Twenty miles or so from Naples - about 45 minutes by hydrofoil - and our home since 2003

Neapolis - the "new city" founded by the ancient Greeks some 3000 years ago - took advantage of a glorious and sheltered position in the curve of the Bay. Later taken over by the Romans, and eventually the capital of southern Italy, the city was one of the first to endorse the creation of the new Italian Republic in the 19th century. For photos from the many years we've known the city, see ___http://www.pbase.com/isolaverde/mainlynaples And for the very good magazine issued some 4 or 5 times a year by the tourist board, try ___http://www.inaples.it/eng/quinapoli.htm

One of the greatest glories of Campania, Paestum is one of the few places in Italy that allows more than a glimpse of Magna Grecia - the overseas colonies established by the city states of ancient Greece. Here the remains of three magnificent Doric temples stand amidst the ruins of the walled city, attracting relatively few visitors despite Naples, Sorrento and Amalfi being so close. Founded in the C7th BC, with its coastal position, the name 'Poseidonia' - to honour the god of the sea - must have been an obvious choice. Paestum was abandoned in the Middle Ages when the plains surrounding the city succumbed to the malarial mosquito, after drainage canals built by the Romans fell into disuse - with the ruins remaining lost until chanced upon by road builders during the 18th century. The site's archaeological museum contains many decorated panels from burial monuments. Unusually, some of them depict various human activities: the most celebrated of all was found in what's now known as the 'Tomb of the Diver'. . (Click on the pictures for larger versions!)

For five months, from February 1944, the new Italian government made Salerno the nation's capital. . Long before this the city, which stands where the rugged Amalfi peninsula meets the mainland, had already known times of great importance and wealth and few visitors are aware of the extent of the city's role in history, as reflected in the many fine buildings of the old quarter, recently the subject of much restoration. . The city's fine cathedral houses the tomb of the Apostle Matthew. . If coming to, or leaving, Salerno by sea, note that both the Alicost line and the hydrofoils of the 'Metro del Mare' moor at, and leave from, the 'Molo Manfredi' quay - at the mainland end of the port - while local boat firms generally use the smaller tourist harbour, near Piazza della Concordia and the centre of town. . Salerno runs into the neighbouring town of Vietri sul Mare with hardly a pause ___http://www.pbase.com/isolaverde/vietri . For more about sea connections, see ___http://www.alicost.it/content/?id=6 and also ___http://www.coopsantandrea.com/eng/servizidilinea/servizi_eng.asp

Near neighbour to Pompeii, the ruins of the Roman port town of Herculaneum are situated in the modern city of Ercolano. Destroyed by the same eruption as Pompei, in AD 79, the different forces at work treated the buildings and streets rather differently - and a deep layer of ash turned into mud that formed an airtight seal over everything. A smaller site than Pompeii - although much is yet to be excavated from under the streets of modern Ercolano - and in generally better condition, the ruins are more easily appreciated as once having been part of a living city. In several places earlier scavaging tunnels, dug far into the deep layers of sediment in the hope of unearthing both treasures and the papyri of libraries, have been preserved and can be explored.... (click on individual pictures for larger versions)

A visit to the Antiquarium and archaeological site at Boscoreale - just a few miles north of Pompei . For details, see ___http://www.pompeiisites.org/Sezione.jsp?idSezione=1167& .. Click on individual photos to see a larger version - and, with some, a few notes that may be of interest. .. Sadly, the collection there is lacking the best of what was found nearby - amongst the plunder carried away... - frescoes from a villa said to belong to P. Fannius Synistor have long been in American hands: ___http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/cubi/hd_cubi.htm - whilst the fabulous Boscoreale treasure is at the Louvre in Paris: ___http://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/boscoreale-treasure-0 What they were displaying was a collection of plaster casts of bodies found in the ruins of several of the ancient Roman villas - all of whom had been buried alive during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. That exhibition eventually ended on 20 February 2011 but, for some more details, see ___http://www.incampania.com/en/eventi.cfm?s=3&Info_ID=4983 . ....................