Pompeii.

Eh. I'm too tired to write anything intelligent and carefully researched. Have some pictures of Pompeii.

The best tasting octupus ever.

The Flaming Chef and Dr. Snickerdoodle outside the amphitheater.

Mosaic from a wine bar/lunch counter

The dogs of Pompeii were very fat and happy.

The city baths.

Dr. Snickerdoodle as the barkeep!

The ruts in the streets from the carts.

The House of the Faun.

More wicked cool mosaics.

One of the victims of Vesuvius.

Tidbits from the Roman Forum.

Flowers on the mound.

 I've been putting off my blogging. I was going to get "serious" and write about my writing process.

But I wasn't ready to leave Italy behind! Back to Rome for an exploration of death and rebirth.

The mound to the right is the altar of the Temple of Caesar. Augustus began construction of the temple in 42 BC after Julius was assassinated. All that remains is the mound above.

Below is the entrance to the Umbilicus Urbis (Navel of the City). I found myself fascinated by the small, unassuming structure. It had been used as a reference point for center point of the city and was considered an entrance to the Underworld.

The sign at the Umbilicus Urbis.

Augustus Caesar as the Pontifex Maximus.

The remains of a colossus of Constantine.

The Roman emphasis on realism in their portraiture proves that you don't need to be a big, brawny guy to rule the world.

The statue from the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus, originally built around 509 BC. Wow!