I may be one of very few people that have taken Latin classes throughout school. So, as soon as I learned that we would have the opportunity to visit Pompeii and Mt. Vesuvius, I was beyond excited.

All 22 of us girls started out for Pompeii very early and eager to hike up its most famous mountain-Vesuvius. Although there were a few bumps in the road (like our bus breaking down for two hours), we arrived in Pompeii with the most beautiful weather anyone could ask for.

We were finally able to see what the others and I have read about in textbooks and heard from teachers for so long. Standing and looking at a city that was created 2000 years before our time and being able to get a feel for their daily lives was remarkable.

The next stop on our journey was Mt. Vesuvius. As we inched up the windy roads to where we would begin our hike, there was snow piled up along the road. Many of us began to rethink our 5:30 a.m. wardrobe selection of leggings and a light jacket once we stepped off the bus into the wind tunnel.
Reading a textbook could have never prepared me for how beautiful and remarkable this volcano was. The hike up was comical at the beginning when half of the girls took off in a run up the mountain into the brown sandy mud. This tempo did not last for more than 50 feet. This hike pushed me harder than I have been pushed in a while, but the view from the top was worth a thousand words.

Experiencing the life of ancient Roman and seeing so much history has by far been one of the best experiences on this trip.

Avery Thomas