Pompeii 2

*Pre-post*

Fashion craze!

Perfect for semi-formal occasions. Love the bow tie and the red cardigan.

Sit!! Orders the hot guy spotted with the all-dark-theme of fedora, jacket, jeans and boots.

I like!!

Rock chica.

Effortless chic.

Rock and roll baby. Loving the vintage brown ankle boots.

Argghh! Studded gladiator sandals bought from HK! I want to go there!!

A to-die-for bare back doll dress. Cun~

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A Russian painter's depiction of Pompeii : The Last Day

Erotic art in Pompeii and Herculaneum was discovered in the ancient cities around the bay of Naples (particularly of Pompeii and Herculaneum) after extensive excavations began in the 18th century. The city was found to be full of erotic art and frescoes, symbols, and inscriptions regarded by its excavators as pornographic. Even many recovered household items had a sexual theme. The ubiquity of such imagery and items indicates that the sexual mores of the ancient Roman culture of the time were much more liberal than most present-day cultures, although much of what might seem to us to be erotic imagery (eg oversized phalluses) was in fact fertility-imagery. This clash of cultures led to an unknown number of discoveries being hidden away again. For example, a wall fresco which depicted Priapus, the ancient god of sex and fertility, with his extremely enlarged penis, was covered with plaster (and, as Schefold explains, even the older reproduction below was locked away "out of prudishness" and only opened on request) and only rediscovered in 1998 due to rainfall.

In 1819, when King Francis I of Naples visited the Pompeii exhibition at the National Museum with his wife and daughter, he was so embarrassed by the erotic artwork that he decided to have it locked away in a secret cabinet, accessible only to "people of mature age and respected morals". Re-opened, closed, re-opened again and then closed again for nearly 100 years, it was briefly made accessible again at the end of the 1960s (the time of the sexual revolution) and was finally re-opened for viewing in 2000. Minors are still only allowed entry to the once secret cabinet in the presence of a guardian or with written permission. (sources from wikipedia)

Cover your eyes if you're under 18 people!

Naked lady.

The park.

Cast of a victim buried alive.

The garden.

The columns had the ever so familiar Roman touch to it.

Amphitheater. Huge.

The tunnel filled with logs.

I like this wall a lot!

Sitting on the seats in the amphitheater.

Oval shaped.

Squat!

A church at the background.

A field next to it.

Take 2.

This garden is beautiful.

A sculpture of some man.

The copies of paintings on the wall.

Theatro Piccolo.

A stretch of view.

The green field.

Group picture finally. Most of my readers were asking if I traveled alone. Just preferred having my own pictures taken during the trip that's all :)

Mount Vesuvius at the background.

Optical illusion if you focus on the mosaic floor for some time.

Copy of the painting, Priapus.
(I know you guys will be focusing on his huge penis. Go ahead and ogle) LOL

His interesting background:

In Greek mythology, Priapus (Ancient Greek: Πρίαπος) was a minor rustic fertility god, protector of livestock, fruit plants, gardens and male genitalia. His Roman equivalent was Mutinus Mutunus. He was best noted for his huge, permanently erect penis, which gave rise to the medical term priapism.

He was described as the son of Aphrodite by Dionysus, Hermes, Zeus or Pan, depending on the source. According to legend, Hera cursed him with impotence, ugliness and foul-mindedness while he was still in Aphrodite's womb, in revenge for the hero Paris having the temerity to judge Aphrodite more beautiful than Hera. The other gods refused to allow him to live on Mount Olympus and threw him down to Earth, where he was brought up by shepherds.

Priapus joined Pan and the satyrs as a spirit of fertility and growth, though he was perennially frustrated by his impotence. He attempted to rape the nymph Lotis but was thwarted by an ass, whose braying caused him to lose his erection at the critical moment and woke Lotis. He pursued the nymph until the gods took pity on her and turned her into a lotus plant. The episode gave him a lasting hatred of asses and a willingness to see them killed in his honour.In the end, his lust gave him a permanent erection and his penis grew so large that he was unable to move.

Place for prayers.

As we walked, we stumbled upon this beautiful site! Pretty :)

What's left.

The doors of the Villa of the Mysteries. The villa is named so for the paintings in one room of the residence. This space may have been a triclinium, and is decorated with very fine frescoes. Although the actual subject of the frescoes is hotly debated, the most common interpretation of the images is scenes of the initiation of a woman into a special cult of Dionysus, a mystery cult that required specific rites and rituals to become a member. Of all other interpretations, the most notable is that of Paul Veyne, who believes that it depicts a young woman undergoing the rites of marriage.

One of the walls in the Villa.

Ancient tools.

Close shot of a cast victim with its tormented expression.

There's Ashan in Italy??

Great job in spelling, Italians!
LOWNEY TUNES! yeeee haaa!!

A friendly ah ma which we bumped into while we waited for our bus back to Naples. We were actually pissed because we had to miss our bus and walk all the way to center again for another trip!

The beautiful plant!

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Back to Naples

Look at them delicious pastries. Bought a strawberry tart though. Not bad :)

Went to a Chinese restaurant for dinner. The owner's son was pretty adorable. Took a picture with him. Too bad he's my brother's age! If not....*devilish grin*

My dinner in Milan - Tuna pizza. yum yum! We departed early next day from Naples up to Milan which took approximately 10 hours! Crazy.

Eekim's margarita pizza.