Here is a selection of other images from my stay in Rome. Rome seemed more spread out than either Turin or Naples, and, in my couple of days there, I barely scratched the surface of the place. I did get some great light, and unlike all my other Italian stops, no rain.
My choice of big touristy thing for Rome was the Colosseum. I choose a time slot toward the end of the day, hoping for better light and fewer people. I certainly got the light and the crowd did lessen in the final hour. My ticket also gave me access to the Forum and Palantine Hill within 24 hours, so that was my first destination the next morning. I found an entrance on the Palantine Hill side, near the Circus Maximus. Most people seemed to enter on the Forum side, neat the Colosseum. This meant that my exploration of the Palatine Hill was quieter than expected. The top of the Palantine gave an excellent view of the city.
'I remember the back streets of Naples', to quote the terrible Peter Sarstedt song. Well, the back streets were far more interesting than the front streets, and not far from them either. Most of these images were taken in the 'Spanish Quarter', just off the main drag that was featured in the first Naples post. All the images were shot in the last couple of hours of light, with the little fixed lens Fuji X100vi, which was perfect for the circumstances.
I was fascinated by the little shrines that seemed to be on every other building. I've seen similar things in rural Ireland, but those were quite formulaic. A statue of the Madonna in a little house. The Naples versions were much more personal and quirky.
With no more than two nights in any city, I had to carefully choose what I wanted to see. This was especially true of the tourist hotspots. Whilst in Naples I had time to visit either Pompeii or Herculaneum, but not both. I asked a few colleagues who had visited both, which was their preference. The general consensus was Herculaneum.
Herculaneum was a smaller, more elite, town than Pompeii. The smaller size makes it easy to see the whole town in about half a day. The level or preservation is also different. Due to its location, Herculaneum was only mildly affected by the first phase of the eruption. While roofs in Pompeii collapsed under the weight of falling debris, only a few centimetres of ash fell on Herculaneum, causing little damage. Nevertheless, the ash prompted most inhabitants to flee. The first pyroclastic surge, flowed down the mountain and through the mostly-evacuated town at 160 km/h. Most of the victims of this surge were found on the beach and in the boathouses. A succession of six flows and surges buried the city's buildings to approximately 20 m, causing little damage in some areas and preserving structures, objects and victims almost intact. However, other areas were damaged significantly, knocking down walls, tearing away columns and other large objects. Unlike Pompeii, the mainly pyroclastic material that covered Herculaneum carbonized and preserved more wooden objects such as roofs, beds, and doors, as well as other organic-based materials such as food and papyrus. Frescos and mosaics are better preserved than Pompeii and some of the colours are stunning.
