What a nice way to end 2016 in Italy! Rome again after 12 years. Landed in Rome just on time for the December 25th celebrations at the St. Peter's Basilica. The Christmas Parade, joyous crowd, and the Pope's message on peace made this a special Christmas vacation. 
The next day visited Naples (Napoli in Italian) and Pompeii. The drive on the beautiful Napoli coast is a must one. Visited the small island of Capri and enjoyed the beautiful beaches. The next stop was Pompeii. The archaeological site is located just at the bottom of Mt. Vesuvius. The volcano which erupted in 79AD covered the city with lava and ash. Pliny the Younger, a notable Judicial officer, writer, and orator, who witnessed the eruption, mentioned as the “cloud of unusual size and appearance” to a pine tree that “rose to a great height on a sort of trunk and then split off into branches”; The term Plinean eruption in geology is coined after his description of the volcano. 
Today, tourists and archaeologists throng this city to get enamored by the beauty and to witness the helplessness of humans before a natural calamity. The city is now a UNESCO heritage site. The casting of the people who were buried along with the city is quite poignant. Pompeii is a well planned city, Etruscan villas, working class neighborhood, lead pipes carrying water, central stadium, and even the houses marked by numbers. Very interesting one is a house with a sign of "beware of dog"!
The dog's image was etched in mural and one can imagine the lifestyle of those Pompeiians.
Enjoyed the sun set that made Mount Vesuvius to glow in crimson red.
Also, time to have dinner at the recommended Machiavelli Restaurant which has great vegetarian menu. Our waiter said that the wine Lacryma Christi in this region is the best due the volcanic soil. Lacryma Christi means literally Christ's tears of joy!. The regional legend says that when Christ ascended to heaven he looked down to see the beautiful Naples coast and shed tears of joy. The original Napoli Pizza was heavenly after a long day of walk and I did hum " What a wonderful World"!.PEACE ON EARTH
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