Pompeii - Experiments in Soft Kit

[Paul Elliott]

Hi! Well we got written permission from the authorities to go in soft-kit to Herculaneum, but not Pompeii. But, considering the attention we'd get and the nagging requests for photos, we decided against it at the very last minute.

In all we visited Herculaneum once and Pompeii three times, each time for 6-7 hours. We know it like the back of our hands now, we were even giving English-speaking tourists directions. Maybe we looked like we knew where we were going.

The highlights were getting in at 8:30 and having the amphitheatre to ourselves, sitting up high on the benches, looking down, and again, getting to the Lupernale (brothel) and soaking up that seedy atmosphere without the huge crowds that appeared after 10:00.

On the final visit we took wine (Lacrimi Christi, from grapes grown on the slopes of Vesuvius) and shared a glass or two at one of the street-corner bars up toward the Ercalano Gate. We took turns being the barkeep..the closest we got to re-enactment at Pompeii!

[jvrjenivs]

Glad you had a nice time in the Napels area! Your picture is making me want to go back there.

[Sutoris]

After this years parade we decided to pay a visite to the Baths of Caracalla, no Legia Plastica in sight.
We had to explain over and over again why we didn't accepted money for pictures and people where very pleased to see some "real" Romans :lol:

[Paul Elliott]

Lucky Sutoris! Did you get bothered much by the public, I know interest is nice, but were you ... mobbed?

[M. Demetrius]

A good way to defuse the "pay for pictures" is to tell the photographers you would rather that they gave the money to their church or favorite charity. That sets you on a level far above the "fake gladiator centurion plastic armor" crowd. People really do appreciate that there are honest reenactors out there.

[Sutoris]

At first we were raided by a Canadian school inside the baths, lots of fun :razz:

We were just having a good time admiring the baths, ignoring other people.
Because we didn't take the initiative to approach people, the majority of the people were very reserved and hesitated.

After we explained(in French, Italian, German, English or Dutch) what we did and why we couldn't accept money they even complimented us.




Priest and legionair having an argument
[attachment=1971]IMG_5249.jpg[/attachment]

[jkaler48]

"in French, Italian, German, English or Dutch"

Wow I might manage a little in German and I can say "I don't speak Dutch well. Can you speak in English" and "I don't want money" in Dutch. But it is difficult to find Dutch speakers who don't speak English much better than I speak Dutch.

[Sutoris]

Well John,
Belgium is a small country with 60% Flemish and 40% French speaking, watching German cartoons as a little boy and stationed in Germany for ten years did the trick for German. English is omnipresent in this world, never had it at school so writing is difficult. Still struggling with the Italian though.