We are off on our bus trip to Naples and Pompeii. On the road by 8am in a 50 seater, very modern, airconditioned bus. After the obligatory morning stop at a cafe (no doubt at verry good price to the bus company) we reach Naples at around 11am. It is covered in a dense heat fog, and you can hardly see the sea. We have a quick stop for photos in the bay and its hot again, sure thing! We then have a bus ride around the city for about 45 minutes seeing everything from gorgeous expensive blocks of residential apartments on the waterfront, to some that havnt been touched since they sustained war damage, to ghetto housing. There are cranes and construction everywhere, theyre excavating close to the waterfront to create an underground.

Then after another obligatory stop at a Cameo factory.....we are on to Pompeii, and start with a 3 course lunch which is the nicest food weve had since arriving! We have bread, always plain, and always a day old. The tomato spaghetti with rich flavour and then veal and potatoes. Im impresses, and some fresh fruit, water for the journey and we're off.

The tour starts at 2.45pm with Franco our guide who's 80. Hes dressed in a new white laCoste t shirt, white light linen trousers and boat shoes. he speaks French, Spanish, English, German and his own "simple Italian". From the back he could be my Dad. Hes absolutely delightful and still does one tour every day.

Theres a slight breeze to make our tour slightly more pleasant and its absolutely fascinating. we see the casts of the people caught in the tragic moment of their demise due to the pyroclastic eruption (79AD) and walk around this city dated 200BC. We see one of 25 brothels in the city, painted with graphic frescos depicting various positions on offer and their cost! Nothing changes, 2200 years on! There are lead pipes, with traces of lead found in the bones of people and thought to be associated with their early deaths at around 50 years of age. The stone road bears the marks of carriage wheels cause by all the coaches travelling in the same tracks, we see stepping stones through the road for people to cross when its carrying water.

We visit the temple of Apollo and Diana with remaining statues, see the suburban baths, forum and basilica.

The tour was all a bit rushed, would have been better to skip Naples and stay longer here, and we were off home in the bus. Drop off was at 8.30pm, we were thoroughly sunbaked and had a meal at the corner of our street, before bed.