Day 10 - Sep 10, 2009 Last updated: 10/11/09 3:00pm PT
Day zehn, Flying from Basel, Switzerland to Naples, Italy, Naples museum, Sorrento, Italy.
A picture of a tram in Basel on our walk from the hotel to the bus stop. We stayed at the Ibis Hotel, yes it’s a major chain which we said we weren’t doing. But, we were in Basel for about 15 hours, so we opted for convenience. This hotel is on the same block as the train station and the same block for the bus stop we need to get us to the airport. It’s brand new, has AC, and is very clean.
Italy: We flew into Naples because that is the closest airport to Pompeii. The train from Switzerland would have taken anywhere from 11 to 15 hours, the flight was about 1.5 hours. Italy is another planet. This was the biggest culture shock of the trip. We opted to stay in Sorrento, as it is supposed to be less chaotic than Naples. We had read many unfavorable things about Naples. Every guide book warns about high unemployment, high crime, and watch out for pick-pockets. It warped my brain so much that when we were riding the train from Naples to Sorrento, I noticed that almost all apartment building balconies had five or six rows of barbed wire sticking out from the railing on an angle. I thought crime must be really bad if the residents need barbed wire on their balconies to keep people from climbing up. Then I started seeing clothes hanging on that ‘barbed wire’ and realized how stupid I was, these were clothes lines. Preconceived notions are a bad thing. We didn’t spend much time in Naples, but we did ride the trains almost every day and had no problems with crime.
When we landed at the airport, we tried to buy the tourist card that gets you into museums for free or half price and includes free public transportation. It was supposed to be available at the airport. The person at the info desk said you can get it at the Giribaldi train station. So we bought two €3 bus tickets to the train station (had to go there anyway). We asked the tourist info person at the train station who said, no, can’t buy it here today because that guy didn’t show up for work, but you can get it at the museum. So we bought two €1.10 metro tickets to get to the museum (had to go there anyway). The metro was so slow, we could have walked there faster. At the museum, there were rooms that they were just starting to open up. We got there around 2pm. Guess the train station ticket guy wasn’t the only one who didn’t show up for work today.
When the bus took us to the train station from the airport, we got to see how crazy the drivers are here. Scooters cutting in and out of traffic, red lights optional, park wherever you want. Our bus couldn’t make a turn because of a double parked car. Had to wait. Naples is a chaotic mess of cars, people and graffiti. We were dropped off near the train station, but couldn’t find it. We were let out in a big square (piazza), but nothing looked like a train station, and there were no signs, in any language. We walked around in the busy, hot square, downed a slice of pizza, and asked for help. Found the station, under construction, so the signs were not visible.
The only touristy thing we saw in Naples was the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli. This museum has all the stuff taken from the Pompeii site. I took a ton of pictures here. It was hard to filter out the pictures. So you get a lot of pictures of frescos and mosaics, but none of pots and only one statue.
First up, frescos (painting on plaster). These were the walls. In Pompeii, the whole wall was a piece of art, or painted in a way to make the room look bigger and richer.
Here is a 3D map made in 1879. Pompeii was very large. It was originally established in the late 7th or early 6th century BC. Rome took over the city around 300 BC. It is estimated that 20,000 people lived here when Mount Vesuvius blew up in 79 AD. The city was rediscovered in the 1600s and excavation began in the mid 1700s.
Inspiration for the Statue of Liberty?
Next up, the mosaics. These are tiny tiles of different colors put together to make a bigger picture. These were usually the floors in Pompeii. I thought these were amazing.
I zoomed in on the pairs of pictures below to show more detail. I love the depth and shadows here.
Naples, outside of the museum.
The view of Sorrento. We are staying a few kms out of town to save a couple of bucks.
The view of Mt. Vesuvius from the hotel room.
