Sorrento; Saturday, 01 October, 2011

Up early, and after a disappointing cold shower (there appeared to be no hot water in the apartment), I headed out over to the train station to catch the train out to the first stop of the morning Ercolano.

At Ercolano station I caught the Vesuvius Express coach up to the car park at the base of the summit and then walked up to the edge of the crater (which was quite a hefty walk in the hot sun). Having taken in the crater and the stunning views of the bay of Naples, I descended back down and caught the bus back into Ercolano.

From the station I walked down to the towns other claim to fame, the ruins of the Roman city of Herculaneum, destroyed in the same eruption that did for Pompeii.

Whilst Pompeii was pretty much destroyed by the pyroclastic flow of superheated gases and ash, Herculaneum succumbed to a torrent of lava and mud that swept down the side of the volcano.

I had a very long wander around the site before finally heading back to the station and catching the train back to Sorrento.

By the time I got back to Sorrento it was getting close to sunset, so I wandered down to the harbour to watch the sun set and then had a very pleasant meal in a harbour side restaurant, before staggering back under the weight of pasta to the apartment.