DAY 2: Naples
I woke up around 7:15 am on the second day and I could barely contain my excitement. I was anxious to start the incredible adventure that lay before me. The first thing I did was go out on the verandah to take in the view and as soon as I opened the curtain my jaw dropped. We were still out on the ocean making our way into port so the first think I noticed was the muted sunlight sparkling on crystal blue waters but then my gaze swept upward to see the sun rising through the clouds over Mount Vesuvius. I saw a lot of great views on the cruise but that one will stay with me for a very long time. I couldn’t think of a better way to begin my "Odyssey."
We ordered breakfast in our room (as we did on all of the days onboard the Westerdam) which of course was free. ALL of the food on the ship was free. We ended up only eating on shore a couple of times throughout the trip because not only was the food free on the ship, it was also (for the most part) a lot tastier.
When we were ready to go we went into the port of Naples, Italy. We wanted to see the ruins of Pompei which were about 30 minutes from downtown Naples. We spoke virtually no Italian so we needed someone who spoke English to tell us how to get to the ruins. Luckily, there was an information booth right as we left the ship. We ended up taking a bus to the train station and then boarding a train to Pompei. Our transportation round trip only cost us about 10 euros which is equivalent to about $13 U.S. dollars. Entrance into Pompei cost a bit more than that (11 euros a person) but a small price to pay to visit a place with such extraordinary history. Pompei is the excavated site of a village that was covered in ash when Mount Vesuvius exploded in 79 A.D. Because there was no lava flow much of the city was preserved exactly as it was beneath layers of ash and soil. For nearly 1600 years the city of Pompei was practically forgotten until it was discovered by some local workers who were restoring the city after the more recent eruption of 1631. To this day there are still parts of Pompei that are being excavated. Pompei was nothing short of spectacular and far too vast to see all in one day. It was packed with people since our trip coincided with Europe’s tourist season but I felt overwhelmed by the magic of the place despite the crowds.
After Pompei we wandered down the road to a nearby church which I thought was beautiful.
Of course you can’t really go wrong with a church in Europe, they’re all cathedrals. Near the church was a train station so we took the train back to Naples, exhausted from our wanderings. In Naples, we hopped on the bus but just as I was about to board I felt a pick pocket rustling in my bag. I quickly jerked away out of his reach. It was a very close call because he’d managed to get the pocket with my camera in it half way open. Another second and all of my pictures of Pompei would have been lost. I have been to Europe twice now and both times I have been the victim of an attempted pick pocketing. This leads me to believe that the stories I hear about how thick the pick pockets are in Europe are all true. My advice to any would be travelers is to watch their belongings carefully. Don’t keep any valuable items in any place that’s easy to reach and carry as few valuables as possible while walking around.
That evening we discovered the Vista Dining Room, the formal restaurant on the ship. All around the dining room were windows that looked out on the sea. We ate there almost every night on the ship and watched the sun set over the ocean. It was pure luxury. Most evenings we were joined by some of the other passengers on the ship who were all very friendly and easy conversationalists. They often told us of their world travels which we found fascinating.
After dinner we skipped the nightly entertainment (there were shows every night) and turned in early since we were still jet lagged from the trip.
Continue reading RSVP Mediterranean Odyssey Day Three: Messina, Sicily…
