Pompeii, Italy.

Pompeii, the city covered by volcanic ash, was a must-visit for us. Lapilli, small fragments of lava or other volcanic material that fall from the sky during a volcanic eruption, covered some of those trying to escape the volcano.

Pumice stone left human-shaped caverns in the rubble; plaster was used to recreate their last postures. It’s harrowing to see bodies bracing for impact, holding their children, taking cover.

Pompeii was a town of 10,000 - 20,000 people, size akin to a large university campus. You easily spend a day exploring and there are, in fact, 3-day passes available. There are many sites to see - buildings, statues, roads, and a small museum just inside the gate called the Antiquarium. It took all four adults to figure out where exactly to go and how to navigate. We didn’t trust the attention span of our group to warrant paying for a tour guide, so throughout the day in response to our questions we said, “We’ll just Google it.”

Thermopolium: place to buy ready-made food (read: snack bar)

Pompeii crosswalk

Stone streets of Pompeii

Fountains found throughout the ruins