Our first few days in Italy

We have been onboard the Crystal Serenity for several days with ports every day!  This is an exhausting cruise to say the least.  We had our first few days in Genoa & Livorno, Italy where we just walked off the ship.  We have been in this part of Italy before so we enjoyed exploring the towns of the ports.

Trompe-l'œil, a technique that creates the optical illusion that the window frames and arches look three dimensions. Only shutters in the upper windows are real!

Home of Christopher Columbus in Genoa, Italy

In Rome we decided to take the train in to Vatican City and prearranged a tour of the Vatican Museums.  We have never seen this so crowed!  Apparently because it is Holy Week and the local students are end of term everyone is here!  We stood in line for an hour to get through security to enter St. Peter's Basilica and once inside it was a crush.  On past visits we have been able to walk through easily but not today.

Exterior of the Sistine Chapel (photos are not allowed inside)

Raphael's famous  fresco The School of Athens has come to symbolize the marriage of art, philosophy, and science that was a hallmark of the Italian Renaissance.  Plato and Aristotle are the main figures in the middle.  Michelangelo's image is depicted in the seated figure on the steps in the front middle.

The Vatican Museums were fabulous but without a Vatican guide with earphones we probably would not have event been able to see any of the paintings and sculptures due to the crowds.  Once inside the Sistine Chapel it was "cheek to jowl".  But of course it is always inspiring and majestic.  We learned more about Michelangelo-primarily a sculpturer, he was reluctant to accept the commission but did complete it at age 25 from 1508-1512.  The controversy over the figures painted in nudity in the Sistine Chapel continued after Michelangelo’s death. The artist Daniele da Volterra was hired to cover up some of the genitals in The Last Judgement by adding fig leaves and cloth drapes, which earned him the nickname “Il Braghettone” (“The breeches maker”). There has been some attempts to restore the paintings back to Michelangelo's masterpiece but it could only be done on some that had been painted over with oils (that could be removed) but the fresco on others were scraped away removing the original paint.

Our ship with Mt. Vesuvius volcano in the background

Our next stop was Sorrento where we had booked a private small group tour of Pompeii.  This was a wonderful architectural lesson while walking through a Roman city that was completely destroyed by Mt. Vesuvius in 79 A.D.

Mt. Vesuvius volcano

Original tile mosaic floors

The people died primarily of the poison gas and the city was buried under millions of tons of ash.  The city was discovered in the mid 18th century where bodies were frozen right where they’d fallen. Everyday objects and household goods littered the streets and hundreds of clay wine jars were found. Later archaeologists even uncovered jars of preserved fruit and loaves of bread!

The narrow roads were built in a grid with a major north-south streets and east-west smaller side streets

There was a sewer system built into the roads with terracotta pipes

The people bodies that were found were encased in a solid ash.  

the "Gymnasium" or school for the boys with the play field

This was a wonderful tour and thoughtful place.  It was imazing to see the brilliant architecture and buildings that werre 2,000 years old!