Pompeii

  Mount Vesuvius in August was dry, dusty, hot, and absolutely worth the effort. By the time the rusted clock at the Pompei Scavi train station ticked around to noon, I had already spent four hours in the ruins of Pompeii and was therefore thirsty, footsore, and sunburnt. From the station platform, Mount Vesuvius loomed in …

Some 2,000 years ago, Pompeii, Italy was a thriving city of shops, taverns, workshops, theatrical shows, and homes with elaborate courtyards. Then, one disastrous August day, Mount Vesuvius blew. The volcano’s eruption smothered Pompeii and everything in it under 60 feet of ash. There the city lay, untouched, until excavation began in the 18th century. Today …