Ciao Archeologists and Old Relics,
As the bellisimo Positano receded into the distance of our driver's rear vision mirror, we headed towards Pompeii some 45 minutes down the road - a very windy road. We had debated over the relative merits of using a day of our Positano stay to see Pompeii but weren't thrilled with the idea of arriving there in middle of the day either by train or bus when it's as hot as Hades and every other tour bus is sharing the ruins with you. Equally in needing to get to Florence heading via ferry and then taxi into Naples wasn't a thrilling prospect. Fortunately for us, our evening ritual of drinking Prosecco or vino Bianco on our terrace delivered in spades as our neighbors put us onto the benefits of a private driver who collects you and your luggage, waits for you at Pompeii and then drives you directly to the Centrale Stazione to catch the very fast train to your destination. Molto convenient! And all in air conditioned comfort! And even better people's, not all that more expensive when you add ferries x taxis (rip offs) x trains to get to Naples. Would highly recommend our lovely informative driver Antonio, a lovely gent with some 35years of experience. We have his card!!!!!!
We arrived at Pompeii and were astounded at the size of the place - it was extremely large and was an example of such brilliant town planning that even the modern day municipal planning officers of City of Yarra and City of Hobson's Bay could learn a thing or two. Seriously impressed were we by the Forum(the major city square/meeting place), the meat and fish market,the shopping precinct, the stunning public baths,the grand amphitheater and the Pompeii equivalent of the "G" and of course the famous Lupanare - the brothel.
The Lupanare was one of 50 brothels in Pompeii. It is indeed the oldest profession. Lupare was the roman word for prostitute. These ladies we're not entitled to use the word "matron" - the common form address, unless married, they were not entitled to inherit. The clientele were the servants and working class of the city. Rich Pompeians, had the girls come to their homes so as not to call attention to their lascivious habits and if they didn't call on the lupares, they simply extended the job descriptions of their servants to include sex as well as hovering the villa!!
The price of sex was the equivalent cost of two glasses of house wine,or 2 Assisi and was paid directly to the pimp, the Lupare did not get a cent. One can only guess that for the girls on the Game, being buried by layers of ash and pumice stone in 79 AD would have seemed like a reasonable option!!
After a few hours in Pompeii we headed to Naples. Can I say most diplomatically, what little we saw, the place was a rubbish tip, literally. Apparently the waste collection service as with most municipal contracts is tied up with the mafia and hence stringent performance targets are NOT part of the contractual arrangements. We wound our way into Naples and in seeking the advice of our venerable driver Antonio, he indicated that one should not hitherto stay in Naples but simply go in for a day or half a day into Centro Historic, see the Museum and the local old area but that is all, as the rest is more than a tad dodgy!
So Antonio delivered us safe and sound and we got tickets on the ES train to Florence. Very excited folks, love train travel. We did the first class thing, even though second looks just as fine, and settled in for our three hour trip. Can I say reclining comfort, complimentary bevies and snacks and air conditioned comfort AND speeds of 300 k's per hour were the order of the day. It was just the most economic and enjoyable use of time.
We arrived in Florence, with no idea about where the bloody hell we were staying other than the Lonely Planet Map. Folks, Florence is a dream. We headed in the correct direction and folks, we stumbled onto the Duomo. This is the major church in Florence and is serious gear. All green, white and red marble. To see it for the first time takes you breathe away. Then 15 mins we were at our accommodation and John Ferraro, I owe you and Bianca the biggest drink of all times!!!!! On Piazza de Le Republica and with a lift, we could NOT be in a better location. The room is brilliant with a kitchen/dining area and a separate bathroom, beautifully proportioned and decorated. And just 739€ for the week- is was a bargain to end all bargains.
We dumped our gear and headed out into the square and beyond for a wander. We headed back to the Duomo and walked around the base. It's not a religious thing at all, but when you see the beauty, the engineering, the vision, the labour that has gone into the creation of such a building, you are truly humbled by it and by what man can create!!!! No cranes, no hydrollics, the craft,the skill and the men that built them were just incredible!
Our first night in Florence we came across, ristorantes with windows of pieces of beef ready to be sliced into T-bone steaks the size that Fred Flinstone would be happy with. After a few weeks of pasta and seafood, and loads of Parma ham and mozzarella, a steak was a welcome protein fix!!!!!!!
We had a gorgeous earnest young waiter who had to seek the advice and assistance of his manager in helping us with a wine selection because he was probably even too young to drink. The sommelier comes out and recommends a killer wine and you won't believe this, but the next day enjoying breakfast, on the other side of the town, waves in recognition to Siobhan and stops for a chat because we ate at his restaurant last evening- nice bloke!
We headed for bed looking forward to learning about Florence and in particular "de Medicis" - the family that in so many ways, created Florence.
Buono Sera Florentines
Kelly & Siobhan xxxx
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