imagine lugging up the material to make that through a forest.

A reconstruction of Benedict's life in the grotto. I guess he prayed all day. Not much else to do.

Rose garden.

This painting is over 1300 years old. Just...wow.

This painting is also pretty old. It's of St. Francesco of Assisi and the only one of something or other. It's unique, though, and that's cool.